US-Iran Deal Leaves Door Open for Tolls: Shipping Industry Wary of Hormuz Strait Changes After 60 Days
Alina Collins
What does the deal actually say?
The agreement guarantees 60 days of toll-free transit for commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. In parallel, Iran will negotiate with Oman and other Gulf states on the strait's "future management and maritime services."
This means → free passage is temporary. The 60-day negotiation window is itself the design phase for a toll framework.
Intertanko — the international association representing large tanker owners — made its position clear. Maritime director Philip Belcher said the talks must uphold one principle: Hormuz must remain toll-free.
Why does "maritime services" alarm the shipping industry?
ICS maritime director John Stoppert noted the phrase echoes the Malacca Strait model — transit states voluntarily fund environmental protection, navigational aids, and oil-spill response.
In plain terms = the Malacca model is "users pay for upkeep." No such mechanism has ever existed at Hormuz. Stoppert's question is blunt: why does this region suddenly need one?
This reflects a deeper worry: once a toll precedent is set, the principle of free passage through international waterways is broken — regardless of the fee level.
How do Iran and Oman each read the deal?
Iran's state news agency ISNA reported that Iran will negotiate strait governance with Oman and explicitly stated that "maritime services" covers fee collection. Iran is not a signatory to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea — the treaty that defines transit rights through international straits — so its obligations under international maritime law are disputed.
Oman's position is more nuanced. The Financial Times, citing a person familiar with the matter, reported Oman has never considered charging a transit toll but is studying whether it can legally charge for services such as "environmental mitigation, pilotage, and safety."
This means → the wording differs, but Oman's "lawful service fees" and Iran's "fee collection" point down the same road — just packaged differently. Trump warned Oman last month to "behave or face serious consequences."
Has the strait reopened? What are 550 ships still waiting for?
After the deal was signed, a COSCO-owned tanker and an Italian car carrier began transiting the strait. But Iran's newly established Persian Gulf Strait Authority had warned crews to avoid navigating near Hormuz until a "new operational status is formally announced."
According to FT analysis of Kpler data, at least 550 vessels remain stranded in the Gulf. The strait is scheduled to formally reopen on Friday.
In plain terms = ships are starting to move, but most are still watching — a deal exists, but the rules do not.
What happens after 60 days?
Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and other Gulf oil producers strongly oppose any toll arrangement. Shipping groups insist Hormuz's status as an international waterway cannot be altered.
This means → the direction of the toll framework during the 60-day talks will directly determine the long-term cost structure of global energy trade — the deal's biggest unresolved question.
This reflects a fundamental trade-off: the agreement resolved a short-term military standoff but pushed the hardest economic question onto the negotiating table.
Content is for reference only, not financial advice.