Importing a car from China to Burkina Faso: full landed-cost guide 2026

Importing a car from China to Burkina Faso: transit port, BESC, duty, TVA and carte grise

Burkina Faso is landlocked, so a car from China is landed at a coastal port such as Lomé, Tema, Abidjan or Cotonou and carried on by road. Every shipment needs a BESC cargo tracking note issued at the port of loading. At clearance the importer pays the 20% common external tariff duty, 18% TVA, the statistical fee and community levies and an advance on income tax; the carte grise follows.

Policy checked: 26 October 2026. Each rate and step links to its official source: the Conseil Burkinabè des Chargeurs BESC notice, the Code général des impôts (2023 official edition) and the 2026 finance law. Customs assessment and registration are decided by the Burkinabè customs and transport administrations; nothing here guarantees the outcome.

Who can import, and what the car must be

Individuals and companies can both import; per the US Commercial Service guide, the importer is responsible for the customs declaration and documents are best prepared in French. Tax status matters: under article 202 of the tax code the advance on profits tax collected at import is 5%, reduced to 1% for taxpayers under a régime du réel. Burkina drives on the right, and Chinese-market cars are left-hand drive. If you are buying a used car, ask your customs broker about the current age rules before you pay; we have not found the official text and do not state a limit here.

Taxes and the landed cost

1. Customs duty 20%. Burkina applies the ECOWAS common external tariff, whose band for final consumer goods is 20% (WTO review of WAEMU members; US Commercial Service).
2. Statistical fee and community levies: the 1% statistical fee (RS) and the regional levies described in the same WTO review, shown as one estimate; the customs liquidation gives the exact lines.
3. TVA 18% (article 317) on the customs value plus the duties and taxes collected at the border (article 310).
4. Tax on cars of 13 fiscal horsepower or more: 5% of the customs value plus border duties, excluding TVA (article 382). The calculator treats the two 2.0-litre examples as below 13 CV; check the rating of your model.
5. Advance on profits tax (AIB): 1% or 5% as above, on the value including duties and TVA (articles 200 and 202), and creditable against the importer's income tax (article 203). The table shows the 1% case.
6. New in 2026: a research and innovation contribution of 15,000 FCFA per imported vehicle with four or more wheels (2026 finance law, article 42). It is included in the calculator as a fixed line.

Two petrol SUVs, calculated live by the same rules engine as this site's calculator. Rows marked "estimate" are LandedCar estimates, not official fees.

Landed charges come to about 48% of CIF, or 132–140% on top of the ex-works price. Run the calculator with the actual model; the customs assessment prevails.

Inspection and carte grise

After clearance the owner registers the car with the transport administration and receives the carte grise and plates. We could not open the official pages of the vehicle inspection centre or the transport directorate, so this guide gives no official fee or document list for these steps; the last table row is an estimate. Keep the invoice, bill of lading, BESC and customs declaration together. Registration is the administration's decision; LandedCar does not guarantee it.

Shipping, transit and clearance

Cars leave southern China by container or roll-on/roll-off for a coastal port and continue by road; the calculator uses the current reference freight and insurance. The Conseil Burkinabè des Chargeurs (CBC) states that every cargo for Burkina Faso, new and used vehicles included, must be covered by a BESC, at least one per bill of lading, prepared by the shipper or its agent and validated by the CBC's agent. Only shippers or forwarders at the port of loading can start the request, and the CBC accepts no regularisation in Burkina or at its offices in Abidjan, Lomé, Cotonou and Tema. The published fee is 35 EUR per ro-ro vehicle and 55 EUR per TEU. On LandedCar shipments the exporter side requests it in China before loading. LandedCar delivers to the port (FOB or CIF); transit, clearance, duties and taxes, inspection and the carte grise are handled in the importer's name by the importer or their clearing agent, and the responsibility for each step must be written into the quotation and pro forma invoice.

Frequently asked questions

Can the BESC be sorted out after the car arrives? No; per the CBC notice it must start at the port of loading.

Is an electric car taxed differently? We have not found an official relief for electric cars in Burkina Faso; duty, TVA and the levies above apply unless customs grants an exemption. Ask your clearing agent before ordering.

Will the brand's local dealer honour the warranty? Do not assume so; ask the seller what warranty is included.

Sources, checked 26 October 2026: CBC: BESC · CBC: BESC issuance · Code général des impôts 2023, art. 198–203, 310, 317, 382 · Loi n° 021-2025/ALT, finance law 2026, art. 42 · WTO Trade Policy Review of WAEMU members · US Commercial Service: import tariffs · US Commercial Service: import documentation. Estimates are LandedCar's, not official charges. Rules change; the decisions of the Burkinabè customs and transport administrations on the actual vehicle prevail.