Morocco proposes extending reduced import duty on fish feed until 2029

Morocco has proposed extending its preferential customs regime for imported fish feed for a further three years. The 2027 Finance Bill would retain a 2.5% import duty until 31 December 2029 for an annual quota of up to 15,000 tonnes of feed for farmed fish.

The regime applies to tariff heading 2309.90.80.92 and is due to expire on 31 December 2026. Outside that quota, the general import duty on fish feed is 30%.

The measure is not new. Morocco introduced the preferential treatment in 2016, initially covering 25,000 tonnes per year for two years. It was subsequently extended until 2023 and then again until the end of 2026, with the quota reduced to 15,000 tonnes.

According to the documents accompanying the Finance Bill, the measure is intended to support the development of domestic aquaculture and encourage investment in fish-feed production in Morocco. In the short term, however, it lowers the cost of a key input for farms that rely on imported feed formulations.

Its direct impact is limited to finfish farming rather than shellfish or seaweed production, which does not require compound feed. The extension could therefore be particularly relevant for projects involving gilthead seabream, European seabass, meagre and other farmed fish species that Morocco is seeking to develop.

The proposal forms part of Finance Bill No. 60.26, which was referred to the Finance and Economic Development Committee of the House of Representatives on 23 October and remains at first-reading stage. The extension will not take effect unless the parliamentary process is completed and the final law is published.