HS Code 4012.20 — Used pneumatic tyres | South Africa Import & Export

Importing used tyres into South Africa is functionally banned. Only 0.26% of new-tyre import value clears as used — USD 1.91 million against USD 740.9 million in 2024. The trap isn’t duty. It’s that ITAC won’t issue an import permit, period, for general retail used tyres.

What this HS code covers

HS 4012.20 is the customs subheading for used pneumatic tyres of rubber — second-hand passenger car tyres, truck and bus tyres, light commercial tyres, and similar tyres that have already been on a wheel and are being moved across a border in their used state. It sits inside Chapter 40 (rubber and articles thereof), under heading 4012 (retreaded or used pneumatic tyres, solid or cushion tyres, tyre treads and tyre flaps). Within heading 4012, subheadings 4012.11/12/13/19 cover retreaded tyres broken out by application, 4012.20 covers used tyres, and 4012.90 picks up the rest. The distinction between “used” and “retreadable casing” is where importers most often slip up.

South African trade picture

South Africa imported just USD 1.91 million of HS 4012.20 in 2024 — 72,285 units — against USD 740.9 million of new tyres under HS 4011 in the same year (UN Comtrade, reporter ZAF, 2024). Used tyres are 0.26% of the new-tyre import value. That is not a market gap waiting to be filled. It is a policy gap, deliberately maintained.

The 2024 import sources tell the same story: Netherlands USD 350,498 (18.4%), Taiwan USD 288,355 (15.1%), United States USD 285,739 (15.0%), China USD 264,983 (13.9%), and Germany USD 170,730 (8.9%) — together about 71% of declared imports (UN Comtrade, reporter ZAF, HS 4012.20, 2024). Notice what’s missing: SACU and SADC neighbours barely feature on the inbound side. Zambia, Botswana and Zimbabwe together total under USD 70,000. The flow is the other way. South Africa exported USD 1.08 million of used tyres in 2024, with about 70% going to Lesotho, Eswatini, Malawi, Namibia and Botswana (UN Comtrade, reporter ZAF, HS 4012.20, 2024). End-of-life SA tyres leave through the regional border; they do not arrive at the deep-sea ports. The three-year trend confirms the squeeze: imports fell 13.9% in value and 31% in units between 2022 and 2024, while exports fell 39% over the same period.

Duties and VAT

There is a customs duty line for 4012.20 in Schedule 1 Part 1 of the Customs and Excise Act, but the rate is the secondary issue here. The specific 2026 line rate was not verifiable from the published SARS Chapter 40 page at time of writing — confirm the current rate against the SARS Tariff Book at tdn.sars.gov.za before quoting it to a client. VAT of 15% applies on the customs value plus duty under Section 13 of the Value-Added Tax Act 89 of 1991, with no rebate item available for commercial used-tyre imports.

The environmental levy is where the published numbers are clear. SARS Schedule 1 Part 3E imposes an environmental levy of R2.30 per kilogram net on tyres, under levy items 152.00 to 152.03. The item table targets new tyres at HS 4011 and retreaded tyres at HS 4012.13 (aircraft) and 4012.19 (other). HS 4012.20 is not separately listed — not because used tyres escape the regime, but because ITAC blocks them upstream so the levy schedule never needed a row for them. Note 1(a) of Part 3E still sweeps “new, used or retreaded tyres” into the levy intent, and Note 3(b) provides a design-mass-plus-10% fallback where net mass cannot be established — useful for SARS when an importer tries to under-declare weight on a second-hand consignment (SARS Schedule 1 Part 3E, levy items 152.00–152.03, R2.30/kg net).

Preferential rates under SACU, SADC, the EU/UK EPA, EFTA, MERCOSUR and AfCFTA exist on paper for Chapter 40. In practice they are academic for HS 4012.20: no preferential origin certificate overrides the ITAC import permit requirement. If the permit isn’t issued, the rate doesn’t matter.

Documents and compliance

Because used tyres are a controlled good, the paperwork on this HS code is gating rather than administrative. Before you even price a shipment, you need confirmation that ITAC will issue an import permit for your specific consignment under the Import Control Regulations of the International Trade Administration Act 71 of 2002. For the small slice of trade that does clear — tyres fitted to imported second-hand vehicles, retreadable casings under defined permit conditions, racing tyres, aviation tyres — you will typically need:

• ITAC import permit (issued before shipment leaves origin, not after arrival)
• Commercial invoice and packing list, with full HS classification to 8 digits
• Bill of lading or air waybill
• Certificate of origin (SADC EUR.1, EU/UK EPA REX, or general)
• SARS Customs Declaration (SAD 500) with environmental levy line where applicable
• Registration with the Waste Management Bureau under DFFE (producer/importer registration is required for any commercial tyre import under NEM:WA)
• Manufacturer specifications or condition report for retreadable casings, where the classification depends on residual tread depth and casing integrity

The Waste Management Bureau is the current regulator, established under the National Environmental Management: Waste Act 59 of 2008 (NEM:WA) Sections 34A to 34D, sitting inside the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE). Section 28 of NEM:WA is the general duty-of-care provision on waste holders — it applies, but it is not the section that creates the Bureau.

Common mistakes

The single most expensive mistake on HS 4012.20 is assuming the import is a duty question. It is not. ITAC routinely refuses import permits for general retail used tyres on the grounds that they are classified as waste on arrival under NEM:WA and the Waste Tyre Regulations. Containers arrive without a permit, SARS detains them, the Bureau is notified, and the importer pays storage fees plus destruction costs — frequently R40,000 and up for a single FCL.

The second mistake is citing REDISA as the regulator: REDISA was placed under final liquidation in May 2018 and its functions moved to the Waste Management Bureau under DFFE. The third is reading the absence of HS 4012.20 from the Schedule 1 Part 3E levy table as “no levy applies” — the regime is built around new and retreaded lines because used tyre imports are not meant to clear at scale; once any used or retreaded tyre is in country, the R2.30/kg intent in Note 1(a) bites. The fourth is misclassifying retreadable casings as used tyres or vice versa, which triggers SARS re-determination under Section 47 of the Customs and Excise Act and penalties under Section 88.

How JLog handles it

JLog is a Cape Town–based customs broker and freight handler at Unit 12C, Nearby Industrial Park, 10 Railway Street, Woodstock. On HS 4012.20 the work starts before any container is loaded. We confirm with you whether your consignment falls inside one of the narrow ITAC-permitted exceptions — retreadable casings under permit, racing or aviation tyres, tyres fitted to imported vehicles — or whether you should redirect to HS 4011 new tyres instead. Where a permit is realistic, we prepare the ITAC application, the Waste Management Bureau registration, the SAD 500 declaration with the correct levy treatment, and the supporting commercial documents. Where a permit is not realistic, we say so up front rather than book freight you cannot clear. For clients who have already been caught with a detained container, we handle the conversation with SARS Customs, the Bureau and the port to minimise storage exposure and resolve the destruction or re-export route.

Get a quote

If you’re staring at a quote for used tyres into Durban or Cape Town, send it to us before the container ships — not after SARS has detained it. Quote: jlog.co.za/get-a-quote