From now on, Saudi Arabia allows licensed companies to import e-cigarette products for commercial purposes. That means that Saudi Arabia will legalize the e-cigarette industry, which is very good news for brands and manufacturers who want to open up new channels. As the largest country in the Arab region, Saudi Arabia consumes considerable amounts of e-cigarettes, which are usually smuggled into the country by land or sea. Kuwait, Bahrain and Dubai, which opened just last year, are all importing countries.
Among the Arab countries, Saudi Arabia, as the country with the most stringent criminal law, has discouraged many smugglers, but there are still people taking risks, which shows that its vape market demand is huge.
The good news for Saudi Arabia will also greatly satisfy the increasing demand in the domestic market, and it will also crack down on smuggling channels. Saudi Customs prohibits the import of hookah and atomizing products from shipping companies and personal websites. Anyone who is found to have illegally imported products will be confiscated. Then forced to pay fines and record violations.
On the other hand, Saudi Customs stated that in three cases, importers can request the refund of customs duties. These situations are: re-export of foreign goods; goods with substantial errors, technical errors or evaluation errors; and goods for which industrial exemption decisions have been issued through the “Faseh” portal.
Anyone who imports products without a commercial license will be confiscated, forced to be fined, and recorded violations. At the same time, companies approved by the Saudi Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) can import products in commercial quantities. The customs has listed some reasons for exempting export tax refunds.
“If it is re-exported within one calendar year from the date of payment of tariffs, a claim for the refund of tariffs shall be filed within six months from the date of re-export. The goods should come from a batch of goods and must not be used locally. Taxes levied The value is not less than SR18,750 (US$5,000), and the exporter is also the importer while certifying the purchase to the Saudi Customs.”
In addition, the owner of the goods with major errors, technical errors or evaluation errors can also apply for “outdated” tariff refunds. The Saudi Customs has confirmed that the requirements for the duty refund application for goods that fall into one of the above exemptions are the same as “the uniform importer number in the customs declaration form and the uniform importer number mentioned in the exemption decision.”
