BOTSWANA · GUIDE
Botswana customs & VAT on parcels from South Africa
A factual explainer: how SACU membership, import VAT (14%, Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS)) and border clearance affect a courier parcel from South Africa to Botswana.
SACU: no customs duty, but still a border
South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho and Eswatini form the Southern African Customs Union (SACU): goods moving between members are normally free of customs duty, but every parcel still crosses a border post with a customs declaration and the importing country charges its own import VAT.
Import VAT
Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS) charges import VAT at 14% on the customs value of goods entering Botswana. Import VAT is charged at the border on the customs value of the goods; couriers usually pay it on your behalf and collect it on delivery. Botswana's VAT Act, 2026 commenced on 1 July 2026 — check BURS for the current rate before you order.
What the courier needs
- A commercial invoice describing the goods honestly (we prepare it).
- The recipient's full name, a contactable phone number and a complete physical address.
- Payment of the import VAT, which the courier usually settles at the border and collects from you.
Currency
Botswana uses the pula, which floats against the rand. Our prices are in rand; your bank or Bitcoin wallet converts at the day's rate.
Which border your parcel crosses
Gaborone, Lobatse and Molepolole are served via Tlokweng/Kopfontein or Pioneer Gate/Skilpadshek; Francistown and the north via Martin's Drift/Groblersbrug.
Products we do not ship across borders
For now we do not send GLP-1 compounds, anabolic or hormone lines, or melanotan to any country outside South Africa. This keeps every parcel within routes we can clear reliably.
Important
This page is general information, not tax or legal advice. Rates and rules change — check Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS) for the current position before you order.