Sending a package to Senegal: Customs, VAT and delivery time

Sending a package to Senegal: What companies should know before shipping

Senegal is located at the westernmost tip of the African mainland.

The capital:

Dakar

is by far the most important economic, trade and logistics center in the country.

In addition, the following cities, among others, play an important role:

• Thiès
• St. Louis
• Kaolack
• Diourbel
• tambacounda
• Ziguinchor

Senegal offers particularly interesting sales opportunities for German exporters, especially for technical products and capital goods.

However, importing goods is significantly more formalized than shipping within Europe.

What documents do I need for Senegal?

A typical commercial shipment of goods requires:

• Commercial invoice
• Packing list for larger shipments
• Air Waybill or Bill of Lading
• precise product description
• HS code
• cart value
• Origin of goods
• If applicable, Déclaration Préalable d'Importation
• Import license (if applicable)
• Certificates, if applicable

Depending on the product, additional documents may be required.

This applies particularly to:

• Food products
• Pharmaceuticals (self manufacturing)
• chemical products
• Plants
• animal products
• certain technical products
• regulated consumer goods

A commercial invoice is used for a normal sale of goods.

For:

• free patterns
• Guaranteed deliveries
• Replacement goods free of charge
• Gifts

However, a pro forma invoice may be useful.

Even free goods need a realistic customs value.

Further information can be found at How to correctly use a pro forma invoice at customs.

What is the DPI in Senegal?

DPI stands for:

Declaration Prealable d'Importation.

This is an electronic pre-registration of certain imports.

The Senegalese customs administration writes off a DPI, especially for goods imports with an FOB value:

1.000.000 CFA francs

as well as for certain container imports, regardless of the value of the goods.

For the importer, this means:

The DPI should ideally be prepared before shipping or well in advance of the goods arriving.

Depending on the import process, bank domicile may also be relevant.

For business shipments with a higher value of goods, it should therefore be clarified before collection whether the recipient or their customs agent has carried out the DPI.

Sending a package to Dakar only to discover that the importer still needs to start the pre-registration process is a rather creative form of optimizing transit time.

Which language should I use for the customs documents?

The official language of Senegal is:

French.

DHL currently lists the following for the customs declaration:

• French
• English

as permitted languages.

French is therefore particularly useful for business correspondence.

A technical product description should be as specific as possible.

Not:

“Pièces de machine”

but for example:

“Pompe centrifuge en acier inoxidable pour installation industrial de treatmentement de l'eau”

This means:

• Product Type
• Material
• Other specifications

It is much easier to see.

How long does it take for a package to Senegal to arrive?

DHL currently specifies a delivery time estimate of:

8 to 15 working days.

The actual runtime can be affected by, among other things:

• Customs clearance
• missing documents
• DPI
• Import permits
• Receiver location
• Weekends and holidays

For:

• urgent spare parts
• Production material
• high-quality technical components
• time-critical business broadcasts

An express service should also be considered.

Write the correct address for Senegal

DHL recommends using Latin letters and Arabic numerals.

A business address can be structured as follows, for example:

ABC Industrie Senégal SARL
12 Avenue Cheikh Anta Diop
12500 DAKAR
SENEGAL

Additionally, if possible:

• Phone number
• Email address

the recipient's name must be specified.

Especially in international shipping, this data can be crucial if customs or delivery partners need to contact the recipient.

For deliveries outside of major cities, it should also be checked whether the chosen parcel service directly serves the specific location.

Dakar is a logistics hub for all of West Africa

The Port Autonome de Dakar is one of the most important ports on the West African Atlantic coast.

The port can be accessed regardless of the tide and has extensive facilities for:

• Containers
• RoRo traffic
• Bulk goods
• General cargo
• Refrigerated goods
• Liquid goods

The container terminal covers an area of ​​approximately 24 hectares and processes several hundred thousand TEU per year.

Dakar is also an important transit port for:

• Mali
• Parts of the West African hinterland

This makes the port important not only for Senegal itself, but also for regional supply chains.

For Paket International, the relevant focus remains clear:

Shipping from Germany to Senegal.

Onward transport to other West African countries must be planned as a separate logistics chain.

Sea freight for machinery and pallets

For larger B2B shipments, sea freight to Dakar is often a good option.

The following are particularly suitable:

• Pallets
• Machine
• Industrial equipment
• several packages
• large-volume spare parts

In addition to container terminals, the port also has RoRo and special areas for different types of cargo.

After import, onward transport within Senegal is predominantly by road.

You can find out more at International freight shipping for businesses.

Air freight via Dakar

Air freight is an alternative for time-critical business goods.

The most important international air traffic hub is:

Aeroport International Blaise Diagne

in the Dakar region.

Air freight is particularly suitable for:

• Spare parts
• Electronics
• high quality components
• smaller machine components
• Time-critical production material

For heavy and less urgent goods, sea freight is often more economical.

Does a German product benefit from EBA?

No.

Senegal currently belongs to the group of:

Least Developed Countries, LDC for short.

The European Union grants these countries access to:

Everything But Arms, or EBA for short

particularly favorable access to the EU market.

However, this preference applies:

Senegal → European Union.

It does not automatically mean a tariff reduction for:

Germany → Senegal.

A German aircraft will therefore not be duty-free in Senegal solely on the basis of EBA.

Senegal is scheduled to leave its LDC status in 2029.

The United Nations has decided that Senegal will start on:

19 December 2029

is to be removed from the group of Least Developed Countries.

Until then, the LDC status will generally remain in place.

However, for German exports to Senegal, this development does not change the most important basic rule:

The European EBA benefits apply to access for Senegalese-originating goods to the EU market and not automatically in the opposite direction.

Is there a free trade agreement between Senegal and the EU?

A regional Economic Partnership Agreement was negotiated between the European Union and the West African states for West Africa.

However, this regional agreement is still currently in effect:

not fully in force.

The European Union is currently applying bilateral or interim EPAs, in particular with regard to:

• Ivory Coast
• Ghana

There is currently no corresponding reciprocal EPA in Senegal that would allow for the preferential import of goods originating in Germany.

This is crucial for calculating customs duties.

Do I need a EUR.1 for Senegal?

For a normal German export to Senegal, an EUR.1 should not automatically be planned as a means of reducing tariffs.

Currently, there is no applied EU-Senegal mutual preference scheme that generally grants a reduced Senegalese import duty to goods of German origin with an EUR.1 certificate.

Therefore, a EUR.1 note is not automatically included with every shipment.

However, depending on the product or business transaction:

• Certificate of Origin
• Origin information on the commercial invoice
• further evidence

to be required.

These documents should not be confused with proof of preferential origin.

Automate recurring export data

For regular exports to Senegal, the same product information is often required.

These include:

• Product name
• HS code
• Country of origin
• Weight
• cart value

This data should ideally not have to be entered again for each individual shipment.

Over a Shipping API Or, through shop and ERP connections, shipping data can be automatically transferred into the process.

This allows:

• Shipping label
• Commercial invoice
• Customs information
• Tracking data

Process more consistently.