Following complaints, the Guyana Revenue Authority Commissioner Godffrey Statia yesterday confirmed that the tax body has granted permission for sex toys to be imported for personal use.
“Complaints have been received from persons who import such items that these are not obscene articles as per the current interpretation and treatment. The Customs, Excise and Trade Operations over the years have been treating the importation of “sex toys” and other similar articles as prohibited items, under the item 4 of Part 1 of the List of Prohibited Imports in the Second Schedule to the Customs Act, Chapter 82:01,” a GRA circular from Statia to “all officers of the Customs, Excise and Trade Operations states.
It was dated January 24, 2022.
Statia yesterday confirmed that he indeed issued the notice.
In May of 2019, local businesswoman and makeup artist Onika Pompey had complained to a local television show of the shipment of her sex toys being seized by the GRA. The woman claimed she was beginning to expand her business when her cargo was seized on the basis of a law she did not know existed.
There are adult stores across the country which had continued to sell sex toys but they would not publicly display the items. On social media platforms, persons also list sex toys as items for sale here but it is not clear if they have ever received pushback from the GRA.
GRA’s notice to staff said that the issue “has affected stakeholders in clearance of items for their personal use, contrary to efforts under the WTO agreement to remove/ reduce barriers to facilitate trade in a changing environment.”
Particulars of the directive read:
“A. Classification
The changes in the world today especially with the availability of information via social media has highlighted these articles for use on the open market in North America, Europe and this part of the region. While these articles continue to be classified as obscene articles, many persons, both male and female, revert to using these for their personal and private pleasure, sometimes even recommended by Doctors as therapy.
B. Amendment
Based on the demand for the use of “sex toys”, consideration was given to amend the interpretation of these schedules, so that “sex toys” for personal use are not deemed as indecent or obscene articles. This also took into account Court rulings, based on legal challenges, against the definition of “obscene articles”.
“C. Immediate Action With immediate effect, approval is given to allow imports of “SEX TOYS”, subject to the following conditions:
i. that it is for “PERSONAL USE”, and NOT FOR COMMERCIAL USE.
ii. Payment of the relevant Customs duties and taxes.”
