Lebanese wary of rise of customs duties amid economic crisis

Lebanese wary of rise of customs duties amid economic crisis

BEIRUT — The Lebanese government approved on Feb. 10 the draft budget law for the year 2022, with plans to hike customs duties and impose new taxes. The budget will be discussed in parliament on Feb. 21 for ratification. This comes as the Lebanese people have battled their worst economic crisis for nearly two years now.

The recent talk about amending the exchange rate of customs transactions for imports and the imposition of new customs duties stirred great concern among Lebanese. The measure will further up the prices of goods and services since Lebanon relies mostly on imports for all of its needs.

Sasha Amin, a young Lebanese woman who works in public health, told Al-Monitor, “If the exchange rate to the dollar for customs is raised, the situation will further exacerbate and prices will skyrocket. The prices of medical care and basic needs, including food and education, are already soaring. An increased rate of the customs dollar will be catastrophic.”