TEHRAN — Iran has authorized imports of cars from Japan's Mitsubishi and Toyota, Germany's BMW, South Korea's Hyundai and Russia's Lada, the first such move since the 1979 Islamic revolution, according to media reports Thursday.

"Mitsubishi, Toyota, BMW, Hyundai and Lada were permitted to import 35 different models out of which 33 are sedans and the rest minibuses," Hossein Faraji, trade chief at the ministry of commerce, was quoted as saying.

Faraji said the cars would first have to get certification from the standards and environment organization.

Iran has recently approved car imports, with a hefty duty, to ease the pressure on outdated domestic producers. Currently, all cars are made under license from foreign companies, including French, German, Japanese and South Korean ones.

There is a duty of 170% on a car worth $5,000, with an additional 10% for every extra $2,700 in the price.

Importers must also be capable of offering after-sales services and must establish a solid representation in Iran.