Study of Small and Medium Enterprises in Azerbaijan - IFC

9.4 Key difficulties faced by exporting smes
Table 9.3 Average costs for exports
Actions
Average official
expenses
Average additional
expenses
AZN $ AZN $
General
expenses
as a percentage
of export
value
(average)
Duration:
average
number
of days
Certificate from the State Service
for Control over the Consumer
Market under MED
357 441 2 1
Standardization authorities 200 247 1 1
Licenses for export 1400 1728 1 1
Customs clearance 2890 3568 2058 1667 11 4
Export tariffs 3222 3978 1900 1539 5 2
Obtaining transaction passport 300 370 6 2
Sanitary control 288 356 15 6
Transportation costs 2664 3289 1590 1288 1 1
Miscellaneous expenses 2000 2469 1940 1571 8 3
Customs warehousing 270 333 600 0 1
Expenses incurred making
payments for customs duties
- - 418 27 5
The IFC survey shows that about 51 percent of individual entrepreneurs and
SMEs engaged in exports consider export procedures as problematic. In particular,
bureaucracy in customs authorities, payment of customs tariffs, and complicated
customs procedures were mentioned as the main obstacles in exportation (See Chart
9.5).
In addition to the above, official and unofficial expenses made by SMEs increase
the cost of exporting and discourage smaller businesses from engaging in export
operations.
According to the survey, the highest official expenses made by SMEs while exporting
arise for payment of export tariffs, fees for custom clearance and transportation
costs, followed with general expenses and costs associated with obtaining of export
licenses (See Table 9.3). However, SMEs also must make other additional expenses
while paying for customs clearance, besides the export tariffs and transportation costs.
Remaining costs in exporting arise in obtaining compliance and quality certificates
from the state authorities in charge of certification and standardization, obtaining a
transaction passport and passing the sanitary control.
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St u d y o f Sma l l a n d Me d i u m Ent e r p r i s es in Az e r b a i j a n