Iran cuts gold import tariff to zero

Iran cut its tariff on gold imports to zero amid efforts to boost the country’s gold reserves and to facilitate the return of funds held in other countries because of US sanctions.

News ID: 5785

Date: 15 January 2025 - 21:46

TABNAK, Jan 15: The Iranian National Tax Administration (INTA) said in a Wednesday statement that imports of raw gold, platinum, and silver will be free from tariffs and any other taxes imposed on imported goods and commodities, including the value-added tax.

INTA chief Mohammad Hadi Sobhanian said the decision to cut gold imports to zero complied with regulations adopted by Iranian policy-making authorities, adding that the zero-rated duty will be valid until November 20, 2025.

Sobhanian said the gold import shipments will also be exempt from Iranian customs procedures which are aimed at determining the origins of the hard currency spent on their purchase.

Iran has been taking delivery of large volumes of gold since November 2022 when the country’s government adopted a law allowing exporters of goods and commodities to import gold to be able to pay their hard currency liabilities to the country’s central bank.

The decision was part of efforts to minimize the impacts of US sanctions on Iran’s economy and its access to the international banking system.

Figures released last month by Iran’s customs office (IRICA) showed that the country had imported some $5.6 billion worth of standard gold bars in the nine months to December 20, accounting for 11% of Iran’s total imports over the period.

According to IRICA figures, Iran imported some 61.5 metric tons (mt) of gold in the eight calendar months to late November.

Other reports have suggested that a bulk of the gold imported into Iran, amounting to 0.7 to 1 mt per day, is processed via the customs office in the Imam Khomeini airport near Tehran.

Customs figures released on Tuesday covering the state of Iran-Russia trade also showed that Iran had imported some 3.595 mt of gold worth $281 million from Russia in the nine months to late December.