Senegal

• Labeling Requirements
• Licensing
• Import Procedures
• Taxes/Tariffs
• Contacts 

Labeling Requirements
The following information must be present on the label in French:  

• Alcohol Content must appear on either the label or the container.  If the alcohol content exceeds 20% alcohol by volume, the container must state “Vente au Sénégal.”
• Name and address of the Producer must appear on either the label or the container.
• Importer’s Identity Number as provided by the Senegalese Ministry of Trade.

LICENSING
All alcohol beverage (20 percent alcohol by volume or higher) producers or brand owners who wants to sell in Senegal should have an agreement with the Ministry of Finance and be engaged to sell to Senegalese importers only.  The producer or brand owner must provide an updated list of importers and brands, and present the quantity sold by importer and product to the Ministry of Finance every year.

Import Procedures
A. Inspection
Alcohol beverages that enter the port of Dakar are submitted to phytosanitary inspections by the Directorate of Plant Protection and the Ministry of Commerce.  These tests are conducted on samples selected from the shipment, but they do not preclude the importer from pursuing the registration approval process.  Prior to shipping your product, please verify that your importer has received the bill of lading and the phytosanitary clearance documents.
B. Documentation
The following documents are required in Senegal:

• Two copies of the commercial invoices, which indicate the identity and contacts of the exporter and the importer, a complete description of the merchandise, its weight and quantity, and the CIF value.  The invoice should be prepared in French, or issued with a certified French translation.
• A Pro Forma invoice containing the above information.
• A Certificate of Origin provided by the importer, specifying the quantity, quality, and prices of the products subject to customs duties.  COTECNA, a private Swiss firm, has been contracted todetermine the value of the shipment, on the basis of which duties are determined, and deliver a certificate of verification if the amount exceeds 5 million CFR ($10,000).  US exporters are recommended to contact COTECNA’s US office at www.cotecna.com for further information.
• A bill of lading.
• A phytosanitary certificate.

C. Import Documentation Procedures 
Importer:

• Receive invoices from exporter.
• Provide proof of financial capacity (Irrevocable Letter of Credit)
• Fill out Preliminary Import Declaration forms for approval by the Division of Consumption and Quality
• Provide Certificate of Origin

Exporter:

• Send invoices and Bill of Lading.
• Receive notification of Letter of Credit
• Ship merchandise

Importer:

• Fill out phytosanitary documentation (DPV) and Customs clearance

2)   Arrange for warehousing, transportation, and distribution.

TAXES/TARIFFS
The Customs valuation of the product is determined by COTECNA.  After the value has been determined, a 20 percent tariff is applied to all alcohol beverages, as well as a 1 percent statistical tax, a 1 percent community solidarity levy, and an 18 percent Value Added Tax for all alcohol beverages outside of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU).  
There are also additional taxes on alcohol beverages which can go up to 130 percent.

CONTACTS

The information in this guide was obtained from external sources, including the websites of various governmental agencies and organizations, direct contact with those agencies and organizations, and from Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) Attaché reports.  Consequently, the accuracy of this information depends upon the accuracy of the sources. 
TTB is not responsible for the content of external websites.

This page was last reviewed on November 8, 2011.