Clarifications by DGFT and MEITY on the import licence for laptops, computers, servers etc.

Terms of use

Terms of Use

The use of this site and the content contained therein is governed by the Terms of Use. When you use this site you acknowledge that you have read the Terms of Use and that you accept and will be bound by the terms hereof and such terms as may be modified from time to time.

All text, graphics, audio, design and other works on the site are the copyrighted works of nasscom unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved.
Content on the site is for personal use only and may be downloaded provided the material is kept intact and there is no violation of the copyrights, trademarks, and other proprietary rights. Any alteration of the material or use of the material contained in the site for any other purpose is a violation of the copyright of nasscom and / or its affiliates or associates or of its third-party information providers. This material cannot be copied, reproduced, republished, uploaded, posted, transmitted or distributed in any way for non-personal use without obtaining the prior permission from nasscom.
The nasscom Members login is for the reference of only registered nasscom Member Companies.
nasscom reserves the right to modify the terms of use of any service without any liability. nasscom reserves the right to take all measures necessary to prevent access to any service or termination of service if the terms of use are not complied with or are contravened or there is any violation of copyright, trademark or other proprietary right.
From time to time nasscom may supplement these terms of use with additional terms pertaining to specific content (additional terms). Such additional terms are hereby incorporated by reference into these Terms of Use.

Disclaimer

The Company information provided on the nasscom web site is as per data collected by companies. nasscom is not liable on the authenticity of such data.
nasscom has exercised due diligence in checking the correctness and authenticity of the information contained in the site, but nasscom or any of its affiliates or associates or employees shall not be in any way responsible for any loss or damage that may arise to any person from any inadvertent error in the information contained in this site. The information from or through this site is provided "as is" and all warranties express or implied of any kind, regarding any matter pertaining to any service or channel, including without limitation the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement are disclaimed. nasscom and its affiliates and associates shall not be liable, at any time, for any failure of performance, error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, computer virus, communications line failure, theft or destruction or unauthorised access to, alteration of, or use of information contained on the site. No representations, warranties or guarantees whatsoever are made as to the accuracy, adequacy, reliability, completeness, suitability or applicability of the information to a particular situation.
nasscom or its affiliates or associates or its employees do not provide any judgments or warranty in respect of the authenticity or correctness of the content of other services or sites to which links are provided. A link to another service or site is not an endorsement of any products or services on such site or the site.
The content provided is for information purposes alone and does not substitute for specific advice whether investment, legal, taxation or otherwise. nasscom disclaims all liability for damages caused by use of content on the site.
All responsibility and liability for any damages caused by downloading of any data is disclaimed.
nasscom reserves the right to modify, suspend / cancel, or discontinue any or all sections, or service at any time without notice.

For any grievances under the Information Technology Act 2000, please get in touch with Grievance Officer, Mr. Anirban Mandal at data-query@nasscom.in.

New

See all

No notification found.

Clarifications by DGFT and MEITY on the import licence for laptops, computers, servers etc.

Garima Prakash

@GarimaP

September 27, 2023

Public Policy

960

On September 25, 2023, nasscom participated in the consultation meeting organised by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) on the next steps for the implementation of the import licence requirement for laptops, computers, servers etc. DGFT and MEITY have clarified that no restriction on the number/value of items that can be imported is being imposed as of now.

This was in reference to the DGFT Notification No.23/2023 dated August 3, 2023, regarding amendment in Import Policy of Items under HSN Code 8471 wherein imports of Laptops, Tablets, all-in-one personal computers, ultra small form factor computers and servers (covered items) are brought under the ‘restricted’ category which could earlier be imported freely.

DGFT and MEITY have given clarity on many of the queries raised by nasscom:

Units in the Special Economic Zones (SEZ) and Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) do not require a separate import licence for covered items.
Import into Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) from SEZ will require an import licence.
Regarding the applicability of exemption to covered items that are an ‘essential part of a capital good’, it has been clarified that exemption is available when the covered item would be used as part of another capital good. If such covered item is imported separately, then it may be notified to the customs officials that such covered item is a part of another capital good, and the linkage may be established through available documents.
The turnaround time for granting an import licence is expected to be within 24-72 hours.
The system to share import licence with customs authorities is being developed. Once it is implemented, an import licence will be electronically shared with customs authorities, and therefore there will be no need to obtain port-wise authorisations.
The import licence application is not expected to be rejected for reasons other than deficiency in the application.

DGFT and MEITY noted our request to publish the clarifications as FAQs for the benefit of the wider industry.

Additionally, the following has been clarified on the manner of applying for the import licence requirement:

The import licence can be applied via the existing DGFT portal for import licence application. It can be accessed under the ‘Import Management System’ option available on the DGFT’s website. This portal is live and the industry can start applying for import licences immediately.
The import licence must be applied for by the entity filing the Bill of Entry at the customs and must log-in to the import management system using their Importer-Exporter Code.
The entire licencing process will be end-to-end digitised and completely paperless.
No restriction on the number/value of covered items to be imported is being imposed as of now.
Details regarding the make, model number, year of manufacture etc. of the covered items to be imported are not a mandatory requirement.
The import licence will be valid for a period of one year.
A single import licence can be applied for multiple restricted items. The application form has the option to add multiple line items.
There is no need to bifurcate details of covered items on the basis of make and model. For example, all ‘laptops’ can be clubbed as one line item, all ‘tablets’ can be clubbed as one line item etc.
The licence fee is as per the current policy, i.e., 1 Re/1000rs of import value, subject to a maximum of 1 lakh Rs.
Import licence needs to be applied for captive consumption as well as trading of covered items.

In response to industry’s queries, DGFT and MEITY will consult internally and come back with clarity on the following:

Whether parts or unfinished goods imported under any of the notified hs-codes require an import licence.
Whether both, quantity and value, must be specified in the import licence application.

DGFT and MEITY are expected to publish FAQs for the implementation of the import licence requirement, for easy compliance by the industry.

For more information, kindly write to garima@nasscom.in and tejasvi@nasscom.in with a copy to policy@nasscom.in.

policy import restriction DGFT MeitY

Disclaimer

That the contents of third-party articles/blogs published here on the website, and the interpretation of all information in the article/blogs such as data, maps, numbers, opinions etc. displayed in the article/blogs and views or the opinions expressed within the content are solely of the author's; and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of NASSCOM or its affiliates in any manner. NASSCOM does not take any liability w.r.t. content in any manner and will not be liable in any manner whatsoever for any kind of liability arising out of any act, error or omission. The contents of third-party article/blogs published, are provided solely as convenience; and the presence of these articles/blogs should not, under any circumstances, be considered as an endorsement of the contents by NASSCOM in any manner; and if you chose to access these articles/blogs , you do so at your own risk.

Garima Prakash

Manager, Public Policy and Government Affairs

Reach out to me for all things policy about e-commerce, international trade, export controls, start-ups and fintech

Nasscom Public Policy Highlights | ...

Dhananjay