Trinidad and Tobago doubles customs fees effective January 1, 2026

The Government of Trinidad and Tobago has officially doubled several customs-related fees, effective January 1, 2026, following the publication of multiple legal notices in the Legal Supplement on Christmas Day.

- Advertisement -

Under Legal Notice No. 472, issued pursuant to the Customs Act, the standard Customs Declaration transaction user fee has been increased from $40 to $80. Legal Notice No. 473 also raises fees at the Container Examination Station, with charges for 20-foot containers increasing from $375 to $750, and for 40-foot containers from $525 to $1,050. Although the notices were signed on December 22, 2025, they were only published on December 25, with all changes taking effect on New Year’s Day.

The fee increases come in the wake of the controversial doubling of traffic fines, also announced via Christmas Day legal notices. Opposition politicians criticised the timing of the announcements, describing the moves as “clandestine” and unannounced. Customs fees apply to goods entering the country and to container inspections at official examination stations, meaning the changes will have a direct impact on importers, logistics companies and businesses reliant on shipping services.

The Government has said the measures form part of its broader revenue-raising strategy. Finance Minister Davendranath Tancoo, who had previously outlined the changes during the national budget, said the adjustments are expected to generate an additional $1 billion in revenue. During his budget presentation, Tancoo noted that the cost of administering public services had risen significantly across ministries, departments and agencies, while many administrative charges had remained unchanged for decades.

“Notwithstanding, many administrative charges, including licence and permit fees and processing charges, have remained unchanged, in some instances, for as long as 30 years. This places additional pressure on the Consolidated Fund,” Tancoo said at the time. He added that updating fee structures was necessary to ensure cost-reflectivity, fairness and sustainability, while safeguarding service quality and enabling modernisation. The customs fee increases were proposed alongside the doubling of excise duties on alcoholic beverages and cigarettes.

In separate notices also gazetted on December 25, the Government announced a waiver of customs duty on several agricultural inputs. Legal Notice No. 478 provides duty-free treatment for items such as plastic mulch, freight container farm equipment and grow lights when imported for agricultural purposes.

Additionally, amendments have been made to the Open General Licence for exporters. Legal Notice No. 485 removes clays, crushed limestone, boulders, sand, gravel, plastering sand, porcellanite, argillite and oil sand from the list of goods that can be exported without a special permit. The change, which takes effect on January 1, 2026, means exporters will now require a separate licence to ship these materials. That notice was signed by Minister of Trade, Investment and Tourism Satyakama Maharaj.