A friend just told me that most of the custom papers issued to buyers from Cotonou are fake custom papers, pls can anybody here tell us how to identify a real custom paper and a fake one, this is really important pls.

well the fake customs paper is for the cars that are ten years old or you dont have money to clear your car and you will smuggle it, but i must tell you that as customer you will never be able to identify a fake and real custom paper its only the customs and also the Clearing and Forwarding Agent that can identify it,

@Bimbor,

There is something most of the people buying cars from Nigeria does not understand about Nigerian Custom papers. You think its only the cars coming in from cotonou that has a fake custom paper like you pose it. Making things clear to you, you might call it a fake custom paper, but i tell you when they hand over the geniune and the so call fake like you termed it, you would NEVER tell the difference. I am 1000% sure of that.

@MrNice_Guy,

Is that what you know about Custom fake paper I can see that you might eventually be someone that say what you hear and not what you know. Even the Customs and the Clearing and Forwarding agents can't identify a Fake Custom paper like you termed it.

@NL,
I want you all to know that 80% of the Nigerian Custom papers you see out there are under the category of the so called Fake custom paper like you termed it. Okay take for Example this illustration, a cousin of mine came in from Canada and brought along her ML Benz jeep. and when the custom duty was cleared and given to her through the Nigerian Port, Lagos. They had on the document "Type of Car" C-180 Benz. Okay would you tell me that is a geniune paper? its not that the wrong paper was given to her mistakenly. Its still its chasis number. so there are more to be learnt about Nigerian Custom Papers. Don't keep making the issue of Fake Custom duty to Cotonou alone. Its the whole of the Nigerian Government.

@MrNice_guy,
Learn more and find out fact infos before you post them on here. So many people read on this site as there means of information.

Larryshow4

According to Mr Nice guy, does that u cant get a real cutom-issued paper on ur car because i dont want my car impounded, since d customs people can ID d fake ones

what i am still trying to figure out is this: Lets say i bring in a 1997 Camry thru cotonou. Will the govt/customs let the car in legally? Are there legal ways to go about the whole deal without the owner being harassed by customs?

Can it come in despite it being 1997?

bimbor:

A friend just told me that most of the custom papers issued to buyers from Cotonou are fake custom papers, pls can anybody here tell us how to identify a real custom paper and a fake one, this is really important pls.

Larryshow4 & Ayodeji1
I think the simple riddle the Poster wants to solve is whether Customs papers issued on Vehicles (over 10 years) imported through Cotonou could anywhere be genuine. Since you guys claim to be experts on that Cotonou route, can you tell us in simple n straight language if vehicles coming in through Cotonou (that are over 10 years) are dutiable. If they are, does that not make a mockery of the ban on such vehicles coming in through Nigerian ports? And if they are not, then what is the worth of Customs papers issued on these Cotonou vehicles?
Shikena!

@jodesky,
Thats the point in simply a layman language ! pls. our expert dealers on NL should educate us.

Jodesky:

Larryshow4 & Ayodeji1
I think the simple riddle the Poster wants to solve is whether Customs papers issued on Vehicles (over 10 years) imported through Cotonou could anywhere be genuine. Since you guys claim to be experts on that Cotonou route, can you tell us in simple n straight language if vehicles coming in through Cotonou (that are over 10 years) are dutiable. If they are, does that not make a mockery of the ban on such vehicles coming in through Nigerian ports? And if they are not, then what is the worth of Customs papers issued on these Cotonou vehicles?
Shikena!

yem-yem:

@jodesky,
Thats the point in simply a layman language ! pls. our expert dealers on NL should educate us.

Well said

larryshow4:

@Bimbor,

There is something most of the people buying cars from Nigeria does not understand about Nigerian Custom papers. You think its only the cars coming in from cotonou that has a fake custom paper like you pose it. Making things clear to you, you might call it a fake custom paper, but i tell you when they hand over the geniune and the so call fake like you termed it, you would NEVER tell the difference. I am 1000% sure of that.

@MrNice_Guy,

Is that what you know about Custom fake paper I can see that you might eventually be someone that say what you hear and not what you know. Even the Customs and the Clearing and Forwarding agents can't identify a Fake Custom paper like you termed it.

@NL,
I want you all to know that 80% of the Nigerian Custom papers you see out there are under the category of the so called Fake custom paper like you termed it. Okay take for Example this illustration, a cousin of mine came in from Canada and brought along her ML Benz jeep. and when the custom duty was cleared and given to her through the Nigerian Port, Lagos. They had on the document "Type of Car" C-180 Benz. Okay would you tell me that is a geniune paper? its not that the wrong paper was given to her mistakenly. Its still its chasis number. so there are more to be learnt about Nigerian Custom Papers. Don't keep making the issue of Fake Custom duty to Cotonou alone. Its the whole of the Nigerian Government.

@MrNice_guy,
Learn more and find out fact infos before you post them on here. So many people read on this site as there means of information.

Larryshow4

What a childish and cunning post.

nobilia:



What a childish and cunning post.

Explain to me what is childish and cunning about that. i am all ears waiting to hear.

@kunle-A, yem-yem, jodesky,

For cars under ten years coming into nigeria via cotonou can have Nigerian Custom Duty paid for them. What they do is that they charge Under-age cost on them, you still pay almost the same value they have on the duty cars, If you have the money to get it done and you don't want to be embarrased by the Nigerian Customs, you sure pay your Nigerian Custom duty and once they are able to verify that it reflects in there computer system, you don't have issues with them, since you paid Duty on it. even if its 1993 car.

I hope i made some sense out of this, if you don't seems to understand some aspect, you can throw the question into the room.

larryshow4:

Explain to me what is childish and cunning about that. i am all ears waiting to hear.

@kunle-A, yem-yem, jodesky,

For cars under ten years coming into nigeria via cotonou can have Nigerian Custom Duty paid for them. What they do is that they charge Under-age cost on them, you still pay almost the same value they have on the duty cars, If you have the money to get it done and you don't want to be embarrased by the Nigerian Customs, you sure pay your Nigerian Custom duty and once they are able to verify that it reflects in there computer system, you don't have issues with them, since you paid Duty on it. even if its 1993 car.

I hope i made some sense out of this, if you don't seems to understand some aspect, you can throw the question into the room.

Understood. So with ur experience and calc., how much will a 1997 camry be in a legit way? pls find out for me.

bimbor:

A friend just told me that most of the custom papers issued to buyers from Cotonou are fake custom papers, pls can anybody here tell us how to identify a real custom paper and a fake one, this is really important pls.

@bimbo: As someone mentioned, it is practically impossible to tell the difference between genuine customs papers and the fake ones. This is because the "fake" papers are identical to the genuine ones. The only way to verify that your papers are genuine is to have a registered customs agent look it up on the custom's computer.  I always verify the authenticity of tokunbo cars that I buy for resale.

I'm told by several customs agents that, cars that are over 10 years old can be issued customs papers by authorized customs officials. In order to do this, they charge you extra fees and then enter your car's information into their computer system but the year model is specified as under 10 years old. Basically, they falsify the entered information.  If the information is not falsified, they will not be able to enter the data into the system.

Thus, you will be able to register the car in Nigeria. If however, you are stopped by customs agent before you register the car,  they can seize your car and even auction it off after deeming it a smuggled product! My recommendation is that,  people should try to obey the law and avoid importing cars that are older than 10years old.  This is one of the reasons why some customs officials are waylaying people along Lagos-Ibadan expressway and making them pay dearly.

I stand to be corrected by more knowledgeable people.

Cheers,
J

nobilia:



What a childish and cunning post.

Kunle-A:

what i am still trying to figure out is this: Lets say i bring in a 1997 Camry thru cotonou. Will the govt/customs let the car in legally? Are there legal ways to go about the whole deal without the owner being harassed by customs?

Can it come in despite it being 1997?

yes,there are ways you can get custom papers for such vehicle.u only need to pay additional charges but it will be entered in their webpage and u wont face hassles from them.FYI,96 vehicles also come in through lagos port,i hope u know.

Jodesky:

Larryshow4 & Ayodeji1
I think the simple riddle the Poster wants to solve is whether Customs papers issued on Vehicles (over 10 years) imported through Cotonou could anywhere be genuine. Since you guys claim to be experts on that Cotonou route, can you tell us in simple n straight language if vehicles coming in through Cotonou (that are over 10 years) are dutiable. If they are, does that not make a mockery of the ban on such vehicles coming in through Nigerian ports? And if they are not, then what is the worth of Customs papers issued on these Cotonou vehicles?
Shikena!

the point is,theres a ban on cars older than 10years and above.but dont they still come in?yes they do.either through cotonou or lagos,but they still come in.its now left for buyer to choose the option of paying the duty for the vehicle somehow,or driving it that way.if he wants to pay the duty,theres a way he can also do that and whenever he/she is being stopped by a custom officer and asked for papers ,he/she is allowed to go if the paper can be produced.now tell me,is the government not aware of this?

nobilia:



What a childish and cunning post.

chief,u need not be that blunt.he was just trying to xplain something there.if his expalnations are not detailed enough,all u shouldve just done was to tell him to shed more light on it.

jenju:

@bimbo: As someone mentioned, it is practically impossible to tell the difference between genuine customs papers and the fake ones. This is because the "fake" papers are identical to the genuine ones. The only way to verify that your papers are genuine is to have a registered customs agent look it up on the custom's computer.  I always verify the authenticity of tokunbo cars that I buy for resale.

I'm told by several customs agents that, cars that are over 10 years old can be issued customs papers by authorized customs officials. In order to do this, they charge you extra fees and then enter your car's information into their computer system but the year model is specified as under 10 years old. Basically, they falsify the entered information.  If the information is not falsified, they will not be able to enter the data into the system.

Thus, you will be able to register the car in Nigeria. If however, you are stopped by customs agent before you register the car,  they can seize your car and even auction it off after deeming it a smuggled product! My recommendation is that,  people should try to obey the law and avoid importing cars that are older than 10years old.  This is one of the reasons why some customs officials are waylaying people along Lagos-Ibadan expressway and making them pay dearly.

I stand to be corrected by more knowledgeable people.

Cheers,
J

chief,the point is that nobody wishes to inconvenience him/herself in anyway.but not everyone can afford to buy a car and pay the duty for the car.check these officers themselves,almost all of them have a car that falls within that range and is not dutable.the government themselves should look into this and create reforms that will make life easier for an average nigerian.simple.

ayodeji1:

chief,the point is that nobody wishes to inconvenience him/herself in anyway.but not everyone can afford to buy a car and pay the duty for the car.check these officers themselves,almost all of them have a car that falls within that range and is not dutable.the government themselves should look into this and create reforms that will make life easier for an average nigerian.simple.

Good talk, Ayodeji. I wholeheartedly agree with the bolded statements above.

Cheers,
J

Ayodeji.
Thumb up to u, u've really educated me on this paper issue & besides i like ur advice 2 nigeria govt. if what we av on our roads are only vehicles of less than 10yrs. i cant imagine how many ppl dat will be able 2 actualise dream of being a car owner & besides we are trying 2 fight corruption. how many civil servant or ordinary nigerian can afford cars of over a million naira? what about private public transports? here in abuja, most private cabs are golf 1,2 & 3, nissans, etc

Jenju and others,

I have this quest to do things right even when everybody accepts to do things wrong (what is right and what is wrong another debate)

I brought in a 2005 FX45 (containerised) in 2006 and paid 650k to clear it, my suspicions are that the correct duty was not actually paid. All attempts to establish the correct duty from custom officials proved just impossible, I wanted to go to the bank and pay it in myself.

Why can’t these things be transparent by paying online? Is it possible to use a form M to bring in your car and pay the duty prior ? any ideas, if we don’t chase righteousness we consciously enthrone unrighteousness .

My view almost every custom officer is a thief, liar, manipulator etc,etc, they earn modest salaries and yet some have houses in Miami and London.

komekn:

Jenju and others,

I have this quest to do things right even when everybody accepts to do things wrong (what is right and what is wrong another debate)

I brought in a 2005 FX45 (containerised) in 2006 and paid 650k to clear it, my suspicions are that the correct duty was not actually paid. All attempts to establish the correct duty from custom officials proved just impossible, I wanted to go to the bank and pay it in myself.

Why can’t these things be transparent by paying online? Is it possible to use a form M to bring in your car and pay the duty prior ? any ideas, if we don’t chase righteousness we consciously enthrone unrighteousness .

My view almost every custom officer is a thief, liar, manipulator etc,etc, they earn modest salaries and yet some have houses in Miami and London.

komekn, you are better off using a reputable clearing agent who will make sure that your cars are properly cleared and entered into the customs computers. It is practically impossible for people like you and I to determine the actual cost to clear our vehicles. While the tarriffs are clear as to the % of the value of the car which makes a component of the clearing fees, there is no uniformity in the method used to determine the value of cars.

For example, your a 2005 FX45 would have been conservatively worth $25,000. Customs duties should have been 30% or $7500 or N900,000 (at N120 per $). On top of the duties, you have other fees such as terminal fees, your agent's fees, and monies to pay customs employees along the way. By the time you are done, you would have paid over N1million, if all rules are followed. That is why most people just pay whatever they are told by the agents to get their cars out. Customs officials will continue to enrich themselves from the misquided tariffs, currently in place.

Using Form M is not any better. While you may be able to obtain bank rates for foreign exchange through Form M usage, by the time they apply the tariff of 20% on a $30,000 car, you'd be paying almost N960,000 at today's naira, plus agent's fees,, and a whole host of other fees. Once again, a clearing agent would probably charge you N600,000 to clear such a car.

I am not smart enough to know how to resolve this problem. I however believe the tariffs on used cars should be fixed as follows: Year 2000 - 2003, N150,000; 2004 - 2006; N200,000; 2007 - 2008, N250,000; New Cars: N300,000. With fixed fees regardless of the car model, corruption will be reduced. Let me venture to say that this fixed customs fee scheme will never be implemented in Nigeria.

Cheers,
J

Jenju

One other thing are pick up’s e.g. avalanche, F250 etc classed as commercial vehicles with the much lower rate of duty ?

To end on a skeptical and pessimistic note, just read about certificate forgery of the new customs controller, I guess we can look forward to more of the same.

Finally when will the son’s of righteousness have their way in our country

Can someone help me to verify a custom paper or introduce me to someone who can check it on custom's database?

Goodday Sirs.. am new here and I want to troll this Question to people that knows the right answer to my problem... I find out that my 2013 car duty is not done well is there any way I can redo the duty with Costom over here in Nigeria?