BMW to settle customs dispute by paying LE 55M to Egypt

CAIRO – 17 April 2019: Egypt’s Customs Authority reached an agreement with the International BMW Company to end the dispute over tariffs and evaluation of the imported cars, by paying LE 55 million, Head of the authority Kamal Negm told Enterprise.

Negm added that the Ministry of Finance is about to sign the agreement with the German company, which will get the company to send the list of prices for approval at customs outlets.

The company promised to inject new investments in the field of car manufacturing in Egypt, where the local market is considered a promising market and a center for access to African markets.

Under Egypt’s agreement with the European Union, BMW will enter the Egyptian market with no tariffs. Tariffs reached zero percent in the beginning of 2019.

The custom cuts of European cars come after Egypt started implementing the trade cooperation agreement with the European Union in 2010 as part of the Egyptian-European Agreement, so European car customs have begun to decline gradually.

The agreement, which came into force in mid-2004, stipulates establishing a free trade area during a transitional period of 12 years. It also liberalizes the Egyptian imports of industrial goods with European origins in a period of up to 16 years.

Among the European cars are Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Volvo, Peugeot, Renault, French-origin Citroen, Fiat and Seat.