September 16, 2018
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), an unit of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has simplified procedures under the MEIS system to avail export incentives
The MEIS system, introduced under the Government’s Foreign Trade Policy of India (FTP 2015-20), offers duty benefits to traders depending on product and export destination
The amendment will facilitate system driven approval of future MEIS claims related to exports made through electronic billing, introducing improved efficiency in export procedure
Indian Government’s efforts to boost export have led to a more than 14 per cent year-on-year growth in merchandise exports to US$82.5 Billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2018-19
Traders exporting goods from India will benefit from a recent amendment made under the Government’s Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS). The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), an unit of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has simplified procedures under the MEIS system to avail export incentives. The MEIS system, introduced under the Foreign Trade Policy of India (FTP 2015-20), offers duty benefits to traders depending on product and export destination. Herein, an amendment will facilitate system driven approval of future MEIS claims related to exports made through electronic billing, according to a report by the Press Trust of India on September 16, citing an official announcement.
The move is expected to significantly increase export trade volume from India, by automating incentives claims processing. The new method, E com Module for MEIS, will do away with the need of obtaining clearance from regional authorities. The system will only require DGFT officials to attest the print and the duty credit documents. Rewards under the scheme are payable as percentage of realised free-on-board value and MEIS duty credit certificate can be transferred or used for payment of a number of duties, including the basic customs duty, the PTI report said. The DGFT said that the move was in line with the Government of India’s initiatives to boost ease of doing business under foreign trade and investment.
DGFT’s policy move weeks after Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Suresh Prabhu, led a meeting of export industry officials and stakeholders to discuss a strategy for doubling the country’s exports by 2025. The meeting focussed on tackling challenges on way of increasing export such as global trade uncertainty, difficulties in availability of credit, high logistics cost as well as productivity standards and qualities. Indian Government’s efforts to boost export by alleviating these concerns have led to a more than 14 per cent year-on-year growth in merchandise exports to US$82.5 Billion during the first quarter of fiscal 2018-19. This growth has been aided by India’s increasing command in global value chain setup.