Tema vs Lome for Used Trucks 2026: Ghana Duties, Togo Flexibility and Sahel Transit
Tema and Lome are West Africa's two competing gateways for used Chinese trucks - one bound by a 15-year cap, EASYPASS conformity and ICUMS valuation, the other with no hard age limit, a deep-water harbour and bonded corridors into the Sahel. Here is how to choose the right port in 2026.
West Africa gives used truck buyers two natural front doors: Tema for Ghana and Lome for Togo. Our Ghana import guide and the new Ghana landed-cost guide covered the Ghana side in depth, and our earlier Nigeria vs Cotonou vs Lome comparison mapped the classic three-way entry debate. What is still missing is a straight head-to-head between Tema and Lome - the two ports most likely to receive a Chinese used truck ordered today. Here it is, in the same decision format we used for Mombasa vs Dar es Salaam.
The ports in 2026
Lome is the Gulf of Guinea's transshipment powerhouse. The port handled 30.64 million tonnes of cargo in 2024, roughly two thirds of it transshipment, and 2.4 million TEUs in 2025, up 16 percent year on year. Lloyd's List 2026 ranking places Lome 91st worldwide and first in sub-Saharan Africa, and its 16.6-metre container berth depth is described by port-promotion material as unrivalled on this coast. It runs a single-window system (GUCE), and one October 2026 source review puts its port fees about 10-25 percent below neighbouring gateways (reported). Tema is smaller in transshipment terms but is the vehicle gateway for Ghana: about 85 percent of Ghana's vehicle imports clear there under the ICUMS digital system, with a public GRA duty calculator buyers can run before they commit.
Rules: the 15-year cap vs no hard limit
Ghana now runs the tighter regime. From shipments loaded on or after 1 October 2026, used vehicles older than 15 years by date of manufacture are barred under GS 4510 (see our GS 4510 checklist), and covered units need an EASYPASS certificate of conformity of roughly 300 US dollars before loading. The offset for trucks: the C-category overage penalty is mild - zero up to 10 years, 5 percent from 10 to 12, 10 percent from 12 to 22 and 30 percent beyond 22 years.
Togo takes the opposite approach: no fixed maximum-age ban, confirmed across an October 2026 source review, a 2026 vehicle-export guide and a September 2026 West Africa age table. Age is not free, though. Lome customs (OTR) is reported to assess an age-based depreciated reference value, so an older unit still pays duty on a relatively higher value, and the CCTA roadworthiness inspection is reported to get stricter past 10 years. One clearance-agent source also flags an age-based levy of 10-20 percent of CIF for used tanker-type bodies older than five years, and says such bodies over 10 years are generally barred - a single source that conflicts with every other 2026 guide. Treat Togo as flexible, but confirm your exact body type with your broker before you book.
Duties and clearance costs
Both markets sit inside the ECOWAS common external tariff, where heavy trucks carry a roughly 10 percent line and pickups about 5 percent, but the stacking differs. Ghana adds nine separate levies on top and then charges 15 percent VAT on the duty-inclusive base - the full arithmetic is in the landed-cost guide linked above. Togo quotes a truck duty band of about 5-10 percent (reported) plus 18 percent VAT plus ECOWAS and AU levies. Budget for the ECTN/BESC cargo waiver filed before loading, a pre-shipment verification, and French-language documents - one agent source reports OTR will not release on English-only paperwork (all reported). Port storage kicks in at 2,500 CFA francs per day after 15 days, and experienced Lome brokers quote 7-10 working days for a standard clearance, or 3-5 with a well-prepared file (all reported).
Transit: Lome's Sahel corridor vs Tema's north
If the truck's final job is in the Sahel, Lome currently has the strongest commercial push. Transit units for Niger and Burkina Faso move on a bonded corridor at 0 percent duty and 0 percent VAT (reported), backed by the TRIE/T1 transit declaration and a bonded-carrier guarantee. In October and November 2026 the port community (A2PL) is running a roadshow through Niamey, Ouagadougou and Bamako to court Alliance of Sahel States trade, and bonded cargo is reported to receive police escort towards the northern border. Tema also feeds a bonded northbound route to Burkina Faso, but the classic heavy-truck doors into the Sahel remain Cotonou and Lome - our Cotonou guide completes that picture.
Which port should you choose?
Three questions settle it. Registering and operating the truck in Ghana? Land at Tema - a Lome entry that quietly settles in Ghana creates registration and enforcement problems, and Tema's overage bands are gentle for trucks under 10 years. Buying an older, budget unit? Lome's no-hard-limit regime makes a pre-2012 tractor possible, provided you accept the depreciated valuation and a strict inspection. Destination Burkina Faso, Mali or Niger? Lome's bonded corridor and the AES commercial push make it the default. And for self-propelled trucks and machinery, October 2026 source reviews describe Lome's regular RoRo calls as the most economical drive-on, drive-off gateway on the West African coast.
Whichever door you pick, start from our FOB price benchmarks, lock the payment structure before any deposit (payment guide), and get an independent inspection before the vessel sails (inspection checklist). Freight bands for the current quarter are in our shipping guide.