Exportations
Export regulations in Côte d’Ivoire are part of the overall trade liberalisation policy of the Government. However, for economic reasons on the one hand, and in order to ensure the respect of regulatory provisions (relating to morality, public order and security as well as to the protection of plants, health and life of people and animals), these legislative and regulatory texts have provided for derogatory regimes to the principle of freedom.
By way of derogation from the provisions of Decree n°93-313 of 11 March 1993, the profession of exporter of coffee, cocoa (Conseil Café – Cacao), pineapple, banana, timber and wood products as well as cashew nuts and cotton (Conseil Coton – Anacarde) is subject to technical approval. This approval from the Ministry concerned is, in general, valid for one (1) year or per season.
In accordance with Côte d’Ivoire’s liberal economic option, the export of any goods or merchandise is free, with the exception of products subject to a Preliminary Authorisation – see list in Annex D of Decree No. 93-313 of 11 March 1993 – and under the Prohibition Regime (raw ivory and certain types of wood) – see list in Annex E of Decree No. 93-313 of 11 March 1993.
In addition to the approvals required for certain professions (see above), it is necessary for a legal or natural person wishing to export to have an Importer/Exporter Code or an Occasional Importer/Exporter Code. To obtain these codes, please refer to the procedure of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and SME Promotion.
Customs Export Procedure: the procedure and documents required for the export of goods is described below – see Customs.
The administrative steps before any export of goods from Côte d’Ivoire are defined in the Inter-ministerial Order n°2014.127/MCAPPME/MPMB of 21 March 2014.
The rules applicable to all exports in Côte d’Ivoire are mainly contained in
- Law n°91.999 on competition
- Decree n°93.313 of 11 March 1993 on the conditions of entry into Côte d’Ivoire of foreign goods and on the conditions of export and re-export of goods to foreign countries.
- Inter-ministerial Order n°127/MCAPPME/MPMB of 21 March 2014
There are three (3) export regimes:
- The freedom regime.
- The regime of prior authorization.
- The regime of prohibitions/ prohibitions.
1-Freedom regime
In accordance with the liberal economic option of Côte d’Ivoire, the export of any goods or merchandise is free, with the exception of those listed in Annexes E and F of Decree n°93-313 of 11 March 1993.
2-Preliminary authorisation regime
Precious metals and minerals listed in Annex E of Decree No. 93-313 of 11 March 1993 are subject to the Prior Authorisation for Export regime.
The export of these products requires from the exporter:
- Authorization from the Ministry of Mines and Energy
- Authorization from the Ministry of Economy and Finance
The Pre-Export Authorization is valid for one order only.
3-Prohibition regime
These are prohibitions aimed at ensuring the protection of fauna and flora, but also concern Ivory and certain types of wood as indicated in Annex F of Decree n°93-313 of 11 March 1993. These products are as follows
- Raw Ivory
- Wood in logs and certain types of raw wood: Aboudikrou, Mahogany, Avodire, Bosse, Sipo, Dibetou, Ipoko, Malcore, Tiama, Kondroui, Bois de vene.
- Ferrous products: Scrap iron, Cast iron, Ferrous by-products
Notwithstanding the provisions of Decree n° 93-313 of 11 March 1993, the exercise of the Profession of Exporter of Coffee, Cocoa, Pineapple, Cotton, Cashew nuts, Bananas, Mangoes – Cf. Order n°2015. 346 of 06 July 2015 – of Wood in Logs and Wood Products, Rubberood and Oil Palm Products are subject to obtaining an Approval issued by the competent Technical Ministry (Cf. specific pages of the site for these products).
This Approval is, in general, valid for one (1) year, or per agricultural season.
Specific articles are devoted to the Exportation of Coffee and Cocoa [Exportation – Agriculture – Coffee – Cocoa] as well as Cotton and Cashew nuts [Exportation – Agriculture – Cotton – Cashew nuts].
In addition, this derogation has been extended to other Agricultural Products through the progressive establishment of comparable Sectors, notably for Pineapple, Banana, Rubber wood, Timber and certain Wood Products.
Prior steps and documents to be produced to Customs before each shipment:
- The Export Certificate if the value of the exported products is greater than or equal to ten (10) million F CFA (GUCE procedure).
- The Exchange Commitment if the value of the exported products is greater than or equal to ten (10) million F CFA (GUCE procedure).
- Preliminary Export Authorisation (for products listed in Annex E of Decree n°93-313 of 11 March 1993).
Exports of metallic ores, gems and precious metals are subject to the Prior Authorisation Regime (see Annexes E and F of Decree n° 93-313 of 11 March 1993) for which the exporter must obtain
- Authorisation from the Ministry of Industry and Mines.
- An authorisation from the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
The administrative procedures, before any export of goods from Côte d’Ivoire, are defined in the Inter-ministerial Order n°127/MCAPPME/MPMB of 21 March 2014.
The necessary documents are as follows:
- A Taxpayer Account Number (or Tax Filer Number), obtained for companies with an Attestation de Déclaration Fiscale d’Existence (DFE) established with the services of the Direction Générale des Impôts.
- An Importer/Exporter Code or Occasional Importer/Exporter Code (see Procedure below).
- An Exporter Approval (for any product subject to the Approval Scheme, i.e. Coffee, Cocoa, Pineapple, Banana, Timber and Wood Products Exporters) – see Product sheets.