West & North Africa / Senegal
Auto export to Senegal.
Senegal is a steady, diaspora-driven market for American cars, reached by direct ocean call to Dakar. The big recent news is the age cap: a decree signed in October 2025 raised it from 8 to 10 years for passenger cars, opening up a wider band of US auction stock than before. Duty runs on the ECOWAS structure, customs duty plus a community levy, statistical tax, and 18% VAT, landing around 37% all in. Cars clear at Dakar and register locally. LHD.
For reference purposes only. Regulations, policies, and procedures change constantly. Ensure you verify and validate all requirements for your specific shipments before initiating any.
The Senegal lane, in four numbers.
The Port of Dakar is Senegal's gateway and one of the busier car ports on the West African coast. Direct ocean call from the US. No transit country.
Six container warehouses, five RoRo terminals. RoRo for running cars; container for salvage, high-value, or co-loaded cargo.
Dakar is the closest major West African port to the US East Coast, so transit is among the shortest on the continent. The desk quotes current.
10-year cap for passenger cars since the October 2025 decree, up from 8. ECOWAS duty plus 0.5% community levy, 1% statistical tax, 18% VAT. LHD.
A wider window since late 2025.
Senegal's car market runs on the diaspora and on local demand for reliable, parts-friendly vehicles. The October 2025 decree that lifted the cap from 8 to 10 years was a direct response to diaspora pressure, and it changed the math: US auction cars that were a year or two too old last year can register now. That widens the pool worth bidding on.
Reliable cars inside 10 years.
A US car ten years old or newer lands at Dakar, clears the ECOWAS duty stack, and registers. With the cap freshly raised, the eligible band is wider than it was, which is the practical reason to look at Senegal now.
- 10-year cap for passenger cars
- ECOWAS duty plus levies and 18% VAT
- Short transit from the US East Coast
- LHD, clean and salvage both move
Sent home by Senegalese abroad.
A large share of this lane is Senegalese living in the US sending a car back to family, or buying for their own return. The desk handles the personal-import paperwork and the dollar-quote mechanics, and works the duty so the landed cost is clear before the car ships.
- Diaspora-driven volume
- Personal effects can co-load in a container
- Clear landed-cost math up front
- French-speaking desk support
A short ocean call to Dakar.
Dakar is one of the closest major African ports to the US, so this is among the faster lanes on the continent. The car sails direct and clears at Dakar. The US-side operation is the same as our other lanes.
Container origins
Load at one of six container warehouses: NY/NJ, Savannah, Miami, Houston, Long Beach, Seattle. Container suits salvage, high-value cars, multi-car consolidation, or anything co-loaded with personal effects. A 40HC commonly takes four cars, five when they're small enough to nest, three when they're full-size, loaded to the safest high-density fit. Carriers include Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM, and Hapag-Lloyd.
Transit: roughly 15 to 28 days from the East Coast, among the shortest African lanes.
Customs: ECOWAS duty plus the community levy, statistical tax, and 18% VAT at Dakar.
RoRo origins
Five RoRo terminals: Baltimore, Brunswick, Galveston, Jacksonville, Port Hueneme. RoRo is the cheaper choice for a clean running car. The US-to-West-Africa RoRo lane is well served, with Grimaldi and Sallaum among the lines. Quarter-tank fuel maximum per SOLAS rules.
Not carried: anything over the 10-year cap, which Dakar customs refuses.
Personal effects permitted in containers, not in RoRo.
Senegalese customs at Dakar.
Senegal clears cars under the ECOWAS framework with its own levy stack. The gates are the 10-year age cap and the compounded duty. The desk works the full number, since the levies and VAT stack rather than sit side by side.
The clearance path
Pre-purchase age and cost check
The desk confirms the car is inside the 10-year cap against its model year, and works the full duty stack, customs duty plus the 0.5% community levy, 1% statistical tax, and 18% VAT compounded, so the landed cost is clear before purchase.
US-side preparation
AES filing, ISF where required, HBL issuance, commercial invoice, packing list. Clean title or salvage certificate. HBL consigned to the Senegalese buyer or their clearing agent.
Customs at Dakar
The car clears under the ECOWAS duty plus the Senegalese levies and VAT. The bill of lading releases against payment. A licensed Senegalese clearing agent files the entry, with documents in French.
Registration
The buyer pays the assessed duties and registers the car locally. LHD. US-spec cars may need minor lighting adjustments.
Required documents
Original title or salvage certificate
Clean title for a running car, salvage certificate where applicable.
Commercial invoice on Dapex letterhead
Consignee, vehicle details, declared value, HBL number. The declared CIF drives the duty stack.
Bill of lading and packing list
HBL consigned to the buyer or their clearing agent. Packing list needed when personal effects co-load in a container.
French-language clearance documents
Senegalese customs works in French. The desk coordinates the French paperwork with the Dakar agent.
CTN or BSC certificate
Certificate is mandatory. The ECTN formalities must be done by the shipper prior to shipment arrival to Senegal and the ECTN number should be reflected on the Bill of Lading.
What Dapex files, US side
AES filing with US Customs. ISF where required. HBL under Dapex's NVOCC license, consigned to the Senegalese buyer or their clearing agent. Commercial invoice and packing list on Dapex letterhead. Title verification through our title team before pickup, and the age-plus-duty pre-check before purchase against the current 10-year cap. Standard consignee screening. Pre-alert pack to the Dakar clearing agent. The French-speaking West Africa desk owns the file end to end. BSC certificate processing prior to the shipment arrival to the final destination.
What sells into Senegal.
Senegal buys reliable, economical cars and a steady stream of family vehicles sent home by the diaspora. The 10-year cap is the main filter; inside it, the market is broad.
Economical sedans and SUVs.
Toyota Corolla and Camry, Honda Accord and CR-V, Hyundai, Kia, and compact SUVs. Reliable, cheap-to-run cars with easy local parts, inside the 10-year window.
Family SUVs and salvage.
Mid-size and full-size SUVs for larger families, and salvage or rebuildable cars where the age and the duty math work. High-value units go container.
Anything over ten years.
Cars older than the 10-year cap are refused at Dakar. Beyond that, the standing Dapex rules hold: clean title or salvage certificate (25-year US Customs exception), no unreleased liens, no personal effects loose in RoRo. Quarter-tank fuel maximum on RoRo per SOLAS.
What moves the rate on this lane.
A short, clean ocean lane. Freight is freight; the variables are the carrier market, the container-versus-RoRo choice, and the compounded duty stack at Dakar.
Our work, our cost.
- Warehouse operations
- Booking fee
- Documentation handling
- Title verification
- HBL issuance
- Age and duty pre-check
Carrier and routing-driven.
- Ocean freight (carrier-set)
- Fuel and bunker surcharges
- Dakar port handling
- Container versus RoRo choice
- ECOWAS duty, levies, and 18% VAT
- Inland delivery within Senegal
Service standards.
- Compliance
- Documentation accuracy
- Submission urgency
- Dispatch priority
Lane-specific drivers
The compounded duty stack
Not a single rate. Customs duty plus a 0.5% community levy, a 1% statistical tax, and 18% VAT applied on top, landing around 37% of CIF. We give the full number before the car ships.
Short transit
Dakar's proximity to the US East Coast keeps freight time and cost down relative to deeper West African lanes, which is a real advantage on this route.
The 10-year cap
Freshly raised from 8, so a wider band of cars qualifies. We confirm against the model year on every quote, since the change is recent.
Container versus RoRo
A running car usually lands cheapest on RoRo. Salvage, high-value, or cars with personal effects go container. The desk prices both.
Who handles Senegal accounts.
The West Africa desk runs every Senegal account, in French and English. It confirms the age against the current cap, works the compounded duty, and handles the diaspora paperwork.
West Africa Desk
Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Togo, Benin, and the wider West African markets. French and English. Business hours in Dakar time, plus extended hours by request. Dakar clearing-agent coordination on Dapex's Senegal files.
What the desk owns.
Age check against the current 10-year cap before quoting. The compounded duty pre-check. French clearance paperwork with the Dakar agent. Diaspora personal-import support. Title verification before pickup. Container-versus-RoRo call. File management through BL.
Things buyers ask about the Senegal lane.
The Port of Dakar, Senegal's gateway and one of the busier car ports on the West African coast. It's a direct ocean call from the US, container or RoRo, with no transit country.
Ten years for passenger cars, raised from eight by a decree signed in October 2025, and fifteen for trucks. A lot of older shipping information still shows the 8-year figure, but the current rule is ten. We confirm against your car's model year on the quote.
It stacks: customs duty under the ECOWAS tariff, plus a 0.5% community levy, a 1% statistical tax, and 18% VAT compounded on top. All in, it lands around 37% of CIF. The desk gives the full figure before the car ships.
Yes, that's a big part of this lane. The desk handles the personal-import paperwork, works the duty so the landed cost is clear, and can co-load personal effects in a container with proper declaration.
Yes, where the age and the duty math work. We verify title history before pickup and ship under a salvage certificate where applicable.
Among the fastest African lanes, roughly 15 to 28 days from the East Coast, since Dakar is one of the closest major African ports to the US. Then clearance and registration.
Yes. Senegalese customs works in French, and the West Africa desk handles the file in French and English with the Dakar clearing agent.
Left-hand drive. Senegal drives on the right, and US auction cars are LHD, so this isn't an issue on this lane.
Ready to ship to Senegal?
Send VIN, lot number, vehicle year, and the US loading point. We'll confirm the car against the current 10-year cap, work the full duty stack, verify the title, price container against RoRo, and quote door to Dakar.