Guyana Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in guyana, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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Trade Barriers
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Non-tariff barriers include procedural obstacles and inefficiencies in the trade-related business environment. High transaction costs exist in the form of lengthy timelines attributable to several agencies providing approvals. An electronic single trade window hopes to reduce the costs of doing business, but companies still express some frustration. Firms wanting to import are required to register with the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) with a Tax Identification Number and then receive an import license from the Ministry of Tourism, Industry, and Commerce.

Applications for import licenses for some products require prior clearance from other government agencies, significantly increasing the time required for approval. GO-Invest assists in guidance on relevant government agencies and required licenses. Depending on the item, it may require approval from the Ministry of Health and the Government Analyst Food and Drugs Department (GA-FDD) under the Ministry of Health. GAFDD’s role includes addressing safety and trade related issues for food, drugs, cosmetics, and medical devices stated under the Food and Drug Act of 1971. For the importation of firearms, approval is required from the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Commissioner of Police. Approval for unmanned aerial vehicles is required from the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority and the Guyana Police Force before import customs clearance. While navigating the processes may be time consuming and cumbersome, a local partner or a customs broker may provide some assistance and save some time.

Guyana charges an excise tax on consumable goods, including alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, petroleum products and motor vehicles. Items which attract excise tax are subjected to a 14 percent Value Added Tax (VAT).

The GRA has implemented the ASYCUDA World (AW) program, an integrated customs management system which intends to modernize manifests, customs declarations, and accounting procedures. Further reforms to GRA to allow for trade facilitation standardization aligned with international best practices may result in faster clearance times and lower transaction costs.

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Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

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As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

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The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

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