PAGDER: import duty on injection molding machines now costs "one machine in five"
PAGDER chairman Kenan Benliler says removing plastic injection molding machines from the investment-incentive customs duty exemption list cut machine imports 20% in the first 8 months of 2026, forcing investors to shrink or shelve projects.
Kenan Benliler, chairman of the Turkish Plastics Industry Association (PAGDER), says plastic injection molding machines (customs code 8477.10) have been removed from the list of equipment eligible for customs-duty exemption under investment incentive certificates — and it is hurting investment. Under the current tax burden, he says, "you pay the equivalent of one machine's value in tax for every five machines" imported, on top of already-high financing costs; many investors are either scaling back projects or abandoning them altogether.
According to the association's data, imports of plastic injection molding machines fell 20% year-on-year in the first eight months of 2026. PAGDER is calling for the machines to be restored to the exemption list.
What does this mean for a molder?
If you're planning a new machine purchase (especially imported, e.g. from China), comparing quotes without adding customs duty and VAT to the total investment cost is misleading — worth updating your machine depreciation assumptions in your part cost calculation with the current tax burden.
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