Iran Imposes 1.5-2 Million US Tariffs for Ships Wanting to Pass Through the Strait of Hormuz

Illustration of a tanker. (Julien Goettelmann-Pexels)

JAKARTA - Ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian permission are reportedly to be charged between 1.5-2 million US dollars.

This was revealed by a member of the Iranian Parliament's Budget and Planning Commission, Mohsen Zangeneh, in an interview session with the semi-official Fars news agency, quoted by CNN International, Sunday, June 7.

Iran insists it has the right to monitor the traffic of ships passing through the strait along with Oman, which borders the other side of the strait.

Iran's move is in contravention of international law. Just like the US which intensively monitors and conducts military operations in the sea lanes of Latin American and Caribbean countries through the US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM).

The tanker carries liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies. (Roy Kim-Pexels)

For Iran, it is known that it has formed a traffic management body for the Strait of Hormuz called the Persian Gulf Strait Authority which has started operating since early May 2026.

From that period, more than 300 non-Iranian vessels have submitted information to obtain safe navigation permits through the strait, most of which are oil tankers.

"The revenue collected under the scheme is deposited into the state treasury," the Fars report said, followed by information that was obtained in the form of goods and services, not cash.

Iranian officials also insist that the fee is not a maritime toll.

"Iran provides navigation services, in addition to the necessary measures to protect the environment of the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf, and the Gulf of Oman. This requires the collection of certain fees," said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei last month.

US President Donald Trump has rejected Iran's management of the strategic waterway, insisting on a return to the freedom of navigation that existed before the US-Israeli attack on Iran began on February 28.