Tanker Ships Passing Through Hormuz Strait, Iran to Impose This Fee

Iran is set to impose fees on every tanker ship wishing to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. According to Bloomberg News on Tuesday (1 April 2026), Tehran proposes that each cargo of an oil tanker will be calculated, charging $1 (approximately Rp 16,900) per barrel. For example, a single very large crude carrier (VLCC) tanker capable of carrying 2 million barrels of oil could face fees of Rp 33 billion for one transit through the Strait of Hormuz. The matter does not end there; after agreeing to the payment, the tanker must follow complicated bureaucratic procedures from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). However, international regulations govern this, and Iran faces the threat of sanctions if it sets tariffs for ship transits in the Strait of Hormuz. The convention under UN auspices guarantees every ship the right to peaceful passage in the territorial waters of any country in the world, including the Strait of Hormuz. “Based on Article 19 of UNCLOS, passage is considered peaceful as long as it does not harm the peace, order, or security of the coastal state,” explained Apurva Mehta, a partner at the Indian law firm ANB Legal, quoted from Al Jazeera. “Therefore, Iran will argue that they are not bound by the international regime under UNCLOS,” Mehta added. Iran’s intended action has received a harsh response from US President Donald Trump. He emphasised that he will immediately resume attacks if the Strait of Hormuz is not opened. “We haven’t even started destroying what’s left in Iran. Next bridge, then power plant,” Trump stated, quoted from Reuters on Friday (3 April 2026). Before making this statement, Trump posted a video of a US airstrike hitting a bridge in Tehran, in which eight people were killed. “Attacking civilian buildings, including unfinished bridges, will not force the Iranian people to surrender,” said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi.