Most cars on Lagos roads were someone else’s first. Tokunbo — foreign-used — cars arrive through the Lagos ports from the United States, Canada and Europe, and buying one abroad and shipping it can still beat the local price. Whether it does depends on three things: the duty, the age of the car, and Customs’ opinion of what it is worth.
Vehicle import duty calculator
The age limit comes first
Used vehicles more than 15 years from their year of manufacture are on the Nigeria Customs import prohibition list. There is no penalty to pay on an older car, because there is no lawful way to clear one: it can be seized at the port.
Check the year of manufacture from the VIN, not from the seller’s listing. Model year and manufacture year can differ, and Customs counts manufacture.
What it costs
On a passenger car, Customs charges on the CIF value — the price, plus shipping, plus insurance:
| Charge | Rate |
|---|---|
| Import duty | 20% of CIF |
| National Automotive Council levy | 15% of CIF |
| Port development surcharge | 7% of the duty |
| ECOWAS trade levy | 0.5% of CIF |
| CISS charge | 1% of the value |
| VAT | 7.5% of all of the above |
These are the rates Customs stated when it set vehicle duty in 2022, and they have moved before. Confirm them with your clearing agent before you buy.
A charge that may or may not be on your bill
In 2025 Customs announced a 4% charge on the FOB value, to replace the CISS charge, and the Finance Ministry halted it that September. Ask whether your assessment carries it.
Customs values the car, not your invoice
Duty is worked out on Customs’ own valuation of the vehicle, from its database, and at Customs’ own exchange rate on the day. A low invoice does not lower the duty; it starts a query. Budget on what the car is worth, not on what you paid.
Seaports only
Cars may only be imported through the seaports. Bringing one across a land border has been banned since 2017, and the offer of a cheap car “cleared in Cotonou” is an offer of a car with no valid Nigerian papers.
Clearing it
Almost everybody uses a licensed clearing agent. The agent files the entry with Customs, pays the duty from your money, and gets the car released from the terminal. Agree the fee in writing, ask for every Customs receipt in your name, and pay duty through the official channel rather than in cash to anyone.
Terminal charges start counting as soon as the car is landed, and storage costs mount daily once the free period runs out. A car stuck at Apapa or Tin Can while paperwork is chased can lose the saving you made on it.
The papers to keep for ever
Keep the Customs duty receipt and the release papers with the car. You need them to register it in Lagos, and the police and Customs patrols can ask to see them on the road. A car without them is, as far as a checkpoint is concerned, a smuggled one.
Then register it
A newly imported car has to be registered and plated in Lagos, and given a roadworthiness certificate, before it may be driven.