Article 11 of the SACU Agreement, 2002, makes provision for the establishment of the Tariff Board as an independent institution consisting of experts drawn from the Member States. The Tariff Board is responsible for making recommendations to the Council on the level and changes of customs, anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguard duties on goods imported from outside the Common Customs Area, rebates, refunds, or duty drawbacks based on the directives given to it by the Council as provided for in Article 8 of the SACU Agreement. In order to support the Tariff Board, Member States are required to establish National Bodies responsible for conducting preliminary tariff related investigations and make recommendations to the Tariff Board.

The Tariff Board is not yet operational, and the Council has mandated the International Trade Administration Commission (ITAC) of South Africa to handle tariff applications on behalf of SACU on an interim basis. In the meantime, SACU is exploring options for a suitable tariff setting architecture. 

The Secretariat, through the Tariff Board Coordinator facilitates the consultative processes regarding changes to the Common External Tariff (CET) and provides support to promote uniform application of the CET.