South Africa launched a sector-wide review of tariffs, trade remedies, and import surveillance for paper and paper products, with comments due by October 15, 2026.
South Africa published a notice on Sept. 18, 2026, starting a review of import tariffs and its import surveillance system for paper and paper products1.
The notice is General Notice 4154 of 2026, printed in Government Gazette 55409 under the International Trade Administration Act2. Its title is "Review of Tariff Structure Surveillance System for Paper and Paperproducts"2.
In short, South Africa has opened a formal check of how it taxes and watches paper imports. No new tax or rule for paper shipments appears in the published record yet.
What is South Africa reviewing for paper imports?
The review covers two things named in the title of the notice. The first is the tariff structure, meaning the list of customs duties charged on each type of paper. The second is a surveillance system, which lets the government track paper imports as they arrive2.
The notice covers the whole paper sector, not one product or one supplier. It names "paper and paperproducts" as a group2. That wording can reach many goods, from printing paper to boxes and tissue.
The government’s online listing does not show the rates under review. It also does not list the customs tariff codes for the paper goods involved. The full text sits in a short attached file, Notice 4154 of 20262.
Who runs the paper tariff review?
The notice was issued under the International Trade Administration Act, 71 of 20023. That law set up ITAC, the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa, which handles tariff and trade cases3.
ITAC studies requests to change the customs duty schedule, the official list of import taxes3. It can act on an application from companies or on its own initiative3. After a study, it gives advice to the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition3.
A tariff study can end in four ways, according to ITAC’s 2023/24 annual report:
- a higher customs duty
- a lower customs duty
- a rebate, which cuts or removes the duty for certain users
- a drawback, which refunds duty paid on goods later used or sent abroad
The annual report lists these as the results a tariff study may bring3. The paper notice does not yet say which of them the government has in mind.
Did officials correct the paper notice?
Yes, officials fixed a mix-up days after publication. On Sept. 23, 2026, the International Trade Commission of South Africa printed an erratum, a correction notice1.
What the Sept. 23 correction did
That correction, General Notice 4168 in Government Gazette 55445, withdrew Notice 4156 of 20261. It also confirmed Notice 4154 of 2026, the paper review1.
So the paper review stands, and the valid text is Notice 4154, as confirmed1. The correction’s title does not say what Notice 4156 contained.
How could the review change paper duties?
Besides changing ordinary duties, ITAC can use trade remedies, which are special taxes against unfair or sudden imports. Its annual report explains the two main kinds3.
An anti-dumping duty is an extra import tax on goods sold into South Africa below their normal price3. A safeguard measure, usually also a duty, answers a sudden surge of imports3. ITAC can recommend either one only if it finds harm to local makers of the same product3.
A surveillance system is different. It does not by itself add a tax. It lets officials count and watch imports, which can support later action on duties.
ITAC also runs import and export permits for some goods. In 2023/24 it issued nearly 40 000 import and export permits3. Those goods included used machinery, tyres, used cars, scrap metal and chemicals3. The annual report does not list paper among them.
Which countries does the paper review touch?
South Africa charges customs duties together with its neighbours. They form SACU, the Southern African Customs Union3. Its members are South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho and Namibia3.
ITAC’s work covers this "Common Customs Area", the combined land of all five members3. A change to paper duties would therefore apply at every SACU border post. A paper shipment to Namibia or Botswana could face the same new rate as one to Durban.
The notice title names no exporting country2. Anti-dumping cases in South Africa usually name the countries of origin in their titles. Recent examples cover clear float glass from China and India and ropes and cables from Germany and the United Kingdom4. The paper review has no such list in its title.
What else did the trade authorities publish in September 2026?
Several other trade notices appeared in the same weeks. On Sept. 21, 2026, a notice under the same act invited comments on administrative fees guidelines1. That notice, General Notice 4158, set a comment date of Oct. 5, 20261.
ITAC caseload in 2023/24, number of cases
On Sept. 22, 2026, a notice withdrew a ministerial directive on pre-export checks for certain Chinese imports1. The same day, officials published the end of a sunset review, a check on whether old duties should continue1. That review covered anti-dumping duties on ropes and cables from Germany and the UK1.
ITAC has grown busier in recent years. In 2023/24 it ran 5 studies on higher duties, 1 on a lower duty and 13 rebate studies3. It also ran 8 new trade remedy cases, 6 sunset reviews and 2 safeguard cases3.
When will paper shipments see any change?
For now, duties on paper shipments stay as they are. A review is a study, and a study does not change the rate charged at the border. The notice itself sets no new rate2.
Dates on file for the paper review
Any change would come later, after ITAC reports to the department3. The annual report says ITAC follows South African law and World Trade Organisation rules in these studies3.
The government listing shows no comment deadline for the paper review, unlike the fees notice1. The next fixed date on file is Oct. 5, 2026, when comments close on the fees guidelines. Paper firms that later apply to ITAC for tariff changes may deal with those guidelines.
Sources
- ↩ Document | South African Government. https://www.gov.za/af/document
- ↩ Review of Tariff Structure Surveillance System for Paper and …. https://www.gov.za/documents/notices/international-trade-administration-act-review-tariff-structure-surveillance-0
- ↩ ITAC | Annual Report | 2023/24. https://www.thedtic.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/ITAC-Annual-Report-2023-2024.pdf
- ↩ Notices | South African Government. https://www.gov.za/nr/documents/notices?page=1020&order=title&sort=desc