Ghana's new used-car import rules from 1 October 2026

What changes on 2026-10-01

From that date, every used vehicle shipped to Ghana must be verified before it leavesthe exporting country under the Ghana Standards Authority's Pre-Export Verification of Conformity (PVoC) programme, and must arrive with a Certificate of Conformance (CoC). Importers — including private individuals importing a single car for personal use — must first register with the GSA Vehicle Homologation Unit.

GSA has been careful to say this “does not constitute a ban on the importation of used vehicles”, and that is accurate: there is no blanket ban. But there is a prohibition on specific categories, and age is one of them.

The 15-year rule

PN/26/09 prohibits importing used vehicles over 15 years old from 2026-10-01. The wording is “over fifteen (15) years”, which means a vehicle of exactly 15 years should still be permitted — the same construction the customs schedule uses.

This is a prohibition, not a penalty. Under the customs regime an over-aged car costs you more; under this rule an over-aged car does not get a CoC, and without a CoC it does not come in.

Already shipped? You are exempt

This is the question causing the most panic, and it has a clear answer. GSA's own FAQ states the requirements apply to vehicles shipped on or after 2026-10-01, and PN/26/09 adds an avoidance-of-doubt clause: vehicles shipped before that date are exempt even if they arrive in Ghana after it. Vehicles already in Ghana are likewise exempt.

So the sailing date is what matters, not the arrival date. Keep your bill of lading— it is your evidence. One detail GSA has not spelled out is whether “shipped” means the bill of lading date, the vessel sailing date or the export declaration date, which matters if you are loading in the last days of September. If that is you, ask GSA directly which date they will accept — the Auto Team is at auto@gsa.gov.gh or 030 398 0177.

This does not replace the customs overage penalty

These are two separate instruments and conflating them is the most common error in coverage. The overage penalty lives in the Schedule to the Customs Act 2015 (Act 891) and is unchanged:

In other words, the penalty bands above 15 years become academic for anything shipping from 2026-10-01: you cannot pay the 50% and bring the car in, because it will not be issued a CoC. For customs purposes age is the year of manufacture, not first registration or model year.

Note: a legacy penalty table widely recycled online gives different car bands (15% for 15–20 years, 50% over 20). Those figures do not match the statute. The table above follows Act 891.

What else is refused, regardless of age

A separate ban on salvaged vehicles has been law since around November 2020 under the Customs (Amendment) Act 2020. The GSA damage criteria are broader than the customs definition, so a damaged vehicle with a clean title could pass customs and still fail the standard. Note also that GSA states this list slightly differently in its public notice and in its importer FAQ — the scrap/dismantling limb appears only in the FAQ. The table above publishes both.

Who and what is covered

Everything, essentially. GSA's FAQ puts two-, three- and four-or-more-wheeled vehicles in scope, so motorcycles and tricycles are not exempt — pages saying otherwise are wrong. Nor is there any exemption for personal use: GSA requires registration from individuals importing a single car for themselves, as well as businesses importing for use or for sale. No category exemption of any kind has been published for luxury, classic, corporate-fleet or commercial vehicles.

One oddity worth knowing: GSA's portal offers a “Registration Form for Private Vehicle Importer” annotated “Max 2 per Annum”, alongside a commercial form with no stated limit. The annotation is real; nothing published explains what happens on a third import in a year.

Right-hand drive

PN/26/09 does not list right-hand drive among its prohibited conditions, which has led some to suggest RHD vehicles are now acceptable under a conversion scheme. Be careful: that claim comes from a commercially interested party, not from GSA or GRA, and the Customs Act 2015 (Act 891) s.58(1)(a) separately prohibits importing right-hand-drive vehicles. That has not changed. Treat RHD as prohibited unless GSA or GRA tells you otherwise in writing.

What is genuinely unclear

We would rather flag these than give you a confident answer that fails at the port.

• Right-hand-drive vehicles. PN/26/09 does not list right-hand drive among its prohibited conditions, but the Customs Act 2015 (Act 891) s.58(1)(a) separately prohibits importing right-hand-drive vehicles, and that has not changed. A claim that RHD is now permitted under a regulated conversion scheme comes only from a commercially interested party, not from GSA or GRA. Treat RHD as prohibited unless GSA or GRA tells you otherwise in writing.
• How the 15 years are counted. GSA has not published whether age runs from build date or model year, nor whether it is measured at inspection, shipment or arrival.
• The standard says 10, the notice says 15. GS 4510:2022 is reported to bar vehicles over 10 years. PN/26/09 looks like an administrative relaxation rather than a revision of the standard, so an inspector applying the standard literally could still refuse a 12-year-old vehicle.
• Who can issue a CoC. As at 2026-09-20 GSA has confirmed nocompany publicly as an approved inspection body — its FAQ says contacts are provided only after you register. Be sceptical of any firm claiming approval. Omanbapa Auto & PVoC Ltd, named by GSA as its implementation partner, announced on 3 September that it and Autoterminal Japan would carry out inspections, but that is the partner's own announcement, not a GSA approval list. Separately, Intertek and Bureau Veritas are appointed for Ghana's EasyPASS programme, whose published scope contains no motor vehicles — pages naming them as vehicle inspectors are conflating the two.
• What actually happens at the port.PN/26/09 says only that non-compliant vehicles “will not be permitted for importation into the country on arrival”. Whether that means a fine, re-export at your cost, or forfeiture is not stated. A related consequence is documented though: under the Customs Act, a vehicle not entered and cleared within 60 days of final discharge is forfeited to the State — so a vehicle stuck in a CoC dispute is on a clock.
• The cost. Industry has cited roughly USD 300 per vehicle, but no official GSA fee schedule has been published, and it is not clear whether the importer or exporter is invoiced.
• The legal basis is being challenged.IMANI has argued that only the Finance Minister, by Legislative Instrument, can set a vehicle age bar, pointing out that the 10-year import ban Parliament passed in 2020 never commenced because the required Instrument was never made. GSA's position is that it is enforcing an existing national standard. If that challenge succeeds the rule could change.
• Whether the date holds. This programme was announced once before for 1 January 2023 and deferred. As at 2026-09-20 no delay has been announced and GSA reaffirmed the date in early September, but industry is actively lobbying.

What to do this week

• If you are buying something over 15 years old, get it on the water before 2026-10-01 or change the plan.
• If a vehicle is already shipped, save the bill of lading — that date is your exemption.
• Register with the GSA Vehicle Homologation Unit now if you intend to import after the date.
• Ask your exporter which inspection body they will use and what the CoC costs.
• Re-run your numbers — a newer, conforming vehicle may now beat an older one once the penalty and inspection are counted. Estimate duty here.

Sources

• GSA Public Notice No. GSA/DGS/PN/26/09 (14 Aug 2026) — the operative 15-year notice
• Citi Newsroom — "No ban on used vehicle imports", GSA clarifies
• Graphic Online — GSA to enforce used-vehicle import guidelines from 1 Oct 2026 (pre-dates PN/26/09, cites the superseded 10-year limit)
• GRA — Vehicle importation (customs overage penalties, separate from the GSA rule)