Minister of Finance Mohamed Maait emphasized that the reduced customs and taxes remain in effect for five years following the import approval, allowing Egyptians living abroad to replace their vehicles at any time during this period.

"A key factor that determines the required amount to be transferred to the National Bank of Egypt's (NBE) account at the Finance Ministry is the vehicle's year of manufacture," Maait added.

Expatriates may also withdraw from the initiative by submitting an application through the electronic platform. They will receive their funds within three months based on the exchange rate at the time of their exit.

El-Shahat Ghatouri, head of the Egyptian Customs Authority (ETA), announced that the government has introduced an international hotline number (15460) to receive inquiries from Egyptians residing abroad.

Ghatouri also mentioned that the government has assigned specialized employees to the hotline to provide round-the-clock service, even on official holidays, with the aim of expediting the customs clearance process for imported vehicles.

The Ministry of Emigration and Expatriates' Affairs of Egypt recently declared the relaunch of the zero-customs car import initiative for the second time, facilitating the importation of vehicles for expatriates.

Under this initiative, Egyptians living abroad have the opportunity to purchase vehicles overseas and bring them into the country by paying the customs fees, VAT, and other taxes upfront in foreign currencies to the Ministry of Finance.

The payment is made as a five-year bank deposit without any interest.

The relaunched initiative, effective immediately upon President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi's approval, will remain in effect for a period of three months.

After five years, expatriates will be able to withdraw their money in Egyptian pounds based on the current local currency exchange rate at the time of withdrawal, resulting in the importation of vehicles without customs charges.

The zero-customs initiative is part of Egypt's broader efforts to bolster foreign currency inflows in response to the significant shortage of hard currency liquidity in the market.

The initial launch of the initiative successfully attracted approximately $763 million from 151,000 expatriates, according to data provided by the Ministry of Finance.

The relaunch is expected to further stimulate the influx of foreign currency and contribute to Egypt's economic growth.