Library
Notifications, circulars and orders from DGFT, CBIC and sector regulators.
DGFT Trade Notice No. 15/2026-27 (5 Aug 2026) removes the need to submit physical duty-payment challans when closing Advance Authorisation and EPCG cases. For voluntary duty paid on or after 1 Aug 2026, licence-wise payment data flows automatically from ICEGATE into DGFT's system via API, cutting paperwork and closure delays.
CBIC Circular No. 36/2026-Customs (20 Aug 2026) continues facilitative transhipment measures for international cargo disrupted by the Strait of Hormuz closure — permitting FCL/LCL and bulk cargo diverted to Indian ports to be stored and re-exported without home-consumption clearance. In force to 31 October 2026.
CBIC Circular No. 28/2026-Customs lets Customs accept exporters' NABL- or EPC-accredited test reports for export consignments without mandatorily sending samples to Revenue (CRCL) laboratories, where there is no risk-based intervention — cutting duplicate testing and clearance delays. Import-sample testing is unchanged.
DGFT Public Notice No. 18/2026-27 (1 July 2026) automatically extends the validity of FY2025-26 TRQ authorisations for duty-concession gold imports under the India–UAE CEPA from 30 June 2026 to 30 September 2026. No fresh application, fee or endorsement is needed. Holders should complete imports before the new cut-off.
DGFT Notification No. 30/2026-27 amends FTP 2023 so that eligible export proceeds realised in Indian rupees through prescribed banking channels count fully towards export incentives, benefits and export-obligation fulfilment — removing a long-standing ambiguity for rupee-settled trade.
DPIIT's Transition Facilitation (Quality Control) Order, 2026 (S.O. 3417(E), 25 June 2026) exempts imports from a new QCO if the goods were dispatched or ordered before the QCO's start date and the Bill of Entry is filed within 180 days. Key with fresh QCO deadlines landing in September 2026.
CBIC's Notification No. 73/2026-Customs (N.T.) dated 1 September 2026 (SCMTR Third Amendment) pushes the specified Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment compliance date to 31 October 2026 — buying shipping lines, forwarders and CHAs more transition time on advance manifest filing.
RCMC (Registration-Cum-Membership Certificate) explained for exporters: what it is, its legal basis in FTP 2023 Para 2.57, and the crucial distinction clarified by DGFT Trade Notice 19/2024-25 — it is required for FTP authorisations like Advance Authorisation and EPCG, but not for post-export remission schemes (RoDTEP, RoSCTL, Duty Drawback). Covers validity, the ANF 2C application, council selection and compliance.
A 2026 primer on the Customs Act, 1962 for importers: what the Act does, the bill of entry (Section 46) and warehousing route, valuation (Section 14) and assessment, duties and clearance (Section 47), duty drawback on re-export (Section 74), penalties, and the key Finance Act 2025 reforms — the two-year limit on finalising provisional assessments (Section 18(1B)) and voluntary post-clearance revision (Section 18A).
A 2026 guide to India's SEZ framework under the SEZ Act 2005 and SEZ Rules 2006 (as amended): the customs, GST and operational benefits; the positive Net Foreign Exchange compliance obligation and monitoring; the step-by-step exit process; and the latest 2025–2026 changes including the Budget 2026-27 one-time DTA-sale concession and semiconductor land-norm relaxations.
How phytosanitary and SPS rules govern India's agri exports: the WTO SPS Agreement and IPPC, the Destructive Insects and Pests Act 1914, the Plant Quarantine Order 2003, who needs a Phytosanitary Certificate, the PQIS application process, fees, timelines and compliance tips.
A complete guide to India's Foreign Trade Policy 2023 — the shift to an open-ended dynamic policy, its legal framework under the FTDR Act, ITC (HS) classification, duty exemption and remission schemes, and the 2026 amendments every exporter should know, including the Export Promotion Mission's consolidation of IES and MAI.