Ethiopia Central Bank Moves to Align Import Pricing With Customs Benchmarks

Addis Ababa, January 25, 2026 (ENA) -The National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) has announced a new measure requiring banks to use indicative prices set by the Ethiopian Customs Commission for selected imported goods.

The move aims at improving consistency and data integrity in import-related foreign exchange transactions, according to the press release issued by the central bank.

NBE said the decision follows the implementation of the consolidated Foreign Exchange Directive No. FXD/0V2024, introduced in July 2024, which transitioned Ethiopia’s exchange rate regime to a market-clearing system.

Under the reform, banks were permitted to negotiate foreign exchange buying and selling rates directly with customers, while the longstanding minimum price requirement for imports was repealed.

 This shift placed greater responsibility on banks to conduct proper price verification when opening Letters of Credit (LCs) and processing other import permits.

However, the NBE said discrepancies have emerged during implementation.

“The National Bank of Ethiopia has observed that prices used in Letters of Credit issued by most banks exhibit significant discrepancies when compared with reference prices applied by the Ethiopian Customs Commission,” the statement said.

To address the gap, the central bank announced that, effective January 27, 2026, all banks will be required to apply Ethiopian Customs Commission indicative prices as reference benchmarks when opening Letters of Credit and issuing import permits through other approved modalities for selected items.

According to the NBE, the measure is intended to harmonize price references across institutions, enhance the reliability of balance of payments data, and support the integrity of the foreign exchange market.

“The National Bank of Ethiopia will continue to monitor implementation and take appropriate measures to support the effective functioning of the foreign exchange market in line with the ongoing reform agenda,” the statement added.