UK ⇆ Egypt Shipping Rates 2024

Commercial shipping

We offer bespoke prices and contract rates based on your consignment’s volume and regularity. We help you to understand your business needs and offer you a rate and service that suits your business.

Please feel free to contact us and discuss your commercial shipping needs:

Direct line:
020 8867 0904 option 1.

Direct email:
[email protected]

*** Prices shown on this page are for indication purposes only.

Sea Freight

FCL rates

Egypt	20ft container	40ft container
Damietta (EGDAM)	£1520.00	£1820.00
port of Cairo	£1690.00	£2100.00
Port Said	£1720.00	£1990.00

LCL rates

LCL shipping from our London office in Feltham TW14 post code to Egypt ports

Total Volume *	Damietta (EGDAM)	port of Cairo	Port Said
1 CBM	£120.00	£150.00	£170.00
5 CBM	£350.00	£390.00	£370.00
10 CBM	£550.00	£640.00	£690.00

*Volumetric pricing

Destination	50 kilos	200 kilos	500 kilos
Damietta (EGDAM)	£178	£295.00	£615.00
port of Cairo	£139.00	£315.00	£712.00
Port Said	£178	£295.00	£700.00

Air Freight

Delivery of cargo can vary from 3 - 7 working days form Door to airport
London Heathrow Airport to Cairo International Airport - CAI

Destination	50 kilos	200 kilos	500 kilos
Cairo	£120.00	£220.00	£480.00

* Documentation surcharge applies to any shipping to Egypt.
* For an accurate price, please use our online quotation form above and provide detailed information about your shipment requirement to Egypt.

Exporting to Egypt

A guide for British businesses who are interested in developing their overseas trade and doing business in Egypt.

Doing business in Egypt: Egypt trade and export guide

1. Egypt export overview

Egypt is a lower middle income country with a population of almost 90 million. In 2013 it had an annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita of USD 3314.

Since 2014, the economy has been on a path to recovery. It was the largest destination for all Foreign Direct Investment into Africa. Its stock market (EGX) was the best performing in the world in terms of returns.

Egypt is highly import dependant and is likely to remain so for the foreseeable future. Significant investments in ports, airports, highways and railways are planned which will lead to more efficient movement of goods.

Many UK companies are already doing business in Egypt, including BP, Shell, BG Group, Vodafone, Barclays, HSBC, GSK, AstraZeneca and Unilever amongst many others.

Strengths of the Egyptian market include:

a young workforce
newly-extended Suez Canal is the hub for world maritime traffic
strategic geographical location – with proximity to Asian, African and Europe
third largest economy in Africa
a number of free trade agreements and arrangements
18% of the 90 million population are under 25

2. Challenges doing business in Egypt

Egypt has some unique challenges, including:

a crippling fiscal deficit
political and social instability
poverty has increased to 26.4%
rising unemployment
investment and tourism both falling
excessive bureaucracy that makes it difficult to do business (ranks low on World Bank doing business)
high-levels of corruption (ranks fairly low on the transparency index)
a shortfall of foreign exchange
restrictions on foreign property ownership
lack of legal and contractual certainty
slow and cumbersome customs procedures

3. Growth potential

3.1 Economic growth

Egypt has a GDP of USD 369 billion. Its growth rate for the first half of 2014/15 was 4%, compared with 2% in 2013/14.

Egypt is looking to get its economy back on track. Investment will increasingly become the main support for growth, as subsidy reform weighs on private and government spending.

Investment was reinforced with a high profile conference in Sharm el Sheikh in March 2015. During the conference, an estimated USD 36 billion of private sector deals were signed, with a further USD 12 billion of support pledged by regional allies.

Egypt has planned investment reforms, which include:

fuel subsidy
the introduction of a Value Added Tax (VAT) tax
simplified bankruptcy proceedings
companies’ law
amendments to the capital markets law
a new insurance law
a land management framework

It is estimated that between USD 200 and 300 billion worth of projects are needed to solve the country’s electricity and housing shortages. This will also generate jobs for an expanding population through broader economic diversification.

3.2 Trade agreements

Egypt is a member of the following organisations:

World Trade Organization (WTO)
Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA)
Egypt-EFTA Agreement
EURO-Med Partnership
Greater Arab Free Trade Area (GAFTA)

A list of Egypt’s bilateral and regional agreements is available from the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

4. UK and Egypt trade

Egypt was the UK’s 42nd largest export market for goods and 55th largest export market for services in 2013. Between 2001 and 2014, UK exports of goods to Egypt fell by around 9%. They were worth £1 billion in 2014.

Top UK exports of goods to Egypt include:

metalliferous ores and metal scrap
fruit and vegetables
general industrial machinery and equipment
medicinal and pharmaceutical products
power generating machinery and equipment

5. Opportunities for UK businesses in Egypt

5.1 Education and training

Education and training is a major priority for the Egyptian government and reform is highly required in all levels and all industries.

There is a strong growth in private schooling and independent for-profit universities, some of which include foreign participation. Schools are being upgraded at the rate of 10% each year with modern facilities such as computers, multimedia laboratories and internet connectivity.

Approximately 11.9% of government spending is on education and is forecast to increase by 10%. Government educations plans include:

a 50% increase in number of Egyptians enrolled in university or technical education.
120 additional universities and technical / vocational institutes
another 2,200 private and 2,500 public schools over the next 5 years
over 1,400 of the public schools to be completed using Public Private Partnership (PPP) approach

Egypt is open to foreign participation in all areas of the education and training sector. The British education system is highly respected in Egypt. Opportunities for UK companies include:

technical and vocational training
skills for employability
school, curriculum and university development
teacher training
management and leadership training
school equipment and Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
vocational training
English language skills
qualifications certification
school construction projects

5.2 Oil and gas

The oil and gas sector accounts for 15% of national GDP in Egypt and 31% of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

Egypt is making positive strides towards reforming its oil and gas sector. Repayment of debt owed to oil companies and commitments to be debt free by end-2016, have provided a boost to upstream investment.

There are around 50 international petroleum companies currently operating in Egypt in exploration, digging and oil extraction. There are approximately 143 rigs in operation. Major oil companies have committed billions in investment to Egypt’s upstream including:

BP – USD 12 billion over 5 years
Eni – USD 5 billion over 4 years
BG – USD 4 billion over 4 years

Opportunities for UK companies include:

exploration and field development
operations and maintenance
training and sustainable development

5.3 Retail

Egypt offers an excellent and growing market for retail that is supported by:

growing demographics
a growing affluent middle class
low penetration levels of modern retail shops
a growing acceptance of 21st century retail concepts

The government is looking to develop an efficient retail environment, supporting various sectors of the growing economy. To this end, it sees itself as a main partner in the development of Egypt’s retail sector. It is keen to attract foreign investment to enhance competition and modernize the retail environment. More retail complexes are opening around the country and increasing numbers of new brands are entering the market.

At least 30 well known UK retail brands are currently trading successfully in Egypt. There are various opportunities in:

clothing
food
consumer goods
online retailing
over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceuticals
franchising

5.4 Power

Egypt’s demand for electricity is growing rapidly and there is an urgent need to develop alternative power resources.

The power supply programme 2010-2020 aims to add about 30,000 MW to installed capacity, almost doubling electricity generation. This programme includes investment in a variety of projects and indicates an annual investment in excess of USD 3 billion.

Currently, 88% of total electricity capacity is dependent on oil or natural gas, while the share of wind and solar power represents only 3%. However, Egypt is considered to have a great wealth of renewable energy resources. It hopes to produce 12-20% of its electricity from renewable sources.

To achieve this target, the government introduced a new ‘feed in tariff’ scheme for wind and solar energy production with capacity of 50 MW or less. It also announced sovereign guarantees and interest subsidy loans, depending on production capacity.

In January 2015, the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) selected 18 foreign investment bids with a value of USD 6 billion to build renewable power plants. The total capacity of 4,000 MW will ber divided between solar and wind power projects.

To further diversify Egypt’s energy mix, coal imports for use by energy-intensive industries will be permitted, within limits.

There are opportunities for UK companies in the following projects:

a wind farm with a total capacity of 500 Megawatt (MW) in Gulf of Suez
installation of a 7.2 Gigawatt (GW) wind energy projects by 2024
construction of a 3.5 GW solar power station by year 2027
a nuclear power plant in Dabba with a capacity of 1,000 MW
3 power generation projects in Dayrout, Qena and Beni Suef
a steam power plant in Ain El Sokhna

5.5 Construction and infrastructure

The Suez Canal Zone (SCZone) project is worth estimated at £20 billion over 15 years. The project presents UK companies with significant opportunities in:

ports and logistics development
development of a 76,000 sq km industrial and logistics hub
new industrial zones and urban areas
new transport infrastructure
power generation
water desalination
waste water treatment plants

Other opportunities in the construction and infrastructure sector include:

power infrastructure – Egypt plans to invest USD 110 billion up to 2027
waste water plant expansions
water infrastructure PPPs projects
tourism infrastructure – in April 2014, the government earmarked USD 136 million for the tourism infrastructure
airport city at Cairo International Airport with an investment of USD 20 billion
New Cairo Capital city – a £30 billion project

6. Start-up considerations

There are several ways you can do business in Egypt. The most common are:

appoint a local partner, distributor or agent
set up own branch office in Egypt
form a joint stock or Limited Liability Company

7. Legal considerations

There are a number of laws in Egypt that regulate business, the 2 main ones are:

the companies law (No 159 of 1981), which regulates the common business in Egypt
the investment guarantee and incentive law (No 8 of 1997)
Capital Market Law No. 95 for 1992 (“Capital Market Law”)

7.1 Standards and technical regulations

The Ministry of Industry and Trade is the primary agency responsible for issuing decrees making standards mandatory.

The Egyptian Organisation for Standardisation and Quality (EOS) is the official body responsible for standardisation activities, quality and industrial metrology.

7.2 Intellectual Property (IP)

Egypt is signatory to the main Intellectual Property Conventions (Rome, Paris, Berne and Washington). Egypt passed a new IP law in June 2002, bringing practices in line with WTO Law 82 of 2002.

Patents are registered at the Egyptian Patent Office and trademarks at the Department of Trade Registry at the Ministry of Trade and Investment.

The Egyptian Center of Intellectual Property and Information Technology (ECIPT) can help provide information for IP related queries.

Trademark counterfeiting, copyright piracy and patent infringements remains a major problem in Egypt. Enforcement of IP law is not strong.

8. Tax and custom considerations

8.1 VAT

The VAT rate is currently 10%.

8.2 Corporate tax

The corporate tax rate in Egypt is currently 22.5%. Oil and exploration activities are taxed at a higher rate of 40.55%.

8.3 Individual tax

The maximum individual tax rate is 25%.

8.4 Indirect tax

The tax rate for goods ranges from 10% to 50% for goods. For services, the tax ranges from 5% to 10%.

8.5 Customs

The Egyptian Customs Authority as a part of the Ministry of Finance implements laws and regulates customs. The Ministry of Finance issues decrees dealing with custom tariffs for each imported product.

For goods sourced from the UK or the European Union (EU), the Egyptian Customs Authority accepts the EUR1 certificate of origin form and applies preferential import duties.

8.6 Documentation

The following documents are required for any shipment to be accepted through customs in Egypt:

commercial invoice
certificate of origin (should be authenticated by the Egyptian Consulate in the country of origin)
packing list
bill of lading
pro-forma invoice and letter of credit

Egypt no longer requires import licenses for most products, although licenses are still required for animal products.

9. Business behaviour

English is widely spoken throughout Egypt.

Although it is common for written correspondence to be in English, Arabic is often preferred within some public sector organisations.