Last reviewed: September 2026. Royalty and levy rates change with the Finance Act; confirm before contracting.
Tanzania welcomes exports, but it taxes raw exports deliberately and lightly taxes processed ones. Every rule in this guide follows from one policy: the government would rather the value was added here.
Who may export. Only a mineral right holder or a licensed mineral dealer, as recognised by the mining authority. Holders of a broker licence may not export. If you are a trader without a dealer licence, you cannot lawfully export minerals, however good your buyer is.
Every consignment needs its own permit. It covers one consignment; once minerals leave Tanzania the permit ceases to have effect. There is no standing authorisation, so a regular exporter applies every time.
What you pay before the permit issues:
| Charge | Rate |
|---|---|
| Royalty on gross value: metallic minerals, gemstones, diamonds, uranium | 6% |
| Royalty on industrial minerals, building materials, salt | Lower band, around 3% |
| Royalty on gold sold under the domestic purchase programme | 4% |
| Royalty on gold sold to a licensed local refinery | Reduced further |
| Inspection and clearance fee | 1% of gross value, waived on domestic sales |
| Export permit application fee | USD 100 |
Withholding tax and a small levy on gross mineral value also apply, so model the total, not just the royalty. Royalty is charged on gross value as determined by official valuation, not your invoice, and that valuation can be challenged by the authorities.
Additional certificates by mineral: certificate of origin for tanzanite; an international diamond-trade certificate for diamonds; a regional conflict-minerals certificate for tin, tantalum and tungsten.
The policy signal. Government increasingly encourages, and in places mandates, local value addition before export: cutting, polishing, smelting, refining. Anyone planning a long-term minerals business here should assume that pressure increases rather than eases.
The permit. Export requires a permit from the forest authority, stating species, volume and port of exit. Harvesting and internal movement have their own permits before the export stage.
The export tax is what decides your economics. The revenue authority levies export tax on a specific list of raw and semi-processed goods, set to make raw export unattractive:
| Export | Rate |
|---|---|
| Veneered sheets of heading 44.08 | 30% of value or TZS 150 per kg, whichever is greater |
| Raw cashew nuts | 15% of FOB value or USD 160 per tonne, whichever is greater |
| Raw hides and skins | 80% of FOB value or USD 0.52 per kg, whichever is greater |
| Copper waste and scrap metal | 30% or USD 150 per tonne, whichever is greater |
| Wet blue leather | 10% of FOB value |
| Crude sunflower oil and sunflower seeds | 10% of FOB value each |
Exporters under Export Processing Zones are exempted from the export tax on hides and skins. From 1 January 2026, individuals selling forest produce — timber, logs, mirunda and poles — pay income tax at 2% by single instalment.
Phytosanitary certification. Plants and plant products require a certificate from the plant health authority confirming freedom from pests and diseases, in the form the importing country demands.
Crop-specific regimes. Cashew, coffee, cotton, tobacco and tea each have their own boards and rules, with licensing, auction or warehouse-receipt requirements and in some cases export levies designed to push processing onshore. Raw cashew exports carry a levy favouring local processing.
General requirements: an export licence where the crop regime requires one, certificate of origin, quality certification where required, and customs declaration through a licensed clearing agent.
For every raw material in this guide, the arithmetic points the same way. A processor pays less, sells for more, and faces fewer restrictions than a raw exporter. If you are advising a foreign buyer of Tanzanian raw materials, the more valuable conversation is usually not about the shipment in front of them but about whether the first processing step belongs here.