Iraq suspends customs duties and taxes on imported chicken, eggs and meat; Kurdistan region objects

Iraq has suspended customs duties and taxes on imported chicken, eggs and meat — a temporary window for exporters, but one the Kurdistan Regional Government is openly contesting.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Faleh Zaidi ordered the temporary suspension of taxes and customs duties on imported eggs, chicken and meat on 8 October 2026. The Prime Minister's media office said the measure was intended to stabilise domestic markets and keep essential food products affordable after a sharp change in Iraq's exchange rate pushed food prices up, and the Finance Ministry instructed the General Customs Authority to delay collection of customs duties. Reports of the order cover chicken and eggs as well as live animals for red-meat production.

The Kurdistan Regional Government's Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources formally opposed the decision at a press conference on 11 October 2026. Agriculture Minister Begard Talabani sent two letters of protest to the Prime Minister and the federal agriculture minister, and the ministry said the measure conflicts with mechanisms previously agreed with Baghdad on the agricultural calendar.

• What changed: taxes and customs duties on imported chicken, eggs and meat are suspended temporarily, ordered on 8 October 2026.
• Why: the federal government said it acted to stabilise markets and keep staple foods affordable after an exchange-rate move raised prices.
• Opposition: the Kurdistan Region's agriculture ministry argues that duty-free imports could flood the market and threaten tens of thousands of jobs, and wants Baghdad to support local feed suppliers and farms instead.
• Scale of the local industry: according to figures presented by the regional ministry, the Kurdistan Region has more than 2,100 poultry projects producing over 450,000 tonnes of chicken a year against demand of approximately 150,000 tonnes, and 59 egg projects producing more than four billion eggs a year against domestic demand of around one billion.

For exporters into Iraq the suspension widens the import window in a market where chicken is a staple protein, but the measure is temporary and openly contested, so contracts and pricing should be built around the risk that it is shortened or withdrawn. Shipments still have to clear all ordinary requirements, halal and veterinary certification among them.

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Source: Kurdistan24, "KRG Opposes Baghdad Tax Suspension on Imported Poultry", 11 October 2026; Shafaq News, "Al-Zaidi delays import fees on meat, eggs", 8 October 2026.