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Iran Starts $2 Million Hormuz Toll, Russia Exempt

4/25/2026

24 5 Full Breakdown

Summary

Iran Collects Toll

Iran began collecting Strait of Hormuz transit tolls, with the first payment deposited in the Central Bank on April 23, 2026.
Ambassador Kazem Jalali said “friendly” nations, especially Russia, will be exempt from the fees.
Fees, based on cargo type, tonnage and security risk, can reach $2 million per supertanker and are recorded as “security and insurance fees” transferred to a central treasury, violating the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Summary

Indonesia Proposes Toll

Indonesia’s finance minister proposed a toll for ships using the Malacca Strait.
Australia said the proposal threatens freedom of navigation.
Singapore’s foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan affirmed transit-passage rights for all and rejected any toll.
Thailand unveiled a 1-trillion-baht land-bridge linking the Malacca Strait to the Gulf of Thailand, aiming to cut voyage time by four days and shipping costs by 15 %.

History

Historical Context

On 26 July 1956 Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalised the Suez Canal, ending British-French control. Britain, France and Israel invaded, but US and Soviet pressure forced a withdrawal by early 1957. The crisis proved that unilateral strait levies can trigger multinational disputes, a pattern echoed today in Hormuz and Malacca debates, recalling the canal’s 122 million-ton traffic in the 1950s.

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Iran Collects Toll

Iran began collecting Strait of Hormuz transit tolls, with the first payment deposited in the Central Bank on April 23, 2026.
Ambassador Kazem Jalali said “friendly” nations, especially Russia, will be exempt from the fees.
Fees, based on cargo type, tonnage and security risk, can reach $2 million per supertanker and are recorded as “security and insurance fees” transferred to a central treasury, violating the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

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