Buying car parts from Dubai for Tanzania

Of the three East African markets on this site, Tanzania takes the most vehicle parts from the UAE. The UAE reported USD 219.58 million of vehicle-chapter exports to Tanzania in 2024 to UN Comtrade: USD 120.12 million of cars and USD 67.72 million of parts and accessories, against USD 60.10 million of parts to Kenya. Parts are about 31% of the Tanzanian total and 48% of the Kenyan one, because Tanzania also buys many cars from the UAE.

The vehicles those parts keep running come largely from Japan. Tanzania took 77,992 used vehicles from Japan in 2024, more than any other African country and fifth in the world, according to Japan's Ministry of Finance figures reported by Uchumi360 in August 2026. A fleet of Japanese-brand cars needs engines, gearboxes, suspension and driveline parts for years, and a Dubai source is one of the places buyers look when the local price is high or the part is missing.

Dar es Salaam is a gateway as well as a market. The Tanzania Ports Authority says the port handles about 95% of Tanzania's international trade and serves seven landlocked countries: Zambia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, Malawi, Uganda and Zimbabwe. It lists 12 berths along a 2,600-metre quay.

Kariakoo is where much of that cargo is sold on. The Citizen reported on 8 October 2025 that importers bring containers through Dar es Salaam and that Kariakoo acts as the clearing house, with traders from Rwanda, Burundi, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Kenya and Uganda restocking there. Spare parts are among the goods, and the market is described as a cheaper alternative to travelling to Dubai, Guangzhou or Istanbul.

That makes a Kariakoo trader the buyer most likely to use a remote Dubai source. Instead of flying out for a buying trip, a trader can send a list of makes and part families on WhatsApp and have a person reply with what is in UAE stock, which items are used, and what the yards in Sharjah can find. The wholesale page explains how price lists and minimum orders work.

The charge buyers most often miss is excise. The Tanzania Revenue Authority's 2025/26 guide lists imported used spare parts for motor vehicles and motorcycles at 25% excise duty, and PwC's Tanzania summary, reviewed on 9 September 2026, repeats 25% for the 2026/27 year. New parts do not carry it. The Finance Bill 2026 text we read does not mention used spare parts, and KPMG's summary of the July 2026 East African changes shows nothing for vehicle-part lines in Tanzania.

Excise sits on top of the ordinary charges. Import duty follows the East African tariff, where every line under heading 87.08 is in the 10% band except seat belts and airbags at 0%, and where batteries and new car tyres are at 25%. VAT on imports is 18%, the Railway Development Levy is 2% of CIF, and the Revenue Authority's guide adds a customs processing fee of 0.6% of FOB value. The clearing agent's assessment gives the total.

One question remains open: the guide speaks of used spare parts and does not say whether a used engine or gearbox counts. Ask your clearing agent how a major used assembly is classified before you compare a used unit against a new aftermarket one. Used tyres for passenger cars and light commercial vehicles are prohibited altogether.

The Tanzania Bureau of Standards, TBS, publishes a short procedure for pre-shipment verification of conformity, filed on its site in August 2026. For each shipment the importer or supplier asks an appointed contractor for an inspection; the contractor checks the paperwork and the goods, issues a certificate of conformity, and the importer submits the original to TBS with the shipping documents for authentication. The authenticated certificate is what the clearing agent uses at the port.

For used spare parts the Daily News reported on 6 January 2026 that TBS had ordered inspection before shipment of used motor vehicle spare parts, bicycles, mobile machinery and trailers coming from Japan, through an agent TBS authorised in Japan. It gave a 60-day transition and a penalty of 15% of the assessed value, levied through the Revenue Authority, for goods that arrive without a certificate.

We could not read a TBS notice that states how this applies to used parts from the UAE, so we do not say that it does or does not. Ask your clearing agent and TBS for the answer in writing before anything is collected in Dubai, and tell the person quoting which items are used, so each item can be checked against what you are told.

Dubai air-cargo agents publish cards for Dar es Salaam from both Dubai airports, DXB and DWC, and the card we read in October 2026, dated July 2025, gives four to eight workdays. For sea freight we found no published guide for Jebel Ali to Dar es Salaam that we are willing to repeat, so ask your agent for the current sailing, the container or shared-load price, and how long the port allows before storage charges begin.

Where the goods are going decides the paperwork. Goods sold in Dar es Salaam or at Kariakoo are cleared in Tanzania and pay Tanzanian charges. Goods that continue to another country travel under customs transit and pay in the country of use, which is why your clearing agent and the agent across the border should agree who files what before the parts leave Dubai.

Because used parts carry excise and new ones do not, the cheaper part in Dubai may not be the cheaper part in Dar es Salaam. A used gearbox and a new aftermarket one should be compared after duty, excise, VAT and the levy, not before. Ask the person quoting to price both where both exist, and then give the numbers to your clearing agent for the landed comparison.

Heavy, valuable units such as engines and gearboxes are where a Dubai source tends to make sense, because the freight and paperwork are shared over a high value. Cheap wear items rarely justify the same costs. A person at Easy Auto will say so when a part is not worth importing, instead of quoting it for the sake of a sale.

Send the VIN or the chassis number from the registration card, the engine code, a photo of the old part or its data plate, and any part number printed on it. Say whether you want used, new aftermarket or either, how many, and whether they are for one vehicle or for resale. A trader can send a list of makes and part families instead.

Say where the goods end up: Dar es Salaam, Kariakoo, or a country beyond, and name your cargo agent in Dubai if you have one. The reply marks which items are used and says what is in UAE stock or at the yards in Sharjah. How to pay is confirmed on WhatsApp before anything is collected, and freight, duty and clearing stay between you, your agent and the authorities.