The Estimation of Seasonal Tariffs for Iran's Agricultural Imports

A seasonal tariff is a kind of customs duties which varies across different periods or seasons. It is used where the supply-demand equilibrium varies with the season in a meaningful way. It doesn't concern only agricultural products and, due to the seasonal variation of supply and demand, may cover a broader range of products. A seasonal tariff is mainly determined by price fluctuation and the necessity of market regulation. This paper follows three purposes: 1. to identify those agricultural products which require seasonal tariffs, 2. to determine those months during which seasonal tariffs are needed for the identified products, and 3. to calculate the required seasonal tariffs. To these ends, the method of price gap/ differential and applied import duties in 1997- 2005 has been used. As per authors, findings, out of 294 agricultural products, eight product- apple, orange, potato, onion, peas, watermelon and tomato - are of utmost priority for having seasonal tariffs owing to their monthly price fluctuation during the said period. Their terms of seasonal tariff - harvest periods - are as follows: Mordad- Bahman for apple, Mehr-Bahman for orange, Mordad-Bahman for grapes, Tir-Bahman for potato, Ordibehesht-Azar for onion, Khordad-Shahrivar for peas, Tir-Aban for watermelon and Khordad-Azar for tomato. Furthermore, according to the authors, findings, seasonal tariff rates (deemed equal to bound tariffs) for imports during harvest periods rang from 81 percent for watermelon to 47.5 percent for potato