The Libyan foreign trade is dependent mainly on oil exports and there is no significant industrial base in Libya. The trade agreement with Arab countries is the only agreement Libya joined. Libya applied for accession to the World Trade Organization but negotiations didn’t take place due to the conflict which started in 2011.

The average applied tariff rate in Libya is 5.2% which is relatively low and indicates that there is no protection to the domestic industrial sector.

The road network density is generally satisfactory, the total length of Libya's paved road network is about 34,000 km, of which about15,500 km primary roads, the secondary and agricultural road network is about at 18,500 km.  The highway network is classified into four main roadway types[1]: 

• Expressways: Roads arteries outside municipal borders linking the cities and regions with two carriage ways and at least four lanes (two lanes or more in each direction) 
• Main roads: Roadways linking cities and regions, or serving cities within municipal boundaries, there are single carriageway roads for good paved standard or dual carriage ways with 2 lanes in each direction. 
• Secondary roads: These link district centres and villages. 
• Agricultural roads: Roads linking agricultural land and farms with markets 

Ports in Libya:

There are four main commercial seaports in western Libya: the port of Tripoli, the port of Al Khoms, the port of Misratah and the port of Zwarah. In eastern Libya there are two main seaports: Benghazi and Tobruk. .

• The Port of Tripoli is the principal port in Tripoli, the capital of Libya, and one of the oldest ports in the Mediterranean. It is managed and operated by the "Libyan Ports Company", and handles different types of products including containerized and bulk cargoes, livestock, chemical and oils, etc.
  The port is protected by two breakwaters of 2000 and 700 meters, and the harbour covers about 500 hectares, and can accommodate vessels up to 190 meters long with maximum draft of 10.5 meters. The port’s maximum annual capacity is about 4 M Tons.
• Al Khoms Port is a small port for bulk carriers, general containers, livestock, car carriers, and oil and chemical items. It has an entrance channel of 16 meters depth, and an anchorage with a depth of 10.5 to 11.5 meters. The port itself consists of nine medium sized berths (numbers 12 to 19) with lengths ranging from 75 to 530 meters, and maximum drafts ranging from 10.5 to 11.5 meters depending on the berth. The port is well organized, functioning, and had no security breaches reported in 2018.  
• Misratah Port is connected directly to the main motorway by a heavy transportation road (that does not cross the city centre). The port is under development and has a target to add more berths with total lengths of 2,250m, and drafts of 13m, in order to receive 4 million containers per year. The port of Misratah has a current capacity of 6,000,000 tons per annum. The maximum depth is 11 m and the total length of berths is 3,550 m long.
• Benghazi Port is one of the biggest ports in Libya, located in the east of the country on the Mediterranean coast. Its total size stands at 4,400,000 metres squared. The port is managed by the Libyan Ports Company. The Port of Benghazi resumed operations in October 2017, having suspended operations 3 years earlier due to internal disruptions. The infrastructure is in workable condition, and navigation signals and buoys are in place. Historically, this port was the primary gateway for incoming humanitarian traffic in 2007 following the crisis in Darfur, Sudan.
  The port consists of the old harbour which contains nine berths (1-9) for receiving general cargo and containers, and the Juliana harbour which also has nine berths that receive general cargo and containers, as well as silos, direct delivery goods and bulk items.
• The Port of Tobruk is a port located in Tobruk, in eastern Libya near the Egyptian border – it lies approximately 450 kilometres east of Benghazi.  The entrance to the main channel into the port is between the point of Tobruk and the point of Marsa Ummash Shawush. The port has ten anchorages, each a capacity of six vessels. As of 2010, the port had three cargo handling cranes, one with a 50-80 ton capacity, and two with 30-40 ton capacity.

Airports in Libya:[2]

• La Braq Airport (LAQ)
• Benina International Airport (BEN)
• Brack Airport (BCQ)
• Martuba Airport (DNF)
• Ghadames Airport (LTD)
• Ghat Airport (GHT)
• Houn Airport (HU
• Kufrah Airport (AKF
• Marsa Brega Airport (LM
• Misurata Airport (MRA)
• Mitiga Airport (MJI)
• Murzuq Airport (QMQ)
• Nafoora Airport (NFR)
• Sebha Airport (SEB)
• Sert Airport (SRX)
• Tobruk Airport (TOB)
• Tripoli International Airport (TIP)
• Ubari Airport (QUB)
• Zwara Airport (WAX)

Libya doesn’t have a competition law yet.

Libya registered around 15 billion USD in trade surplus in 2021 due to rising oil prices, and exports reached almost 32.5 billion USD compared with 17.6 billion USD of imports. Libyan exports mainly to Italy, Germany, Spain, China, USA, and France. imports come from Turkiye, China, United Arab Emirates, and Italy. Oil represents more than 95% of Libyan exports.

• The main export markets for Libyan products are Italy, Germany, Spain, China, USA, and France
• The main export products are: oil, iron and steel, gold, and copper.
• The main countries where imports come from are: from Turkiye, China, United Arab Emirates, Italy, Greece, Egypt, and Belgium.
• The main imports are: oil, electrical machinery and equipment, machinery and mechanical appliances, vehicles, cereals, tobacco, plastics, pharmaceuticals, and dairy produce.

Source of data: Trademap (International Trade Centre)

Products banned from export or import can be found through this link.

Import Procedures:

Required documents:

- A valid import license (static card). Import licenses.

- 1 x Certificate of Origin (CoO) endorsed and certified by the chamber of commerce in the country of origin;

- 1 x original of the Commercial Invoice certified by Chamber of Commerce in the country of origin and 2 x copy;

- 1 x original and 2 x copy of the Bill of Lading (or airwaybill);

- 1 x delivery orders;

- 1 x packing list.

• Custom clearance officers can request a certified translation of the documents into Arabic.

• Once the cargo has arrived, the customs clearing agent should then be provided with all original documentation to be able to finalise the clearance. Customs declarations and forms including classification of goods as per customs rules will be issued. Payable services fees and/or tax will be evaluated according to valid current exchange rates, and the cargo will be released.

Customs:

Tariff data can be found through this link.