Do you need an import licence in Nigeria? Who issues what

Nigeria has no general import licence. An importer needs a registered business, a TIN, a Form M, and a permit only for regulated goods. Which agency covers what.

Nigeria does not issue one general document called an “import licence” that every trader must buy before importing goods.

What you need depends on what you are importing.

For an ordinary commercial import, think of the process this way:

business/tax identity → Form M → product certificate or permit if regulated → Customs clearance.

The mistake is asking:

“How do I get an import licence?”

The better question is:

“Does my product require approval from SON, NAFDAC, NCC, NAQS, NESREA or another regulator before it leaves China?”

That question can save you from shipping goods Nigeria will not clear.

What does a normal Nigerian importer need? #

For a Nigerian business importing commercially, the basic setup is:

• registered business/company
• Tax ID/TIN
• appropriate bank account and trade relationship
• Form M for the commercial import
• product approvals where the HS code is regulated
• Customs documentation for clearance

Nigeria's National Single Window now registers importers/exporters using their Tax ID and business information and brings regulatory applications into one trade platform.

Customs' current service procedure also places Form M, PAAR, the goods declaration, assessment, payment and release inside the normal import chain.

So there is no separate universal “import licence” sitting above all of this.

There are product-specific licences, permits and certificates.

That distinction matters.

Which agency controls your product? #

Use this as the starting point.

Do not use this table as a substitute for checking the actual HS code.

Two products that look similar can fall under different controls.

Nigeria Customs' tariff system now includes regulatory-agency information by HS code, which is the right direction to check before ordering.

SONCAP: check this before your supplier ships #

SONCAP is Nigeria's pre-shipment conformity programme for products regulated by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria.

The sequence matters.

For regulated products, SON says you need:

Product Certificate — PC

before Form M,

then a:

SONCAP Certificate — SC

for Customs clearance.

The goods are checked in the exporting country before shipment.

That means you should not let your Chinese supplier load the container and then ask:

“Please help me get SONCAP.”

SON explicitly says SONCAP is an offshore, pre-shipment programme and cannot normally be processed after the consignment has already left the country of origin; non-compliant shipments can face default procedures and substantial charges.

So if you are buying:

electrical appliances,

cables,

certain machinery,

building materials,

toys,

or another manufactured product,

check SONCAP before paying the supplier's balance.

Use our SONCAP requirements guide for the full process.

Not everything requires SONCAP #

This is important too.

SON itself lists categories exempt from its offshore SONCAP scheme, including:

• food products
• medicines
• certain medical products
• specified raw-material chemicals used by bona fide manufacturers
• used products, subject to important exceptions and permit requirements

That does not mean those goods are unregulated.

It normally means another regime applies.

Food may move to NAFDAC.

Used electronics may involve NESREA.

Phones involve NCC.

Always ask:

“Who regulates this product?”

not simply:

“Does SON regulate it?”

NAFDAC: registration comes before commercial import #

If the product is something people:

eat, drink, apply to their body, take as medicine or use as a regulated medical product,

check NAFDAC before ordering.

NAFDAC's published guidance states that regulated products such as food, drugs, cosmetics and medical devices generally cannot be commercially imported and sold in Nigeria without the required registration.

The exact process depends on the category.

That is why you should avoid saying:

“Every NAFDAC product needs exactly the same import permit.”

It does not.

NAFDAC maintains different procedures for:

• product registration
• authorization to open Form M
• import permits
• port clearance
• chemicals
• pharmaceuticals
• foods
• cosmetics
• medical devices

Its current regulatory portal separates product registration from import/export permit services.

For some registered products, the registration holder can also authorise another company to import, subject to NAFDAC's approval process. So the old statement that “only the registrant may ever import” is too absolute.

If you are importing cosmetics, start with our NAFDAC cosmetics guide.

Phones and communication equipment: NCC #

If you are bringing in:

• phones
• tablets with cellular connectivity
• modems
• routers
• wireless equipment
• other communications devices

check NCC Type Approval.

NCC says manufacturers, vendors and operators must ensure communications equipment conforms to its Type Approval standards before the equipment is brought into Nigeria for sale or use.

There is another 2026 development.

NCC is implementing its Device Management System, built around a central IMEI registry for SIM-enabled devices.

The Commission says SIM-enabled communications devices imported into Nigeria must be appropriately registered/authenticated and that devices not duly registered will not be permitted to operate on Nigerian networks.

So if you are importing phones commercially, do not rely on a supplier saying:

“These phones work in Africa.”

Check the Nigerian approval status first.

Plants, seeds and animal products: NAQS #

Agricultural goods have their own border controls.

The Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service handles quarantine requirements for:

plants and plant products, animals and animal products, and aquatic resources.

NAQS says its functions include enforcing import permits and sanitary/phytosanitary requirements and intercepting illegal agricultural imports.

For plants and plant products, NAQS specifically issues import permits for products including plant material, soil and other regulated articles.

Do not ship seeds or agricultural material because the Chinese supplier says:

“No problem, we export worldwide.”

Nigeria's requirement is what matters when it arrives here.

Used electronics: check NESREA #

Used electrical and electronic equipment is a different category from importing new phones or appliances.

NESREA specifically operates a:

Used Electrical and Electronic Equipment — UEEE Permit

covering the handling, import and export of used electrical/electronic equipment.

So if your business involves used computers, used electronics or environmentally controlled equipment, check NESREA before shipment.

Do not automatically apply the new-electronics SONCAP route to used equipment.

Vehicles: do not rely on old import advice #

Vehicle rules deserve a separate check.

Nigeria's current prohibited-import schedule includes used motor vehicles more than 12 years old from the year of manufacture.

SON also says it is developing the SON–NADDC Vehicle Conformity Assessment Programme — VehCAP.

But its current official page still labels that programme:

“Coming soon.”

So I would not tell an importer today that a particular new VehCAP certificate has already become universally mandatory from a specific April 2026 date unless SON/NADDC publishes that operational requirement.

For vehicles, check the live rule for the exact vehicle before paying.

The National Single Window changed where applications happen #

Nigeria launched the National Single Window in March 2026.

Its first phase specifically covers the processing of licences, permits and certificates from key regulatory agencies, including SON and NAFDAC.

The platform is designed so traders submit trade documents and regulatory applications through a coordinated system rather than moving the same paperwork between disconnected agencies.

That does not remove the certificates.

It makes the certificates easier for the agencies and Customs to see.

So the rule is still:

get regulated-product approval before the shipment reaches Nigeria.

Digital does not mean optional.

Do you legally need a clearing agent? #

Most commercial importers should use a competent licensed Customs agent.

But do not write that Nigerian law says only an agent can submit the goods declaration.

Customs' current procedure says the:

“Importer (or the Agent)”

can generate the e-SGD, assessment and request inspection.

The National Single Window also has separate registration for importers and for licensed Customs/freight-forwarding agents.

For most first-time importers, however, using an experienced licensed agent is sensible because classification, PAAR, examination, terminal releases and port procedures are not where you want to learn by trial and error.

Use our clearing agent guide before appointing one.

What if your product does not need a special certificate? #

Then do not invent one.

Some products will not require NAFDAC, NCC, NAQS or NESREA permits and may fall outside SONCAP.

You still need the normal Customs/import process.

But do not decide a product is unregulated because another importer brought it in last year.

Before ordering:

1. Find the HS code.

2. Check the Customs prohibition/restriction list.

3. Check which agency regulates that HS code.

4. Ask the regulator/clearing agent what document is required.

Then place the order.

Our prohibited imports guide should be the first check.

The order that prevents port problems #

Before paying a Chinese supplier, work in this order:

1. Identify the exact product.

Not “electronics”. The actual product and specification.

2. Confirm the HS code.

Have your Nigerian clearing agent check it.

3. Check prohibition/restriction status.

If importation is prohibited, stop.

4. Check the regulator.

SON? NAFDAC? NCC? NAQS? NESREA? None?

5. Obtain the approval that must exist before shipment.

SONCAP is the obvious example.

6. Open/process Form M correctly.

Then let the shipment move.

Do not reverse that order.

Shipping first and asking about permits later is how goods become expensive storage at a Nigerian port.

The “import licence” somebody wants to sell you #

Ask one question:

“Which government agency issues this licence, and what is the official name of the document?”

A real answer sounds like:

SON Product Certificate

SONCAP Certificate

NAFDAC registration

NAFDAC import authorization

NCC Type Approval

NAQS import permit

NESREA UEEE permit

Those are identifiable regulatory documents.

If the answer is simply:

“Nigeria general import licence — ₦150,000.”

ask for the official government application page before paying anybody.

The short answer #

Do you need an import licence in Nigeria?

Not one universal licence for every product.

For a normal commercial import, you need the correct business/tax identity, banking/Form M process and Customs documentation.

Then the product decides what comes next.

SON-regulated product: SONCAP.

NAFDAC-regulated product: registration and applicable import/clearance authorization.

Phones/telecom equipment: NCC Type Approval and current device-compliance rules.

Plants/animals/agricultural products: NAQS.

Used electronics: NESREA.

And before any of that:

check whether the product is prohibited or restricted.

The best time to answer the licence question is before you pay the Chinese supplier.

Not when the container lands.

Start with which certificate does my product need?.

Then check Form M for Nigerian importers.

And if you are setting up from scratch, follow how to start an import business in Nigeria in the order the paperwork actually happens.

First published 20 Sep 2026. Last checked 23 Sep 2026 by The ChinaBridge desk. Something here out of date? Tell us in the comments and we will fix it.