How much tax you pay when buying tyres in South Africa

When buying a new, locally-made tyre in South Africa, at least 15% of the price goes towards government taxes.

This can easily grow to 30% when buying a tyre that was imported from the European Union (EU), while taxes on tyres imported from the East can go up to a minimum of 45% of the asking price.

This is according to Chris Farrar – TiAuto Investments operations executive – who spoke to TopAuto about the amount of taxes levied on new tyres in the country.

Taxes on tyres

Farrar said the amount of taxes on a tyre can vary, depending on where it is imported from.

Tyres imported from countries in the East, including China, Indonesia, Thailand, Korea, and Japan, attract a 30% import duty in South Africa.

Tyres from the EU receive a lower 15% import duty due to a trade agreement that is in place between South Africa and this region, said Farrar.

“Our four local tyre manufacturers do not pay this duty, but only about half of the tyre sizes are made locally, so even the local guys import about 50% of their range,” said Farrar.

After import duties, there is a R2.30/kg tyre recycling levy that is worked into the cost of the tyre either at the factory or at the point of importation.

“A passenger tyre can range in weight from say 5-6kg for a very small car tyre, all the way up to about 30kg for the big 4×4 tyres,” said Farrar.

Finally, 15% VAT is also accounted for in the price of tyres in South Africa.

“Obviously, all the other standard costs of doing business in South Africa also apply,” said Farrar.

The taxes on tyres in South Africa are then summed up as follows:

• Import duty – 0-30%, depending on country of origin 
• Recycling levy – R2.30/kg
• VAT – 15%

Price breakdown

To get a better picture of what these taxes mean for the consumer, we applied them on two of Tiger Wheel & Tyre’s products.

For a 15-inch Bridgestone Turanza T001 tyre that is imported from Japan and would fit on something like a VW Polo, the taxes are as follows:

For a 20-inch Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus tyre that is imported from the EU and would fit on something like a Toyota Hilux, the taxes are as follows:

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