The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has issued a 21-day grace period, effective from Monday, 28th July 2025, to importers who have defaulted on the terms of their Temporary Admission Permits (TAP).
The 21- day ultimatum grace became imperative following Service due diligence checks on TAP defaulters which showed 223 companies failed to adhere to the conditions of the TAP regime, leaving a total bond value of ₦379.5 billion as the amount defaulted.
The Service said the concerned
importers neither re-exported the goods nor fulfilled their obligation to convert them to home use by paying the necessary duties.
It urged affected importers to take immediate steps to regularise their importation status by either applying for a valid extension, re-exporting the items under Customs supervision, or converting the goods to home use, subject to the payment of appropriate duties, the service said in a statement issued by its spokesperson Dr Abdullahi the
“It is pertinent to note that temporary Importation is a regulated concession under international and national customs frameworks, including the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC) and Sections 142 to 144 of the Nigeria Customs Service Act,
2023. It allows the temporary admission of goods into the country without full duty
payment, provided such goods are re-exported within a specified period without alteration beyond normal depreciation.
“By law, all TAP beneficiaries are required to secure their duty exemption with bank bonds, which serve as financial guarantees in case of non-compliance. Typically, TAPs are granted for 12 months, extendable by another year, and under special consideration, a further extension of six months plus a final six-month grace period. Failure to comply after these periods constitutes a breach”.
“In line with Section 143 of the NCS Act 2023, the Nigeria Customs Service is empowered to discharge the bond value as customs duty into the federal government’s account if the importer fails to meet the stated obligations. The 21-day grace period, therefore, serves as a final window for affected importers to take
corrective action.At the expiration of this deadline, the Service will commence enforcement actions, which may include bond invocation, imposition of penalties,
and legal proceedings”, the Service said.
