At a Glance

• KRG Trade Minister stated ASYCUDA customs system issues are nearing a resolution.
• The official start date for the ASYCUDA in the Kurdistan Region remains undecided.
• Baghdad continues to withhold 83 billion dinars in financial entitlements for Kurdish farmers.

Kamal Muslim Saeed, the KRG Minister of Trade and Industry, stated that the issues with the ASYCUDA customs system in the Kurdistan Region will be resolved, adding that an amount of 83 billion dinars in financial entitlements for farmers remains with Iraq and has not been sent for the year 2025 to be distributed.

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Key Statement and Focus Area

• The Minister of Trade stated that the official implementation date for the ASYCUDA remains undecided.
• He highlighted that until now, no amount of money has been sent by the federal government as financial entitlements for this year's wheat harvest of the farmers.

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Speaking to Channel8 on Monday, Minister Kamal Muslim Saeed stated that the issues regarding the implementation of the ASYCUDA system are heading toward a resolution, and only "a few minor" points remain for its execution.

Saeed revealed that the start date and implementation of the ASYCUDA in the Region have not yet been determined.

The Minister of Trade mentioned that despite sending an amount of money within the framework of old entitlements, the process of disbursing funds for this season's wheat to farmers has been delayed.

He confirmed that the Iraqi government, in its latest installment of funds, has sent 58.6 billion dinars to the Kurdistan Region.

Amanj Raheem, the Secretary of the KRG Council of Ministers, said earlier that Erbil has submitted a formal constitutional and legal memorandum to Baghdad confirming the Region's readiness to deploy the ASYCUDA digital trade network.

According to Raheem, the final remaining hurdle hinges entirely on the regional and federal finance ministries establishing a mechanism for border revenue distribution.

FYI

Erbil and Baghdad reached an agreement to fully implement the ASYCUDA system at all Kurdistan Region border crossings, resolving a major bottleneck by agreeing to an equal 50-50 split of non-oil border revenues between the federal government and the KRG. 

The system is scheduled to go live at Kurdish border crossings (such as the Ibrahim Khalil crossing), running alongside new advance tax collections on foreign currency wire transfers.

While the implementation of a unified digital platform like ASYCUDA bridges the technical gaps between federal and Kurdish port authorities, the unresolved dispute over revenue-sharing and who physically holds the cash at the border continues to hinder full institutional integration. 

Meanwhile, financial entitlements for farmers are a major component of the ongoing talks between the KRG and the federal government.

The KRG explicitly defines wheat procurement and agricultural financing as strategic, sovereign obligations that must be shared equitably under the Iraqi Federal Budget among all Iraqi citizens. 

The KRG includes these items because Baghdad has historically limited its purchasing quotas for Kurdish wheat (e.g., capping it at 400,000 tons in comparison to millions of tons from southern provinces).