The Nigeria Customs Service has revealed that 223 companies have failed to adhere to the conditions of the Temporary Admissions Permit (TAP) amounting to a total bond value of ₦379,576,045,802.27
The Service’s Public Relations Officer, Abdullahi Maiwada, who disclosed this in a statement on Friday, said that these importers neither re-exported the goods nor fulfilled their obligation to convert them to home use by paying the necessary duties.
The TAP 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 that 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.
Consequently, the Service said it has issued a 21- day grace period, effective from Monday, 28th July 2025, to importers who have defaulted on the terms of their TAPs, and adviced 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 further that, in line with Section 143 of the NCS Act 2023, it 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”, it stated.
While giving assurances that it remains fully committed to enforcing regulatory compliance, protecting national revenue, and maintaining the integrity of the TIP framework, the NCS adviced stakeholders and the trading public to take advantage of this grace period and avoid actions that could result in sanctions.
