Trade Card Requirements 1405: A Complete Guide to Obtaining, Renewing, Limits and New Rules

Entering international trade and carrying out export and import activity in Iran requires legal permits and proof of professional eligibility. The trade card, the main identity document of traders, is the licence that allows natural and legal persons to operate within the framework of the country's commercial and customs laws.

In recent years, with the integration of government systems and the smartening of oversight processes, the terms of using a trade card in 1405 have seen new developments. Under the new commercial system, the trade card is a dynamic licence with scalable trading capacity: your import and export ceiling is continuously upgraded and adjusted in line with your credit rating, financial discipline and record of settling currency obligations.

In this article from the Barzu trade platform, we review all aspects, steps, documents, legal restrictions, renewal criteria and the legal risks of transferring a trade card, based on the latest legal documents and the country's export and import regulations.

Steps to Obtain a Trade Card in 1405

Issuing a trade card in 1405 is carried out 100% remotely through integrated government systems. On average, when documents are complete and there are no open tax or banking cases, issuance takes between 25 and 45 working days.

The five steps of registration and obtaining the card:

• Initial registration on national portals: The applicant must log in to the national licences portal and the Comprehensive Trade System with a mobile number registered in their own name and submit a trade card application (per the executive regulations of the Export and Import Regulations Act).
• Uploading and online verification of documents: Uploading identity documents, ownership documents for the head office, and registering a certificate of no criminal record in the integrated system.
• Banking and tax verification: Electronic enquiry of the current-account "Form A" certificate, absence of un-remedied bounced cheques, and obtaining the Article 186 enquiry under the Direct Taxes Act.
• Attending Chamber of Commerce training courses: First-time applicants (with an unrelated educational qualification) attend orientation courses on customs and commercial law held by the Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture.
• Paying the legal fee and issuing the smart card: Paying the approved statutory fee (80 million rials for initial issuance in 1405) and activating the digital card in the trade dashboard.

Conditions and Required Documents (Natural and Legal Persons)

Under Article 10 of the executive regulations of the Export and Import Regulations Act, establishing commercial eligibility requires meeting specific conditions.

General conditions:

• Age: At least 23 full years (under the new rules, the age requirement falls to 20 for owners of at least 50% of the shares or ownership of production units holding an operating licence).
• Educational qualification: At least a high-school diploma (people without a diploma are exempt if they have 3 years of tax returns or a valid operating licence).
• Place of activity: Owning property with office or commercial use and a unique identifier registered on the national licences portal (title deed or a notarised/tracking-coded lease).

Comparison table of documents for natural and legal persons:

Note on exemptions: Under the country's customs laws, border-resident cooperatives, Iranian sailors working on vessels and petty traders (official porters) are exempt from holding a trade card for supplying essential goods in their geographic area (Article 20 of the Export and Import Regulations Act).

Validity and Renewal of the Trade Card

The standard procedure for initial issuance of a trade card is a one-year validity. However, to support production, if the applicant holds a valid industrial, mining or agricultural operating licence, the card is issued with a 5-year validity.

Main conditions for renewal in 1405:

• Settling tax debts: Re-submitting the Article 186 certificate under the Direct Taxes Act.
• Providing a social security clearance: For workshop units and employers with salaried staff.
• Settling export currency obligations: Under Central Bank resolutions, all exporters must settle the currency earned from exports within the prescribed deadlines (generally 6 to 15 months) through the NIMA system, sale of banknotes or import-against-export. An unfulfilled currency obligation is a definitive barrier to card renewal and new order registration.
• Paying the renewal fee: The annual renewal fee for a trade card in 1405 is set at 60 million rials.

Restrictions and Important Points (and Liability in General Partnerships)

The trade card is a limited instrument under systemic supervision. Awareness of these restrictions is essential to avoid financial loss:

• First-year import ceiling: All new trade cards have an import ceiling of 100,000 dollars in their first year of activity (up to 500,000 dollars for production units).
• Credit rating: Raising the import ceiling in later years depends solely on your "credit rating" in the credit-rating system. Indicators such as registered capital, account turnover, absence of bounced cheques and customs discipline determine the trader's rating (A, B, C) and trading ceiling.

Legal risk of debts in general partnerships:

One of the most critical points in registering commercial companies is the nature of the partners' financial liability. If a trade card is issued in the name of a general partnership, under Articles 124 and 125 of the Commercial Code of Iran, all partners bear joint and unlimited liability for the card's customs debts, tax debts and currency obligations.

This means that if the company's assets are insufficient, government bodies and the Central Bank can act directly to seize and attach the personal property of each partner. Internal agreements among partners to divide the debt are void and cannot be invoked against third parties and the government.

Can a Trade Card Be Transferred to Another Person?

The legislator's answer to this question is an absolute no. Any purchase, sale, rental, legal assignment or granting of an irrevocable power of attorney to use another person's trade card is illegal and constitutes a crime.

According to official Central Bank statistics, about 35% of the country's unfulfilled currency obligations stem from the misuse of rented and single-use trade cards. For this reason, strong deterrent laws apply in this regard:

Legal penalties for renting and transferring a card:

• Article 33 bis 2 of the Anti-Smuggling of Goods and Currency Act: Assigning or using the benefits of another person's card is a crime. The penalty includes definitive revocation of the card, full confiscation of the imported/exported goods, a fine of 1 to 2 times the value of the goods and joint liability for paying duties.
• Paragraph 7 of Article 274 of the Direct Taxes Act (tax evasion): Using another person's trade card for tax evasion is a criminal offence punishable by 6 months to 2 years of imprisonment, a fine and deprivation of social rights.

Legal Note and Practical Advice for Small Businesses

1. Strictly avoid any offer to rent a card: Drawing up any settlement agreement or power of attorney at a notary office to assign a card does not relieve you of any liability, and all tax and criminal liabilities fall on the card's original holder.
2. Manage the first-year 100,000-dollar ceiling: Before registering an order and buying goods from a foreign supplier, check your credit ceiling to avoid goods piling up at customs and paying heavy demurrage costs.
3. Keep your statutory books in order: Even in years when you had no export or import activity, seal your journal and ledger books and submit a zero tax return so your credit rating is not damaged.
4. Choose a suitable legal form: For start-ups, registering a private joint-stock or limited liability company is far safer than a general partnership, since it limits partners' liability to the registered capital.

Frequently Asked Questions