What it costs to import a Honda Vezel to Jamaica

The Vezel is Honda’s compact crossover, sold abroad as the HR-V. The second generation arrived in Japan in 2021 with a 1.5 litre e:HEV hybrid as the mainstream engine. It costs more than a hatchback to buy, and because the customs charges are a percentage of the price, it costs proportionally more to clear.

The band it lands in

As a hybrid the Vezel pays 20% import duty, no SCT and 20% GCT, an aggregate of 44.5%. The rate is the same one the Aqua pays. What differs is the base: at a higher CIF every line in the table is bigger, and the flat customs fee is a smaller share of the total.

What a Honda Vezel costs to clear

The table prices a 2021 Honda Vezel 1.5 L hybrid at an example CIF of US$16,500 to Kingston, converted at today’s Bank of Jamaica selling rate of J$158.88 per US$1. Each line is calculated the way Jamaica Customs assesses it: import duty on CIF, SCT on CIF plus duty, GCT on the total of all three, then the 0.5% environmental levy on CIF and the flat customs administrative fee for a used vehicle.

On these figures the customs charges alone come to J$1,235,576, which is 47.1% of the CIF value. Add the vehicle price itself and the landed cost is J$3,857,096 before the broker, the wharf and the registration office have been paid.

How the bill moves with the price

Every charge except the customs fee is a percentage of CIF, so the bill moves almost in step with the price you pay. The same vehicle at 15% less and 15% more than the example price:

• At US$14,025 CIF, the customs charges are J$1,060,590 and the landed cost is J$3,288,882.
• At US$16,500 CIF, the customs charges are J$1,235,576 and the landed cost is J$3,857,096.
• At US$18,975 CIF, the customs charges are J$1,410,563 and the landed cost is J$4,425,311.

The exchange rate works the same way. Customs converts CIF at the Bank of Jamaica rate on the day of clearance, not the day you paid the exporter, so a rate that moves one dollar between purchase and clearance moves this bill by about 0.6% of the J$ total. The exchange rate guide explains how to budget for that.

The alternative worth pricing

The first-generation Vezel was also offered with a 1.5 litre petrol engine and no hybrid system. That version pays 58.9%, and on a US$16,000 vehicle the difference between the two bands is more than US$2,000 at the wharf. Treat “1.5 petrol” and “1.5 hybrid” as two different cars when you compare listings.

What this estimate leaves out

The figures above are the government charges and nothing else. Before the vehicle is yours to drive you will also pay a licensed customs broker to prepare and lodge the entry, wharfage and handling at the port, trucking from the wharf, then registration, licensing and a fitness certificate at the Tax Administration and Island Traffic Authority offices, and motor insurance. If you import through a dealer, the dealer’s own fee sits on top. None of these has a published tariff, so ask for a written quote and read the costs beyond customs guide for what to expect.

Check before you pay a deposit

• The year of manufacture is inside the Trade Board age limit for the category, counted at the time of import, not the time of purchase.
• The engine displacement, fuel type and unladen weight on the export certificate match the listing. Customs bands on the certificate.
• The price is CIF to Kingston. If it is FOB, add freight and insurance before you run the numbers, or switch the calculator to FOB and let it add them.
• The vehicle has a pre-shipment inspection certificate and is not described as accident-repaired, flood-damaged or salvaged.

The band this page uses is “Hybrid car, SUV or station wagon” on the dealer sheet revised 1 April 2020. Rates change by ministerial order, so if a newer sheet has been published since, your broker will assess on that one.