Most people shipping a container to Senegal or Mali for the first time have the same experience. The ocean freight quotation is clear and looks reasonable. Everything after the vessel arrives is a series of costs nobody mentioned.
The port itself is rarely the problem. Dakar handled 908,529 TEU in 2025, and its container terminal, run by DP World since 2008, was ranked by the World Bank as the best performing port in sub-Saharan Africa for vessel turnaround in 2024. What holds a container in Dakar is almost always paperwork that was not done before sailing and a truck that was not booked before release.
This guide is for anyone sending goods to West Africa from abroad: a company equipping a subsidiary, an importer bringing in stock, a family building a house, a contractor moving plant. The mechanics are the same. Only the volume changes.
Take action
- Send us your container details on WhatsApp: size, goods, port of loading, final destination.
- Email your draft bill of lading and packing list to contact@graceroad-group.com before the vessel sails: we tell you what is missing.
- Arrange delivery inland: Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, Guinea, with vetted hauliers.
Before you ship: the two filings that decide your clearance
The BESC. Since 1 March 2019, every cargo imported into Senegal must carry an electronic cargo tracking note, the BESC (bordereau électronique de suivi des cargaisons), issued by the Senegalese Shippers' Council, COSEC. Its number goes on the bill of lading and the cargo manifest. Without it, release is delayed and COSEC can impose fines; some carriers will not even issue the bill of lading until the number is supplied.
The BESC does not apply to cargo in transit through Senegal. But a container bound for Mali must then say so in the body of the bill of lading, for example "container in transit for Mali". Without that remark, Senegalese customs may treat it as a local import.
The DPI. Since 1 May 2024, a pre-import declaration (déclaration préalable d'importation) is mandatory for any import worth 500,000 CFA francs FOB or more, and for every container, whatever its value. It is filed on ORBUS, Senegal's trade single window run by GAINDE 2000. Filed when the goods sail, it is a non-issue on arrival.
What you are actually paying for
The ocean freight is rarely more than half the delivered cost.
At origin: collection, export formalities, terminal handling at the load port, and stuffing if you are not loading the container yourself.
On the water: ocean freight, bunker adjustment, and marine insurance. Insurance is optional in the sense that nobody forces you to buy it; skipping it on a container of your own goods is a poor bet.
At destination, where the surprises are: terminal handling, customs duty, import VAT at 18%, the statistical fee, community levies, the COSEC levy, the licensed customs broker's fee, the container deposit, terminal storage once free days expire, carrier detention, and inland haulage.
Duty depends on the band of the ECOWAS common external tariff your goods fall into: 0, 5, 10, 20 or 35%. Here is what it means for consumer goods (band 3, 20%) with a customs value of 10 million CFA francs, landed by sea in Dakar.
| Duty or tax | Rate | Amount (CFA francs) |
|---|---|---|
| Customs duty | 20% | 2,000,000 |
| Statistical fee | 1% | 100,000 |
| UEMOA community levy | 0.8% | 80,000 |
| ECOWAS levy | 0.5% | 50,000 |
| COSEC levy (sea only) | 0.4% | 40,000 |
| VAT, on value plus duty and statistical fee | 18% | 2,178,000 |
| Total | 4,448,000 |
That is 44.5% of the customs value, before any service fee. It is not an anomaly; it is the tariff, and it applies to everyone. Hence the first rule: know your tariff classification before you ship.
Full container or groupage
A full container (20 or 40 feet) is yours alone. It leaves when you are ready, it is cleared as one consignment, and you control the timing. Below roughly fifteen cubic metres it is usually poor value.
Groupage shares a container between several senders. It is cheaper for small volumes, with two consequences: the container leaves when it is full, not when your goods reach the warehouse, and clearance is collective. If another sender's paperwork is wrong, the whole container waits, yours included.
Vehicles: the 2025 age limits
Under a decree signed on 24 October 2025, Senegal raised its age limits on imported used vehicles: 10 years for passenger cars and light commercial vehicles under 3.5 tonnes, 15 years for buses and passenger transport vehicles. The previous limit for cars was 8 years.
Duty is assessed on an administrative valuation, not on what you paid: a car bought cheaply at auction is not cleared cheaply. You will need the original registration document, the bill of sale, and in most cases a de-registration certificate from the country of origin. A vehicle shipped without its original title stays in the port.
A vehicle in a container can travel with personal effects loaded around it, but only if they are declared. Undeclared goods found at inspection turn a routine clearance into a penalty file.
What actually blocks containers
A vague packing list. "Household goods" on a container of building materials will be inspected.
Undervaluation. Declaring less than the goods are worth is the most common bad advice given to first-time shippers. The result is a valuation dispute, an inspection, and storage charges while it is resolved.
Regulated goods without certificates. Electrical goods, building materials, some foodstuffs and toys may need conformity certificates obtained before the container sails.
Free time running out. Each carrier gives a number of free days before it charges detention on its container. As an example, Maersk announced in August 2021, for Senegal, 4 free days for delivery in Dakar, 8 for other cities, and 23 for a container in transit to Mali, Gambia or Guinea, then 15,000 CFA francs a day for a 20 foot and 25,000 for a 40 foot. A 40 foot returned empty after 12 days in Dakar therefore costs 200,000 CFA francs in detention. Free time is negotiated when you book, not after.
The calendar that saves days
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Before booking | Tariff classification, conformity certificates, free time negotiated with the carrier |
| Before the bill of lading is issued | BESC number on the bill of lading, or the transit remark for Mali |
| When the goods sail | DPI filed on ORBUS; documents sent to the licensed broker |
| Before arrival | Declaration prepared, truck booked |
| On arrival | Duty paid, release order, container collected the same day |
| Within free time | Delivery, unloading, empty returned with proof of return |
Everything above "On arrival" can be done while the ship is at sea. That is where a week is won or lost.
If the destination is Mali
For Mali, the port is the halfway point. The goods cross Senegal under the inter-state road transit regime created by ECOWAS in 1982 (our guide, in French), free of Senegalese duty, and are cleared in Bamako. Mali left ECOWAS in January 2025 but remains a member of UEMOA with Senegal, and goods keep moving on the corridor. Since 2025, the confederation of Sahel states applies its own 0.5% levy on goods from outside the confederation, which Mali presented as replacing the former ECOWAS levy.
At the port of Dakar, Mole 3 is reserved first for Malian traffic under the agreements between Mali and Senegal. And until 9 January 2027, Malian goods stranded in the port pay no storage, demurrage or detention charges: the measure started on 9 October 2026, and detention free time is extended to 60 days for containers delivered during that period. Refrigerated containers and cargo delivered under ship's tackle are excluded. The Malian Shippers' Council announced it on 13 October, as a response to congestion on the Dakar to Bamako corridor.
The hidden cost is the empty container. In February 2026, around 4,000 empty containers were stuck in Bamako. A round trip of more than 2,700 km rarely fits in 23 free days. Unloading in Dakar and trucking the goods on a flatbed often stops the meter: we ran the numbers in devanning in Dakar or sending the container to Bamako.
Frequently asked questions
What documents do I need to ship a container to Senegal?
A bill of lading carrying the BESC number, a commercial invoice, a detailed packing list, a certificate of origin, any conformity or sanitary certificates your goods require, and a DPI filed on ORBUS by the importer.
How much duty will I pay in Senegal?
It depends on the tariff band. For consumer goods in band 3, duty and taxes come to about 44.5% of the customs value (CIF), VAT included.
Can I ship a used car to Senegal?
Yes, if it is no more than 10 years old for a passenger car or a light commercial vehicle under 3.5 tonnes, under the decree of 24 October 2025, with its original title.
What is the BESC?
The electronic cargo tracking note of the Senegalese Shippers' Council, mandatory since 1 March 2019 for all cargo imported into Senegal. Its number must appear on the bill of lading.
Can my container continue to Bamako?
Yes, in transit under customs control through Senegal, with clearance in Mali. Check the carrier's free time for Mali, and compare with unloading in Dakar.
Are port charges waived for Malian cargo in Dakar?
From 9 October 2026 to 9 January 2027, the port of Dakar waives storage, demurrage and detention charges on stranded Malian goods, with detention free time extended to 60 days. Refrigerated containers are excluded.
What we do
We work on the destination side: we coordinate the licensed customs broker, book the truck during clearance so the container leaves on the day it is released, track every truck, and return the empty within free time. We deliver across Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Togo and Benin.
Before you ship, send us the invoice and the draft bill of lading: we check the tariff band, the certificates your goods need at origin, and what your packing list must say. That review prevents most blocked containers.
We handle commercial and project consignments and full containers. For individual parcels, a specialised consolidator will serve you better, and we would rather say so.
Take action
- Describe your container on WhatsApp: size, goods, final destination, expected arrival.
- Ask for a delivered duty paid price if your buyer wants a door to door price.
- Source goods in Africa if you also buy on the continent.
Read next: which West African port your cargo should enter and quoting DDP into West Africa.
Sources: Ecofin Agency, 21 April 2026 (Port of Dakar: 908,529 TEU in 2025 against 881,289 in 2024); DP World (Dakar container terminal since 2008); World Bank and S&P Global, Container Port Performance Index 2024; Ocean Network Express, "Senegal, Cargo Tracking Note (CTN) Implementation", 2019 (BESC mandatory from 1 March 2019, number on bill of lading and manifest, COSEC fines, exclusion of transit cargo and mandatory transit remark); Senegalese customs as reported by Ndarinfo and Senego, April 2024 (DPI mandatory from 1 May 2024, 500,000 CFA franc threshold, every container, ORBUS and GAINDE 2000); French customs (DGDDI), "10 questions pour exporter au Sénégal", 21 February 2020 (tariff bands, levies, VAT, COSEC levy); Senegal General Tax Code, article 368 (VAT base); Le Soleil, 5 November 2025 (decree of 24 October 2025 on vehicle age limits); Maersk, "Import Detention Update into Senegal", 26 August 2021; Le Soleil, 30 March 2025 (0.5% levy of the confederation of Sahel states, transit goods exempt); ISS Africa, 4 June 2026 (about 4,000 empty containers in Bamako in February 2026); Port autonome de Dakar, "Infrastructures" page (Mole 3 reserved for Malian traffic); Dakaractu and APA, 13 October 2026, citing the Malian Shippers' Council (waiver from 9 October 2026 to 9 January 2027, 60 day free time, exclusions).