United Kingdom: Customs and other import duties (current LCU)

Key figures

Since 1972 it is up 1,268% from 352 million in 1972 (5.16% a year on average, compounded). The World Bank has no value for 41 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 130% in 1981 and the biggest yearly fall was 77.4% in 1984. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2024, United Kingdom had the 40th highest value of the 65 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to United Kingdom in the 2024 ranking

• Zambia — 37th of 65: 8.49 billion
• Nicaragua — 38th of 65: 5.59 billion
• Belarus — 39th of 65: 5.13 billion
• Guatemala — 41st of 65: 4.61 billion
• New Zealand — 42nd of 65: 4.12 billion
• Norway — 43rd of 65: 3.65 billion

What this measures

Taxes and duties on imports are taxes on goods and services that become payable at the moment when goods enter the economic territory or when services are delivered by non-resident producers to residents. This indicator is expressed in current prices, meaning no adjustment has been made to account for price changes over time. This series is expressed in local currency units.

Limitations: For most countries central government finance data have been consolidated into one account, but for others only budgetary central government accounts are available. Countries reporting budgetary data are noted in the country metadata. Because budgetary accounts may not include all central government units (such as social security funds), they usually provide an incomplete picture. In federal states the central government accounts provide an incomplete view of total public finance. Data on government revenue and expense are collected by the IMF through questionnaires to member countries and by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

All 12 values

Customs and other import duties (current LCU) in nearby economies

• Albania — 8.97 billion (2024)
• Armenia — 76.17 billion (2024)
• Azerbaijan — 1.75 billion (2024)
• Belarus — 5.13 billion (2024)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 2,739 (2024)
• Bulgaria — 11.72 million (2024)
• Croatia — 61,000 (2020)
• Cyprus — 14.9 million (2019)
• France — 40 million (2024)
• Georgia — 138.9 million (2024)

More public sector data for United Kingdom

• Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 609 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (current USD) — 88.98 billion (2025)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 71.18 billion (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 2.35% (2025)
• Arms exports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 702 million (2025)
• Net incurrence of liabilities, total (current LCU) — 203.14 billion (2024)
• Net incurrence of liabilities, total (% of GDP) — 7.03% (2024)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (current LCU) — 69.25 billion (2024)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (% of GDP)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is United Kingdom's customs and other import duties (current LCU)?

4.82 billion in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1972?

It is up 1,268% from 352 million in 1972 (5.16% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 5.49 billion in 2022 and the lowest 19 million in 1984.

How does United Kingdom rank?

40th highest of 65 economies with data for 2024.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator GC.TAX.IMPT.CN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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