Shipping Company from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott 0552803439 | Car Shipping, Containers, Furniture and Parcels to Mauritania

Home Safe is a shipping company from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott that moves cars, furniture, books, goods and parcels from any city in the Kingdom to the Mauritanian capital, Nouadhibou and the other regions. The route is mostly by sea: the container leaves Jeddah Islamic Port for the Autonomous Port of Nouakchott on the Atlantic, and reaches the consignee’s address in 30 to 55 days. Urgent shipments fly to Oumtounsy Airport in 4 to 8 days. A saloon car by sea starts from SAR 2,800, air freight from SAR 28 a kilogram, and an express parcel from SAR 110. To book: 0552803439.

In this guide45ShowHide

1. Who ships from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott, and what do they ship?
2. The route and transit time from your city to Nouakchott
3. Shipping prices from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott
4. Shipping to Nouakchott from the cities of the Kingdom
5. Sea freight from Jeddah to the port of Nouakchott: full or shared container?
6. The Autonomous Port of Nouakchott, the “Friendship Port”, and the port of Nouadhibou
7. Shipping cars and vehicles from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott
8. Car import conditions in Mauritania, and why cars from the Saudi market are in demand
9. Steps for shipping a car from Saudi Arabia to Mauritania
10. Shipping furniture and the effects of those returning to Mauritania for good
11. Shipping books and scholarly libraries for students
12. Packing for the long Atlantic voyage
13. Parcels, gifts from the Two Holy Mosques and the luggage of Mauritanian pilgrims
14. Shipping trucks, buses and heavy equipment
15. Shipping commercial goods to the markets of Nouakchott
16. Documents and customs clearance in Nouakchott
17. What cannot be shipped to Mauritania or needs a permit
18. Delivery in Nouakchott, Nouadhibou and the other regions
19. Air freight from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott
20. Door to door, and storage before travel
21. Steps for shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott
22. Tracking and insurance
23. Shipping from Nouakchott to Saudi Arabia
24. Tips before shipping to Mauritania
25. How do you choose a shipping company from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott?
26. Common mistakes when shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott
27. Why Home Safe for shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott?
28. Related articles and pages
29. Tags
30. Frequently asked questions about shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott
31. How much does shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott cost?
32. How many days does a shipment need to get from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott?
33. Which port does the shipment arrive at in Mauritania?
34. Can a used car from Saudi Arabia enter Mauritania?
35. Can I ship my car and my furniture in one container to Nouakchott?
36. Is a returning Mauritanian’s furniture exempt from duty?
37. Is there land freight from Saudi Arabia to Mauritania?
38. Do you ship books and scholarly libraries?
39. Do you ship Zamzam water with a Mauritanian pilgrim’s luggage?
40. Which Saudi cities do you collect from?
41. Is an electronic cargo tracking document needed, as in other West African countries?
42. Who pays the customs charges in Nouakchott?
43. Can I send a small parcel to my family without a container?
44. Do you ship trucks, buses and equipment to Nouakchott?
45. Do you ship from Nouakchott to Saudi Arabia?

Route: your city → Jeddah port → Red Sea → Suez Canal → Mediterranean → Strait of Gibraltar → Atlantic → port of Nouakchott · Sea distance: about 4,000 nautical miles · Transit time: 30–55 days by sea, 4–8 days by air.

Who ships from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott, and what do they ship?

Most of the people who call us about this route are Mauritanians living in the Kingdom: imams, teachers, students at the Islamic universities, doctors, workers and traders. With them come Hajj and Umrah pilgrims who arrive every season and go home with more than they brought. What is shipped follows its owner: the returnee carries his home and his car, the student his library, and the trader vehicles and goods for the markets of the capital. This is how the groups divide and what suits each one:

Shipper	What they ship	Most suitable method
A family returning to Mauritania for good	Household furniture and appliances, usually with the car	A 40ft container that takes the car and the furniture
The student and the graduate	A whole library, cartons of clothes and the contents of a room	A shared container, or one container split among several classmates
The car buyer and the vehicle trader	Pickups, 4x4s, saloons and minibuses	A container for one or two cars, or RoRo
The resident sending to family	Clothes, perfumes, dates and small appliances	An air parcel, or a part load for many cartons
The Mauritanian Hajj or Umrah pilgrim	Bags and gifts beyond the airline allowance	Air for urgent items, part load by sea to save
The trader and importer in Nouakchott	Spare parts, tyres, building materials, carpets and fabrics	A full container, or a part load by the cubic metre

The first things we ask are what is in the shipment and who will receive it in Mauritania. Arabic is an official language there, so there is no language barrier between us and the consignee, although customs papers are mostly written in French.

The route and transit time from your city to Nouakchott

A full container arrives door to door in 30 to 45 days from Jeddah and the western cities, and in 32 to 48 days from Riyadh, the Eastern Province and the cities far from the port. The ship heads north from Jeddah to the Suez Canal, crosses the Mediterranean from east to west, then leaves through the Strait of Gibraltar and runs south along the Atlantic coast to Nouakchott. One ship does not usually sail the whole way; the container is moved to a second vessel at a transhipment port in the western Mediterranean or at the Strait. These are the stages of the journey:

Stage	What happens	Usual time
Collection and packing	Dismantling, packing and inventory at the home or warehouse, or collection of the car	One day, two for a large home
Transport to Jeddah port	A closed truck or a car carrier from your city to the quay	Hours from the western region, 1–3 days from the other regions
Export and waiting for the vessel	The export declaration and handing the container to the shipping line	3–6 days
Sailing and transhipment	The Red Sea, Suez and the Mediterranean, then a second vessel into the Atlantic	22–35 days, depending on the connection
Clearance at the port of Nouakchott	Declaration, inspection and payment of the charges	3–7 days if the file is complete
Delivery inside Mauritania	From the port to the district or to the region	One day within the capital, several days inland

Method	Door to door	Suits
Full container	30–45 days from the western region, 32–48 days from the other regions	A returnee’s home, a car with furniture, or a trader’s goods
Shared container	40–55 days	Cartons of books and clothes and a few pieces of furniture
A car in a container or by RoRo	30–50 days	A returnee’s car, and traders’ vehicles
Air to Oumtounsy Airport	4–8 days	Parcels, documents and urgent spare parts

What lengthens the transit time?

• The connection at the transhipment port: if the container misses the second vessel it waits for the next one, which can add a week.
• A change in the line’s routing: some lines sail round the Cape of Good Hope when navigation in the Red Sea is disrupted, which makes the voyage two weeks longer or more.
• The exemption letter: a returnee who has not obtained his letter before the ship arrives has his container kept in the port until it is issued.
• A car whose conditions were not checked: a vehicle over the permitted age holds up the whole container, furniture included.

How long other destinations take is listed on the transit times page, and sea is weighed against air on the shipping methods comparison page.

Shipping prices from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott

A saloon car by sea starts from SAR 2,800, air freight from SAR 28 a kilogram, and an express parcel of up to 5 kg from SAR 110. The price of any shipment has three parts: transport from your city to Jeddah port or the airport, then the ocean or air freight, then clearance and delivery in Mauritania if you want them. Containers to Nouakchott are priced per sailing, because their freight changes with the line’s schedule and the transhipment port. This is where our services start:

What you ship	Method	Price starts from
Documents up to one kilogram	Express	SAR 83
A parcel of up to 5 kg	Express	SAR 110
Luggage or goods by air	Per kilogram of chargeable weight	SAR 28 a kilogram
Saloon car	By sea from Jeddah port	SAR 2,800
A cubic metre in a shared container	Sea part load	Set on request, by sailing
20ft container	Full container from Jeddah port	Set on request, by sailing
40ft container for a car and furniture	Full container with lashing	Set on request, by sailing
Trucks and equipment	Roll-on/roll-off or flat-rack container	Set on request, by dimensions

Market prices on the Mauritania route are not published as figures. The pages that offer shipping to Nouakchott settle for phrases such as “competitive prices” or “20% off” with no amount to compare against, because the destination is in low demand and is priced one shipment at a time. We have therefore fixed what can be fixed, namely the car, air freight and parcels, and we send the container price on the day you ask, with the name of the line and the sailing date. Container rates in general are in the article on container shipping prices from Jeddah.

What sets the price	Its effect
Shipping method	A car on its own is cheaper by sea without a private container, a car with furniture is cheaper in one container, and small loads go by the kilogram or the cubic metre
Volume and weight	The container size for a full load, the cubic metres for a shared one, and the chargeable weight by air. Work out your volume with the CBM calculator
Vehicle class	A 4×4, a pickup and a bus take more space than a saloon
Collection city	Jeddah and Makkah are close to the quay; Riyadh, Dammam, Tabuk and Abha add a road leg
Scope of service	To the port of Nouakchott only, or to the address after clearance
Mauritanian charges	Not part of the shipping price; the consignee pays them according to the item and its value

How do you cut the cost?

• A returnee with a car and furniture should ask for the single-container calculation first; it usually comes to less than two separate shipments.
• Students going home in the same season share a 20ft container, and each of them gets an inventory in his own name.
• Have the exemption letter ready before the ship arrives; port storage is charged by the day.

The items are explained on the pricing factors page.

Shipping to Nouakchott from the cities of the Kingdom

We collect from every city in the Kingdom, and all sea shipments meet at Jeddah Islamic Port before sailing. Mauritanians are spread across the Kingdom’s regions: in Riyadh and Qassim, in Makkah and Madinah near the Two Holy Mosques and their universities, and in the Eastern Province and the south. For us the only difference between one city and another is the length of the road to the quay. This is a summary of the main cities:

Collection city	Road to Jeddah port	Airport for air freight	Door to door by sea	Detailed article
Jeddah	The port is inside the city	King Abdulaziz International	30–45 days	Shipping company from Jeddah to Nouakchott
Makkah and Taif	About 80 km from Makkah and 170 km from Taif	Jeddah airport	30–45 days	Served with Jeddah shipments
Madinah and Yanbu	About 420 km from Madinah	Madinah airport, or Jeddah airport	31–46 days	Closed truck to Jeddah
Riyadh	About 950 km	King Khalid International	32–48 days	Shipping company from Riyadh to Nouakchott
Dammam, Khobar, Jubail and Al-Ahsa	About 1,350 km	King Fahd International	33–48 days	International shipping company in Dammam
Qassim, Hail, Tabuk, Abha, Jazan and Najran	700 to 1,000 km depending on the city	Riyadh or Jeddah airport	32–48 days	Closed truck to Jeddah

The ocean and air freight do not change with your city, because everyone is loaded on the same vessel. The only variable is the inland transport to the port, and we write it as a separate item:

Collection city	Saloon car by sea from	Air freight per kilogram from	Express parcel up to 5 kg from	Documents from	Transport to the port
Jeddah and Makkah	SAR 2,800	SAR 28	SAR 110	SAR 83	Short, a matter of hours
Madinah, Taif and Yanbu	SAR 2,800	SAR 28	SAR 110	SAR 83	Added, and set on request
Riyadh, the Eastern Province, the north and the south	SAR 2,800	SAR 28	SAR 110	SAR 83	Added, and set on request

Riyadh and Qassim: the capital has no seaport, so its container covers the road to the Jeddah quay by truck in one to two days. The train from its dry port reaches Dammam, but a ship from the Arabian Gulf sails round the peninsula before Suez, so we do not choose it for a shipment bound for the Atlantic. Air freight leaves from King Khalid Airport.

Makkah and Madinah: they hold the largest gathering of Mauritanian students, and most requests for books and luggage come from them. Makkah has neither a port nor an airport, and its large trucks enter at regulated hours that tighten in Ramadan and Hajj, so we send a small vehicle to its hillside districts. Madinah has its own airport, and its sea shipment comes down to Jeddah.

Sea freight from Jeddah to the port of Nouakchott: full or shared container?

Sea freight from Jeddah to the port of Nouakchott moves in a 20ft or 40ft container, which you book alone or share with others. A full container is loaded with your belongings only and its seal is locked in front of you; it stays locked at the transhipment port until it is opened at Nouakchott customs. A shared container gathers the shipments of several senders, so you pay for your own space only, and you wait until it fills.

Comparison	Full container	Shared container
How it is priced	One price for the 20ft or 40ft container, set on request by sailing	By the cubic metre, set on request
Time to the address	30–48 days	40–55 days
Handling	The container is lifted, locked, from one ship to the other	Consolidation in the Jeddah warehouse, and sorting in the arrival warehouse
Clearance in Nouakchott	One file in the owner’s name	Several files, and a delay in one delays the opening of the container
Best for	A returnee with his home, a car with furniture, and a trader’s goods	A student’s library, cartons for the family, and a small order

A 20ft container holds about 33 cubic metres, which is the furniture of a small flat or a car with a few cartons. A 40ft container holds about 67 cubic metres, enough for a car with the furniture of a medium-sized home. On this voyage the container is lifted on and off at least four times, so the securing inside it is not a detail to be skipped. The dimensions are on the container sizes page, and the service is explained on the sea freight page.

The Autonomous Port of Nouakchott, the “Friendship Port”, and the port of Nouadhibou

Our shipments arrive at the Autonomous Port of Nouakchott, Mauritania’s first sea gateway, through which most of what the country imports passes. It lies on the Atlantic about 12 km south-west of the capital, and has general cargo quays and a container terminal run by a specialised operator. In the north is the port of Nouadhibou, the port of the economic capital and the city of fishing and minerals.

Port	Location	Who it serves	Note
Autonomous Port of Nouakchott, the “Friendship Port”	The Atlantic coast, about 12 km south-west of the capital	Nouakchott and the central, southern and eastern regions	The port of arrival for most of our containers and vehicles
Autonomous Port of Nouadhibou	A peninsula in the far north-west	Nouadhibou, the free zone and the surrounding area	Subject to a sailing being available; otherwise from Nouakchott by road, about 470 km

The Nouakchott coast is open to the ocean, so a ship may wait days before berthing if the swell rises or the quays are busy, which is why we give you the arrival date with a margin. The ports we work through are on the ports and gateways page.

Shipping cars and vehicles from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott

Shipping cars and vehicles from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott is what we are asked for most on this route, and it starts from SAR 2,800 for a saloon car by sea. The vehicle travels in one of two ways: inside a locked container, where it is secured by its four wheels, or on a RoRo vessel, to which it is driven uncovered and lashed in the hold. Before both comes an earlier question: do the Mauritanian import conditions allow this car? We check that before we book.

Comparison	Inside a container	RoRo
Loading	It enters the container over a ramp, its four wheels are strapped down and chocked with timber wedges	A port driver drives it into the ship and it is lashed to the deck of the hold
Cover	The container itself is the cover, so neither salt spray nor sand reaches it	Uncovered, with no wrap, until it is driven aboard, and protected inside the hold
Availability of sailings	Regular, on container ships with a transhipment port	Few to Nouakchott, and we confirm a sailing exists before booking
Belongings with the car	Possible in the container, outside the cabin and on an inventory	Not possible; the car travels empty
Best for	A returnee with his car and his home, and a trader shipping two cars	A running car on its own, and buses and trucks

The container is the usual method with us to Nouakchott, because container ships call there regularly, and because most car owners are returnees shipping their homes with it. The two methods are explained on the container car shipping and RoRo car shipping pages, and loading from Jeddah port in the article on sea car shipping from Jeddah.

Car import conditions in Mauritania, and why cars from the Saudi market are in demand

Mauritania drives on the right with the steering wheel on the left, like the Kingdom, so a Saudi car is registered there with no change to its steering. The most important restriction is age: used vehicles have a commonly quoted age limit of eight years, and at times a stricter limit was applied to passenger cars, then eased and replaced by charges that rise with the vehicle’s age and engine power. Because the rule has changed more than once, we confirm what is in force before shipping and do not build on hearsay.

Item	Current practice	What we do before shipping
Vehicle age	A commonly quoted limit of eight years for used vehicles, which changes with customs decisions and the Finance Act	We send the year of manufacture and the type to the clearing agent and take his answer in writing
Steering side	Left-hand drive, like cars in the Kingdom	We do not accept a right-hand-drive vehicle on this route
Duties and taxes	Calculated on a value assessed by customs, with a value added tax whose standard rate is 16%	We ask the clearing agent for an estimate of the amount before you buy the car
The car’s documents	The registration or the purchase contract, an invoice, a bill of lading showing the chassis number, and the owner’s passport	We match the chassis number on every paper before handing the car to the port

A car from the Kingdom is in demand in the Mauritanian market for well-known reasons. The climate of the peninsula is dry, so the body arrives free of rust. The roads are paved, so the suspension parts have not been strained. And the pickup and the 4×4 have lived in a desert environment like the tracks of the Mauritanian interior. That is why most of what we carry is pickups and 4x4s for the sandy roads, economical saloons for families, and minibuses and trucks for those in transport.

Two warnings before you buy: do not pay for a car you intend to send to Mauritania before the clearing agent’s answer on its age and its charges reaches you. And leave nothing in its cabin but its original tools. The general rules are in the car shipping guide.

Steps for shipping a car from Saudi Arabia to Mauritania

Between your first call and taking delivery of the car in Nouakchott there are seven steps, and the first costs you nothing:

1. Vehicle details: you send the make, model, year of manufacture and a photo of the registration to 0552803439; we check its acceptance in Mauritania and send the price for both methods.
2. Export papers: paying the fines, then surrendering the plates and obtaining the export certificate from the traffic department. We complete them with you or under your authorisation.
3. Collection: a carrier or an insured driver takes the car from your location in any city to our yard near Jeddah port.
4. Documentation: photos and a video of the body, the cabin and the odometer reading, sent to you before loading.
5. Preparation and lashing: lowering the fuel and disabling the alarm, then strapping the four wheels in the container or handing the car to the RoRo quay.
6. Sailing: the bill of lading is issued with the chassis number on it, and we send a copy to the clearing agent in Nouakchott before the ship arrives.
7. Clearance and delivery: the charges are paid at the Friendship Port, and the owner or the person he has authorised receives the car and checks it against the loading photos.

The traffic department procedures are explained in the article on car shipping from Saudi Arabia.

Shipping furniture and the effects of those returning to Mauritania for good

Household furniture is shipped to Nouakchott in a 20ft or 40ft container, and a few pieces in a shared container. Someone returning for good has his used furniture exempted from duty if he obtains the exemption letter before the shipment arrives, so here a piece of paper saves more than any discount on the freight. At the home we work in this order:

• Survey: by photos or a video call, to see whether a space in a shared container is enough for you or you need a full one.
• Dismantling: bedrooms, wardrobes and floor-seating sets, with the screws of each piece kept in a bag tied to it.
• Inventory: a numbered list in French with an estimated value for each item, a date and your signature, which is the form Mauritanian customs ask for.
• In Nouakchott: clearance, then delivery to the district, and reassembly of what was dismantled if you ask.

The exemption conditions in practice: a prior exemption letter from the Mauritanian Ministry of Finance, and for diplomats from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. With it go a certificate of change of residence, a copy of the passport, proof of employment or residence in Mauritania, and an undertaking not to sell. Invoices are requested for appliances bought less than six months ago. We go through which of these conditions are in force before loading.

The car and the furniture in one container: the car is secured at the front of a 40ft container, a timber bulkhead is built behind it, and the furniture is stowed up to the door. Ask us for the comparison between this option and two separate shipments. Electricity in Mauritania is 220 volts at 50 hertz, while the frequency in the Kingdom is 60 hertz, so check the rating plate of appliances with motors. Details are on the furniture shipping page.

Shipping books and scholarly libraries for students

We ship students’ entire libraries from Makkah, Madinah and Riyadh to Nouakchott, a service rarely asked for on any other route in this volume. The Mauritanian student goes home from his years of study with hundreds of volumes, and a book’s enemies at sea are moisture and weight. A large carton filled with books splits at the bottom, and paper that moisture reaches warps and goes mouldy.

• Small cartons: each weighing no more than about 20 kg, double-walled, with tape across the bottom in two directions.
• Moisture barrier: a plastic bag lining the carton on the inside, with a desiccant sachet.
• Indexing: a number on each carton and its subject: jurisprudence, hadith, language, exegesis. The library is then arranged in its new home in an hour.
• What is not shipped: manuscripts, teaching licences and original certificates stay with their owner in his hand luggage.

Packing for the long Atlantic voyage

Packing for a Nouakchott shipment is planned for a month or more at sea, for a transhipment port, and for a damp, salty coast on arrival. The temperature difference between the Red Sea, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic condenses water on the container walls from the inside:

Item	How it is packed
Wood and bedroom sets	Moving blankets, then corrugated board on the faces and reinforced corners, and a plastic wrap that keeps moisture out
Carpets, soft furnishings and tents	Cleaned and dried completely, then rolled and wrapped; damp fabric goes mouldy within a week
Books	Small cartons lined with a barrier bag, raised off the container floor on a wooden pallet

Moisture-absorbing bags are hung in the container, and the gaps between cartons are filled so that nothing moves when the container is lifted by crane. Pallets and wooden crates are of heat-treated, stamped timber. The materials are in the packing guide, and the securing on the packing and lashing page.

Parcels, gifts from the Two Holy Mosques and the luggage of Mauritanian pilgrims

A small parcel goes to Nouakchott by express from SAR 110 for up to 5 kg, and anything above that is charged by air per kilogram from SAR 28. What the Mauritanian Hajj or Umrah pilgrim most likes to send his family is Madinah dates, prayer rugs, copies of the Quran, perfumes and fabrics. We collect this luggage from the hotel in Makkah, Madinah or Jeddah before the flight home.

• Collection from the hotel: a day or two before travel, and the owner is given a receipt showing the number of pieces and their weight.
• Dates: in sealed factory boxes and in a quantity that suits personal use.
• Zamzam water: not shipped. What is allowed is the dedicated pack the traveller carries with him from the airport.
• Consignee: his full name as on his identity card, the district in Nouakchott or the name of the town, and a Mauritanian phone number.

Houses in Nouakchott are mostly not identified by street numbers, so a correct phone number matters more than any line of the address. The service is on the parcel shipping page, and for what must arrive within days see express international shipping from Saudi Arabia.

Shipping trucks, buses and heavy equipment

We ship trucks, buses, generators and construction and farming equipment to Mauritania, which is what the transport, mining and contracting sectors there ask for. A vehicle that runs under its own power is loaded on a roll-on/roll-off vessel if a suitable sailing exists. A machine that a closed container cannot take is loaded on a flat-rack or open-top container, chained down and covered. We ask its owner for the dimensions, the weight and the data plate before any price, and check with the clearing agent whether an age limit applies to the machine. The explanation is on the heavy equipment shipping page.

Shipping commercial goods to the markets of Nouakchott

Commercial goods enter Mauritania in the name of an importer registered there, with a file prepared in the Kingdom before sailing. We collect from the factory or the supplier, and consolidate purchases from several suppliers into one container. Mauritania is not a member of the Economic Community of West African States, so its customs tariff is its own and not the common tariff its southern neighbours apply.

Item	Shipping method	What it needs
Spare parts and new tyres	Part load, and air for urgent items	Part numbers on the invoice, and the country of origin
Building materials and sanitary ware	A 20ft container for heavy cargo	Weight spread over the container floor, and strapped pallets
Carpets, soft furnishings and fabrics	A full container or a part load by the cubic metre	A packing list with quantities and weight
Dates, rice and packaged foods	A dry container	A health certificate and a shelf life that outlasts the voyage
Perfumes and incense	Sea part load	A detailed invoice; flammable liquids are handled under the carrier’s conditions

Mauritania’s commercial imports may be asked for a pre-shipment inspection carried out by an approved inspection body, so we ask the importer’s clearing agent about it before booking. Mauritania is not usually listed among the countries that require an electronic cargo tracking note, and we verify that for each shipment. The explanation is on the commercial shipping page.

Documents and customs clearance in Nouakchott

The shipment’s file is completed in the Kingdom before the container leaves, then sent to the clearing agent in Nouakchott while the ship is still at sea. In the Kingdom we issue the export declaration; in Mauritania the clearing agent lodges the declaration and attends the inspection, and the consignee pays the charges. A gap in one paper is fixed here in an hour, and costs storage and days there. These are the documents by type of shipment:

Type of shipment	Documents	Note
A returnee’s furniture and effects	Passport, certificate of change of residence, exemption letter, an inventory in French that is dated and signed, an undertaking not to sell, and the original bill of lading	The letter is obtained before the shipment arrives
A car	The registration or purchase contract, the export certificate, an invoice, a bill of lading showing the chassis number, and the owner’s passport	The age condition is checked before shipping
Commercial goods	The commercial invoice with the packing list, a certificate of origin, the bill of lading, and an inspection certificate where one is required	In the name of an importer registered in Mauritania
Personal parcels	A statement of contents and value, and the consignee’s details and phone	In quantities that do not suggest trade

The consignee’s name is written on the bill of lading exactly as it is in his passport, letter for letter, and the invoice and the inventory are translated into French. The Mauritanian charges fall on the consignee, and we send him an estimate of them before loading. Each paper is explained on the shipping documents page, and the procedures on the customs clearance page.

What cannot be shipped to Mauritania or needs a permit

In Mauritania some items do not enter at all, and some enter with a permit obtained before shipping. The container is inspected on arrival, so one undeclared item holds up everything with it. These are the main items:

Item	Ruling
Alcohol, narcotics, and pork and its products	Prohibited
Weapons, ammunition, explosives and fireworks	Prohibited without an official licence
Printed matter and material contrary to morals and religion	Confiscated
Gas cylinders, fuel and flammable paints	Not loaded in the container
Medicines	A personal quantity with the prescription; commercial quantities under a Ministry of Health licence
Radio equipment and drones	With prior permission from the competent authority
Cash, gold, original documents and manuscripts	Not shipped; carried by hand
Zamzam water	Not shipped; carried in the dedicated pack with the traveller
A vehicle outside the import conditions	We do not ship it before a written answer from the clearing agent

Anything not listed here that you are unsure about, photograph it and send it before packing. The general list is on the prohibited items page.

Delivery in Nouakchott, Nouadhibou and the other regions

Delivery in Nouakchott and Nouadhibou is made after clearance by a truck that reaches the consignee’s address, in Tevragh-Zeina, Ksar and the other districts of the capital. From Nouakchott shipments go out by road to the regions, so a consignee inland does not need to travel to the port. These are the areas we deliver to:

Area	Towns and districts	Road from the port of Nouakchott
The districts of Nouakchott	Tevragh-Zeina, Ksar, Sebkha, Dar Naim, Teyarett, Toujounine, Arafat, El Mina, Riyad	Inside the capital, on the day of clearance or the next
The northern coast	Nouadhibou and the free zone	About 470 km on the coastal road
The south and the river bank	Rosso, Boutilimit, Aleg, Kaedi, Selibaby	About 200 km to Rosso, and 150 km to Boutilimit
The centre and the east	Kiffa, Aioun, Nema, Tidjikja	On the Road of Hope, about 600 km to Kiffa and more than 1,000 km to Nema
The northern interior	Akjoujt, Atar, Zouerat	About 440 km to Atar

The roads inland are long and sand drifts over some of them, so we estimate delivery to the regions in days rather than hours, and re-pack what needs it before it leaves the capital. The consignee names someone to act for him if he is away, with a written authorisation and a copy of an identity document. Destination details are on the shipping to Mauritania page.

Air freight from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott

Air freight from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott delivers parcels and urgent shipments in 4 to 8 days, and starts from SAR 28 a kilogram of chargeable weight. The shipment leaves from Riyadh, Jeddah or Dammam airport and arrives at Nouakchott–Oumtounsy International Airport, about 25 km north of the capital. The flight mostly passes through an intermediate airport, so the days are spread over flying, connecting, clearance and delivery in Nouakchott.

Departure airport	Cities it serves	Arrival in Nouakchott
King Abdulaziz International, Jeddah	Jeddah, Makkah, Taif and Yanbu, and Madinah when no flight is available from its airport	Through an intermediate airport in North Africa or elsewhere
King Khalid International, Riyadh	Riyadh, Qassim, Hail and the central region	Through an intermediate airport
King Fahd International, Dammam	Dammam, Khobar, Jubail and Al-Ahsa	Through an intermediate airport

• Chargeable weight: the greater of the actual weight and the volumetric weight. The volumetric weight is length by width by height in centimetres divided by 6000, and you can work it out with the volumetric weight calculator.
• Price: from SAR 28 a kilogram, falling as the weight rises. Documents by express from SAR 83, and a parcel of up to 5 kg from SAR 110.
• Restricted by air: batteries, perfumes in quantity, liquids and pressurised containers, which are switched to sea.

Scheduled flights between Nouakchott and Madinah have been authorised, and cargo space on them depends on the season. The service is explained on the air freight page, and for shipments from the western region see the article on the air freight office in Jeddah.

Door to door, and storage before travel

In door-to-door service we handle packing, transport, export, clearance and delivery to the address in Nouakchott. Storage helps anyone whose tenancy ends before the sailing date, and anyone waiting for the exemption letter: the belongings stay in a closed, monitored warehouse, numbered against the inventory, until loading day. The explanation is on the door-to-door shipping and storage pages.

Steps for shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott

1. Request: you send photos of the belongings or the car’s details to 0552803439, with your city and the consignee’s town in Mauritania.
2. Method and price: we suggest a full container, a shared one or air, and you receive the price item by item with the name of the line and the sailing date.
3. Checking the papers: the exemption letter for a returnee, the conditions for the car, and the importer’s registration for commercial goods.
4. Setting the date: the collection day is fixed around the vessel and your travel date.
5. Dismantling, packing and inventory: at your location, and you sign the list before the container is closed.
6. Transport and export: the load goes to Jeddah port or to the airport, the export declaration is lodged, and the container is handed to the line.
7. Follow-up: a message on sailing, at the transhipment port, and on berthing in Nouakchott.
8. Clearance and delivery: the consignee pays the charges, then delivery to the address and a check against the list.

Tracking and insurance

You follow your shipment by the container or bill of lading number from the moment it leaves Jeddah until Nouakchott customs release it, and you insure it for the value you declare if you wish.

• Container number: you enter it on the shipping line’s website and it shows the port it has left and the vessel carrying it. The method is on the track your shipment page.
• Insurance: optional, with a premium that is a percentage of the declared value. The sea carrier’s liability is limited and does not cover the value of a car or a library, so insurance is well placed here. Details are on the cargo insurance page.
• On delivery: the consignee checks the seal number and the pieces against the list, and writes any remark on the delivery note before he signs.

Shipping from Nouakchott to Saudi Arabia

We ship in the opposite direction too. Our agent collects the shipment in Nouakchott, it then sails to Jeddah Islamic Port or flies to Jeddah, Riyadh or Madinah, and we clear it and deliver it to your address. Most of what comes from Mauritania is the luggage of students accepted at Saudi universities, and the belongings of families joining their breadwinner.

Tips before shipping to Mauritania

• Ask about the car before you buy it, not after you have paid for it, and send us its details first.
• Obtain the certificate of change of residence while you are in the Kingdom; it is the basis of the exemption letter.
• Dry soft furnishings, tents and books before packing them; the voyage is too long to forgive trapped moisture.
• Name a consignee in Nouakchott who answers his phone, and give him a copy of the bill of lading and the inventory.

How do you choose a shipping company from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott?

The destination is in low demand, which is why some price it by guesswork. Someone who knows the Mauritania route names the transhipment port to you, asks about the car’s year of manufacture, and names his clearing agent in Nouakchott. These are signs to tell them apart:

What you ask about	Reassuring sign	Warning sign
Transit time	Names the transhipment port and gives a time with a margin	“Two weeks to Nouakchott”
The car	Asks for the year of manufacture and consults the clearing agent before pricing	“Any car gets into Mauritania”
The exemption	Explains the exemption letter and who issues it	Promises you an exemption without papers
Shipping method	Sea or air, with no mention of land	Offers a truck to Mauritania
Clearance	Has a clearing agent at the Friendship Port who receives the file before the ship	His role ends when the container sails
Price	Items: inland transport, ocean freight, clearance and delivery	One amount with no breakdown and no sailing date

Common mistakes when shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott

• Buying a car to ship and then finding that Mauritanian customs do not accept its age.
• The container arriving before the exemption letter is issued, so port storage builds up on it.
• Leaving bags and belongings inside the car’s cabin.
• Packing books in large cartons that split the first time they are lifted.
• An inventory in Arabic only, which is translated again while the container sits in the port.
• A wrong phone number for the consignee, in a city whose houses are not known by numbers.
• Relying on a promise of a short transit time without asking about the transhipment port and the date of the second vessel.

Why Home Safe for shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott?

Because a Mauritania shipment is decided by preparation, not by haste. The car’s age, the exemption letter, the connection date and the language of the inventory: we go through them one by one before the container is closed, so the consignee does not pay for what was missed in the Kingdom.

To book: 0552803439 by call or WhatsApp, from 7 am to 11 pm. Or through the request a quote page.

Related articles and pages

• Shipping company from Riyadh to Nouakchott
• Shipping company from Jeddah to Nouakchott
• Shipping company from Saudi Arabia to Morocco
• Shipping company from Saudi Arabia to Benin
• International sea freight from Jeddah
• Car shipping

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Frequently asked questions about shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott

How much does shipping from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott cost?

A saloon car by sea from SAR 2,800, air freight from SAR 28 a kilogram, an express parcel of up to 5 kg from SAR 110, and documents from SAR 83. The container and the cubic metre follow the sailing, and that price reaches you on the day you ask on 0552803439.

How many days does a shipment need to get from Saudi Arabia to Nouakchott?

A full container takes 30 to 45 days from Jeddah and the western cities, and 32 to 48 days from Riyadh and the Eastern Province. A part load takes 40 to 55 days because it waits for the container to fill. Air to Oumtounsy Airport takes 4 to 8 days including clearance.

Which port does the shipment arrive at in Mauritania?

The Autonomous Port of Nouakchott, commonly called the Friendship Port, about 12 km south-west of the capital. For a consignee in the north we ask about a sailing to the port of Nouadhibou; if there is none, the shipment continues by road from Nouakchott.

Can a used car from Saudi Arabia enter Mauritania?

It can if it meets the conditions in force on the day it arrives. The commonly quoted age limit for used vehicles is eight years, and it has been tightened and eased more than once. So we check the year of manufacture and the type with the clearing agent in Nouakchott before any booking.

Can I ship my car and my furniture in one container to Nouakchott?

Yes, and most returnees choose it. The car is lashed by its four wheels at the front of a 40ft container, and a timber bulkhead separates it from the furniture stowed behind it. The cabin stays empty.

Is a returning Mauritanian’s furniture exempt from duty?

The practice is that used furniture enters duty-free with a prior exemption letter from the Mauritanian Ministry of Finance, together with a certificate of change of residence, an inventory in French and an undertaking not to sell. We confirm the conditions in force before shipping.

Is there land freight from Saudi Arabia to Mauritania?

We do not offer it. Between the two countries lie a whole continent and borders, some of them closed to trucks. Everything we ship to Nouakchott travels in a sea container or on an aircraft.

Do you ship books and scholarly libraries?

Yes. The books are packed in small cartons of no more than about 20 kg each, lined with a bag that keeps moisture out, and each carton carries its number and subject. Manuscripts and rare items are carried by hand.

Do you ship Zamzam water with a Mauritanian pilgrim’s luggage?

No. Exporting Zamzam water as cargo is prohibited; what is allowed is the dedicated pack the traveller takes from the airport. The other gifts of the Two Holy Mosques we do ship: dates, prayer rugs and copies of the Quran.

Which Saudi cities do you collect from?

From all of them: Riyadh, Jeddah, Makkah, Madinah, Taif, Dammam, Khobar, Buraydah, Hail, Tabuk, Abha, Jazan and Najran. Sea shipments are moved to Jeddah port, and air shipments leave from Riyadh, Jeddah or Dammam airport.

Is an electronic cargo tracking document needed, as in other West African countries?

Mauritania is not usually named among the countries that require one, unlike some of its neighbours to the south. Commercial goods, however, may be asked for a pre-shipment inspection. We go through what is required with the consignee’s clearing agent before the container is closed.

Who pays the customs charges in Nouakchott?

The consignee, at clearance. The duty follows the item, alongside a value added tax whose standard rate is 16%, and the charges on a car are calculated on a value assessed by customs. We send an estimate before shipping.

Can I send a small parcel to my family without a container?

Yes. A parcel of up to 5 kg by express is from SAR 110, and anything heavier goes by air per kilogram from SAR 28. For many cartons that are not urgent, a part load by sea costs less.

Do you ship trucks, buses and equipment to Nouakchott?

Yes. Whatever runs under its own power is loaded on a roll-on/roll-off vessel when a sailing is available, and whatever a closed container cannot take is loaded on a flat-rack container. Its price is set on request by dimensions and weight.

Do you ship from Nouakchott to Saudi Arabia?

Yes, and the demand for it comes from people arriving to study or work. Our agent takes the shipment from its owner in Nouakchott, it reaches the Kingdom by sea through Jeddah Islamic Port or by air, and we handle its clearance and bring it to your home.