What it costs to import a Toyota Hiace to Jamaica

The Hiace is the van behind most of Jamaica’s route taxis, tour operators and delivery businesses. Customs does not band vans by engine size at all. A panel or window van is banded by unladen weight, with one line at 2,032 kg, and the fuel type sets the SCT. The age limit is also different: window and panel vans may be up to ten years old, not six.

The band it lands in

A diesel window van at or under 2,032 kg unladen pays 10% import duty, 7% SCT and 20% GCT, an aggregate of 41.7%. Over 2,032 kg the SCT disappears and the aggregate falls to 32.5%. The weight that counts is the unladen figure on the export certificate, so a long-wheelbase or high-roof Hiace can land in the cheaper band.

What a Toyota Hiace costs to clear

The table prices a 2019 Toyota Hiace 3.0 L diesel window van at an example CIF of US$18,500 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$1,295,855, which is 44.1% of the CIF value. Add the vehicle price itself and the landed cost is J$4,235,135 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$15,725 CIF, the customs charges are J$1,111,827 and the landed cost is J$3,610,215.
• At US$18,500 CIF, the customs charges are J$1,295,855 and the landed cost is J$4,235,135.
• At US$21,275 CIF, the customs charges are J$1,479,884 and the landed cost is J$4,860,056.

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

A petrol Hiace in the lighter band pays 15% SCT rather than 7%, an aggregate of 52.3%, which is the main reason the diesel is the one to buy. A van bought to run as a public passenger vehicle may fall under the franchise-holder bus rates instead, which are lower again; that depends on licensing, so ask the Transport Authority and your broker before you assume it.

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 “Diesel · Panel / window vans not exceeding 2,032 kg” 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.