HS 4911.10 covers Trade Catalogues imported into South Africa. Under this six-digit subheading, the customs duty is set at the 8-digit tariff line and ranges from free to 15% — the breakdown below (and the scanner) pin down your exact line. The customs value is the FOB (free on board) value of the goods — freight and insurance are excluded. Import VAT is then VAT = ((FOB customs value × 1.10) + customs duty) × 15%. JLog is a Cape Town customs clearance specialist, based in Woodstock, that clears consignments under HS 4911.10 through Cape Town and OR Tambo with direct FedEx and DHL accounts and paired customs work at both ends. Import VAT of 15% is charged on the added-tax value (ATV), and the worked breakdown below shows the landed cost per tariff line. For an exact, classification-checked landed cost, request a JLog quote.
Most SA importers think advertising material clears duty-free under Schedule 4 item 411.00. That rebate exists — but it covers isocyanates and church-bell motors, not catalogues. The real escape is the 8-digit subheading split inside 4911.10.
What this HS code covers
HS 4911.10 sits inside Chapter 49 (printed matter) and is the heading SARS examiners reach for whenever a printed publication is “essentially devoted to advertising” — trade catalogues, price lists, brochures, point-of-sale leaflets, tourist literature, sample books and colour cards. Note 5 to Chapter 49 expressly pulls glossy magazines, perfect-bound annuals and trade-association yearbooks out of 4901 (books) and into 4911 when more than half of the content is advertising.
At the 8-digit national level the heading splits into four subheadings: 4911.10.10 (catalogues from foreign firms with no SA presence), 4911.10.20 (foreign fairs, exhibitions and tourism material), 4911.10.30 (cut samples in book form and paint colour cards) and 4911.10.90 (everything else). That split is the entire customs story on this code.
South African trade picture
South Africa imported USD 8.03 million of trade advertising material in 2024, across roughly 1,187 tonnes (UN Comtrade, reporter ZAF, HS 491110, 2024). That is up 4.0% on 2023 — the first positive year since 2019 — but the category has still roughly halved by value from its 2019 baseline of USD 17.30 million as B2B marketing has migrated to digital channels.
The top three source countries in 2024 were Ireland (28.1% of imports at USD 2.25 million), China (26.5% at USD 2.13 million) and Spain (8.8% at USD 710,000), followed by the United Kingdom (5.4%), Italy (5.0%), Canada (4.7%) and Germany (4.4%) (UN Comtrade, 2024). The unit-value spread is where the valuation story lives: Ireland averages USD 976/kg (high-value pharma kits and Dublin tech-sector product literature), China averages USD 7.40/kg (bulk mid-market print), and Spain averages just USD 1.07/kg (high-volume catalogue ballast). SARS examiners use these partner-country unit values as benchmarks when testing whether a declared invoice is plausible.
South Africa is also a net exporter of this category — USD 9.31 million of trade advertising went out in 2024, with over 70% flowing into SADC neighbours (Namibia 27.5%, Botswana 20.5%, then Malawi, Eswatini and Mozambique).
Duties and VAT
Three of the four 8-digit subheadings under 4911.10 are free of duty at the General rate. Only 4911.10.90 (“Other”) attracts the 15% General rate (SARS Schedule 1 Part 1, Chapter 49, 2026-05-15).
| Subheading | What it covers | General duty |
|---|---|---|
| 4911.10.10 | Catalogues, price lists and trade publications of foreign firms with no established place of business in SA and no representative holding SA stocks | Free |
| 4911.10.20 | Publications and advertising matter relating to fairs, exhibitions and tourism in foreign countries | Free |
| 4911.10.30 | Cut samples of cloth, leather, linoleum, wallpaper, carpets or plastic in book form; paint colour cards | Free |
| 4911.10.90 | All other trade advertising material | 15% |
On 4911.10.90, preferential rates flatten the General rate to free under the EU/UK trade agreements, EFTA and SADC, provided you produce valid origin documentation (REX statement of origin for EU/UK, EUR.1 for EFTA, SADC certificate of origin for intra-SADC). AfCFTA brings the rate down to 6%. MERCOSUR offers no preference and stays at 15% (SARS Schedule 1 Part 1, 2026-05-15). There are no anti-dumping or safeguard duties currently in force on this heading.
VAT at the standard 15% rate applies to every consignment regardless of subheading. SARS calculates VAT on the customs value plus duty plus a 10% upliftment under section 13(1) of the Value-Added Tax Act 89 of 1991. A duty-free 4911.10.10 catalogue shipment from Ireland with a FOB customs value of USD 50,000 still triggers roughly ZAR 152,000 of VAT at the port — recoverable as input credit by a VAT-registered importer using the goods for taxable supplies, but a real cash-flow hit at entry. “Free of duty” is not “free of VAT”.
The Schedule 4 rebate route most importers reach for does not work for this category. Item 411.00 covers isocyanate mixtures, large-bore rubber piping, church-bell electric motors, dragline generator sets and motor cars older than 20 years — nothing in Chapter 49 (SARS Schedule 4 Part 1, item 411.00, 2026-05-15). The only Schedule 4 line that touches “promotional material” is item 414.03, and it applies only to material imported by an official sponsor or event host for a Minister-approved international sporting event. Useful for a Rugby World Cup organising committee. Useless for a furniture brand importing catalogues for the Decorex trade fair.
Documents and compliance
The paperwork on this code is light by volume but heavy on the valuation and origin side. Get the customs value wrong, get the 8-digit classification wrong, or fail to produce origin papers for a EU/UK consignment that needs to clear at .90, and you pay duty or VAT you did not need to pay.
Typical documents required:
- Commercial invoice with a real declared value (not “USD 0” or “no commercial value” — these get rejected at the EDI gate under section 66 of the Customs and Excise Act 91 of 1964)
- Printer’s costing sheet or unit-cost statement from the foreign supplier where the goods are genuinely free of charge
- Packing list with weights and piece counts (kg matters — SARS benchmarks declared value per kg against partner-country averages)
- Bill of lading or airway bill
- For 4911.10.10 entries: an importer’s statement confirming the foreign supplier has no SA office, branch or representative holding stocks
- For preferential entry on 4911.10.90 from the EU, UK, EFTA or SADC: the matching origin document (REX statement, EUR.1, or SADC certificate of origin)
- SAD500 customs declaration with the correct 8-digit subheading
Common mistakes
The classic mistake is declaring everything as “4911.10” at the 6-digit level and assuming it clears free. SARS works at the 8-digit level. If the foreign supplier has an SA office or an SA distributor that holds stock of its products, the catalogue drops out of .10 and lands in .90 at 15% duty.
The second mistake is invoicing free-of-charge promotional material at zero value. SARS will reject the entry and apply a notional value using partner-country unit-value benchmarks (USD 7.40/kg for China, USD 17/kg for the UK and Germany, USD 976/kg for Ireland on high-value print).
The third mistake is mis-declaring glossy advertising magazines as 4901 books to chase the free duty rate. Note 5 to Chapter 49 reclassifies them to 4911 if they are essentially advertising, and SARS will assess duty, VAT on the uplifted base, and a section 88 penalty.
The fourth mistake is assuming a Schedule 4 rebate will rescue a botched valuation. Item 411.00 is not an advertising rebate, and item 414.03 is locked to Minister-approved sporting events.
How JLog handles it
JLog handles customs clearance and freight for importers bringing trade advertising material into South Africa from Europe, China, the UK and the rest of SADC. We classify each consignment at the correct 8-digit subheading, build a defensible customs value where the supplier has invoiced free of charge, and prepare the supporting statements SARS asks for on .10 entries (place-of-business confirmation) and .90 entries (origin documentation for EU/UK/EFTA/SADC preferences). Our team also handles the SAD500 entry, port release and onward delivery from Cape Town or Johannesburg to your warehouse or trade-show venue.
If SARS has stopped your catalogue shipment on a valuation query, the fix is not a Schedule 4 rebate — it is the right 8-digit subheading, the right origin paperwork, and a customs value SARS cannot knock down.
Get a quote for shipping HS 4911.10: jlog.co.za/get-a-quote
Import duty, VAT and a worked landed-cost example for HS 4911.10
Customs duty: set at the 8-digit tariff line — see the breakdown below · VAT: 15% on the ATV
The customs value is the FOB goods value (freight and insurance excluded).
Duty by 8-digit line (SARS Schedule 1):
| 8-digit line | Description | General duty |
|---|---|---|
| 4911.10.10 | – Catalogues, price lists and trade publications of firms or persons having no established | Free (0%) |
| 4911.10.20 | – Publications and other advertising matter, relating to fairs, exhibitions and tourism in | Free (0%) |
| 4911.10.30 | – Cut samples of cloth, leather, linoleum, wallpaper, carpets or plastic, in book form; co | Free (0%) |
| 4911.10.90 | – Other | 15% |
Not sure which line your product falls under? Check it with the scanner.
Worked example at the 4911.10.90 line (15%) on a R2 000 consignment:
| Customs value (FOB) | R2 000 |
| Customs duty (15%) | R300 |
| ATV = (R2 000 × 1.10) + R300 | R2 500 |
| Import VAT (15% of ATV) | R375 |
| Landed cost before freight | R2 675 |
Duty is charged on the FOB customs value only — freight and insurance are excluded. VAT = ((FOB customs value × 1.10) + customs duty) × 15%. The 10% upliftment does not apply to goods of BLNS/SACU origin (Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Eswatini). Freight, insurance and clearing fees are added to the total on top. Figures are indicative; request a quote for an exact, classification-checked landed cost.
Last updated: 4 July 2026
Speak to JLog’s Cape Town customs team: [email protected] · 021 300 6099
Frequently asked questions about HS 4911.10
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Current SARS duty rates — HS 4911.10
| Item | Rate |
|---|---|
| AGOA | See SARS Schedule 4 for AGOA-specific provisions |
| VAT | 15% |
Last verified 5 Jul 2026 from SARS tariff book.