Pre-Shipment Inspection and CoC: Kenya PVoC, Nigeria SONCAP, Iraq

What a pre-shipment CoC program is

Pre-shipment inspection (PSI) first meant governments using private companies to check the price, quantity and quality of goods ordered abroad. The programs in this note are conformity programs. The importing country's standards body requires regulated goods to be checked against its national standards before shipment, in the exporting country, by an inspection body it has appointed or licensed. The result is a certificate of conformity (CoC) for the shipment, which customs asks for at clearance.

The rules bind the importer, but most of the work falls on the exporter: the inspection body reviews test reports, inspects the packed goods and issues the CoC. Only goods on the regulator's regulated list, or not on its exemption list, need one. Food and medicines often go through other agencies instead.

Programs, appointed bodies and fees change often. This note was checked in September 2026. Confirm the rules with the regulator and the appointed inspection body before each new product or destination.

Key terms: RFC, routes A, B and C, inspection, IDF and Form M

Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania use the same three routes. The CoC is still issued per shipment on every route; registration and licensing only make later shipments faster.

• RFC (request for certification; some bodies say request for certificate): the application to the inspection body, with the proforma invoice, product details and any test reports or certificates. In Kenya, sea shipments are inspected within 4 working days of a complete RFC.
• Route A: each shipment is tested and physically inspected. It suits occasional exporters. Kenya uses Route A for high-risk goods such as used goods, cereals and cooking oils, and Nigeria calls the result PC1.
• Route B: the product is registered after its test reports are reviewed, then each shipment gets a lighter check. Registration lasts one year in Kenya (with at least 2 surveillance inspections) and in Nigeria (PC2).
• Route C: for manufacturers with a quality management system. The factory is audited and products are licensed: up to 3 years in Kenya, one year in Nigeria (PC3).
• Physical inspection: the inspector checks quantity, marking, labels and packing against the documents and draws samples for testing. In Kenya, Route A containers from China and the UAE are sealed by the inspection body, and the seal and container numbers go on the CoC.
• Test reports: results against the destination standard from a laboratory the program accepts, usually one accredited to ISO/IEC 17025. Without acceptable reports, samples are tested.
• NCR: a non-conformity report, issued instead of a CoC when goods fail. Kenya does not allow entry to goods with an NCR.
• IDF (Kenya): the Import Declaration Form the importer lodges in Kenya's electronic single window. Customs needs it at clearance with the CoC, invoice, packing list and bill of lading.
• Form M (Nigeria): the importer's import declaration, opened through its bank on Nigeria's trade single window. For SON-regulated goods it needs a Product Certificate.

Kenya: KEBS PVoC

The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) runs Pre-Export Verification of Conformity (PVoC) under the Standards (Verification of Conformity to Standards and Other Applicable Regulations) Order, Legal Notice 78 of 2020. It covers imports in general, except products in the Order's schedule, such as some industrial raw materials, goods made in the East African Community, courier parcels and pharmaceuticals regulated by other bodies.

New three-year contracts for general goods started on 19 February 2026 (PVoC manual version 15). Contracted partners serve set zones: China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mongolia; India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka; Japan and South Korea; Southeast Asia; Latin America; Russia, Ukraine and Central Asia; Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Jordan; and the Gulf, including the UAE. Goods from countries outside these zones, including Europe, North America, Africa and Oceania, get destination inspection in Kenya instead.

• Partners named in the manual include Bureau Veritas, Cotecna, Intertek, SGS, TÜV Rheinland and CCIC. Not every partner serves every zone, so check who covers your country.
• Fees (manual version 15): Route A 0.60%, Route B 0.55%, Route C 0.50% of FOB value, minimum USD 300, maximum USD 3,500, with testing charged separately.
• Goods from countries without a PVoC partner: destination inspection at 0.6% of the approved customs value, minimum USD 300, maximum USD 3,500.
• Goods that needed a CoC but arrive without one: destination inspection at a fee of 5% of the approved customs value, and the importer may have to give KEBS a security bond of another 5% (paragraph 9 of the Order).
• Goods that do not conform are not allowed into Kenya and are re-exported or destroyed at the importer's expense.
• Used vehicles and their spare parts are under a separate contract with Quality Inspection Services Inc. Japan (QISJ).

Nigeria: SONCAP, Form M and NAFDAC

The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) runs SONCAP, an offshore, pre-shipment certification program for regulated products. It does not cover food, drugs, medical devices, raw material chemicals, military goods, contraband or used products other than vehicles. SON can also issue a SONCAP import permit that exempts some regulated imports from certification; their conformity is then checked in Nigeria.

Two certificates are needed. The Product Certificate (PC) is issued in the exporter's name after an accredited firm (IAF) assesses the product, and the importer needs it to open Form M. PC1 (unregistered, Route A) is for a single shipment and, per SON's FAQ, valid six months; PC2 (registered, Route B) and PC3 (licensed, Route C) are valid one year. The SONCAP Certificate (SC) is issued by SON to the importer, for one consignment, once the IAF sends its certificate of conformity. Customs uses the SC for the Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR).

• IAFs listed on SON's website include Africa Standards and Certifications, China Certification & Inspection Group (CCIC) and Cotecna. SON's two pages list slightly different firms, so confirm the current list.
• Order of steps: the importer gets the PC and opens Form M through its bank; the exporter sends the Form M, final invoice, bill of lading or air waybill and packing list to the IAF; SON issues the SC; the importer uses it to get the PAAR and clear the goods.
• Regulated products that arrive without an SC can be detained, tested and destroyed at the importer's expense (SON).
• NAFDAC: the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control regulates food, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, packaged water, chemicals and detergents, registers them and inspects imports. Food and drugs, which SONCAP excludes, go through NAFDAC; for cosmetics and chemicals, ask the importer which agency covers your product.

Tanzania, Uganda and other destinations

The programs look alike, but each regulator sets its own product list, inspection bodies and penalties. Some countries run a different kind of check that exporters often confuse with a CoC.

• Tanzania (TBS): PVoC applies to the HS codes on TBS's list, last revised on 29 March 2025. Every shipment of listed goods needs a CoC before arrival. Goods without one get destination inspection, and the destination inspection procedure sets a penalty of 15% of CIF value plus inspection fees. Non-conforming goods are re-exported or destroyed at the importer's cost. TBS published a new penalty schedule in 2025, so check the current figure.
• Uganda (UNBS): goods that arrive without a CoC pay a surcharge of 15% of CIF value and get comprehensive destination inspection. With a CoC, the inspector only checks that the goods match it. UNBS's FAQ names Bureau Veritas, Intertek and SGS for general goods; confirm the current list.
• Côte d'Ivoire: under the Verification of Conformity (VOC) program, regulated goods clear customs only with a CoC. Decree 2025-418 of 18 June 2025 renewed, for five years, the concessions of BIVAC BV (Bureau Veritas), Cotecna, Intertek and SGS. The program has used a minimum FOB value (XOF 1,000,000 in its pilot phase); check the current threshold and product list.
• Iraq (COSQC): regulated products, for example food, toys, electrical goods, vehicle parts, tyres, cosmetics, construction materials and textiles, need a CoC per shipment from an inspection company licensed by the Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control. Some inspection bodies call the program ICIGI. COSQC reviews the certificates and samples goods at the border. The list of licensed companies has changed several times, so check it with COSQC or the importer.
• Algeria: no appointed PVoC agent. Ministry of Commerce inspectors check imports at the border (Executive Decree 05-467 of 10 December 2005) by documents, visual check and, if needed, lab tests, then admit or refuse the goods. Inspection companies offer a CoC issued in the exporting country as proof of conformity; ask the importer whether it wants one.
• Egypt: not a CoC program. Advance Cargo Information (ACI) needs an ACID number, which the importer obtains on Nafeza, on the invoice and shipping documents, and the exporter must register on CargoX. It has been mandatory for sea freight since 1 October 2021, and Egyptian Customs announced it as mandatory for air freight from 1 January 2026.
• Saudi Arabia: SASO's SABER platform, with a product certificate or self-declaration plus a shipment certificate (SCoC) for each consignment. See Triplicate's SABER note.

Making the invoice, packing list and HS codes match the CoC

The inspection body compares the goods with your documents, and customs compares the CoC with the import entry. In Kenya the CoC is issued within 2 working days of the final documents, and the importer or exporter must confirm the draft CoC within 48 hours. In Nigeria the IAF needs the Form M, final invoice, transport document and packing list before the SONCAP Certificate. Any difference between these papers can hold the shipment.

• Use the same exporter, importer and consignee names and addresses on the RFC, invoices, packing list and the importer's IDF or Form M.
• Describe each item the same way on every document, with model or article numbers, quantities and units that match the cartons and shipping marks.
• Give each line an HS code, check it against the destination's regulated list and exemptions, and check the code and description on the draft CoC.
• Keep the FOB value, currency and Incoterm consistent. Kenya's fees are a percentage of FOB value, and Tanzania's and Uganda's surcharges a percentage of CIF value.
• Ship only what was inspected. Adding or swapping goods after inspection needs a new check.
• Triplicate's free generator makes the commercial invoice and packing list from the same line items, and its HS code lookup helps check the codes.