Togo Tightens Fuel Transport Controls with New Customs Declaration Rule

Economic governance

Friday, 20 June 2025 10:56

Togo Tightens Fuel Transport Controls with New Customs Declaration Rule

(Togo First) - Key Highlights:

Starting July 1, 2025, all fuel trucks leaving Togo's petroleum terminals must submit detailed customs declarations before departure.
The reform aims to improve fuel traceability, combat smuggling, and enhance fiscal governance using the Sydonia World digital platform.
The measure coincides with a broader government campaign to mark petroleum products and clamp down on illegal distribution networks.

Togo will tighten customs controls on fuel transport starting July 1, 2025, as part of a broader crackdown on smuggling and opaque fuel distribution networks.

Under a new directive from the Togolese Revenue Office (OTR), every truck carrying petroleum products from the Société Togolaise d'Entreposage (STE) or the Société Togolaise des Stockages de Lomé (STSL) must complete a detailed customs declaration before leaving either terminal.

The measure is designed to improve the traceability of fuel flows via the Sydonia World digital platform, a regional tool for managing customs operations. Petroleum depots must transmit these declarations to the Division of Customs Operations for Hydrocarbons and Refining (DODH-R), a specialized branch within the OTR.

The DODH-R will be responsible for monitoring, validating, and managing all administrative processes linked to fuel movements. Officials say the policy aims to close loopholes that allow discrepancies between declared and delivered fuel volumes.

The initiative is part of Togo’s fiscal modernization strategy and broader efforts to enhance transparency in the energy sector. It follows recent government plans to introduce chemical marking of fuel to detect fraud and eliminate parallel distribution channels.

This article was initially published in French by Esaïe Edoh

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho

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