DGFT notifies Amendment in Procedure for Import of Copper Products and Zinc Oxide under Revised India-Nepal Treaty of Trade [Read Notification]

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) vide notification no. 17 /2023 issued on 22nd June 2023 has amended the procedure for import of Copper products and zinc oxide under the revised India-Nepal Treaty of Trade.

Under the condition that steps are taken to guarantee that this does not violate each other’s legitimate interests or security interests, the treaty permits free transit of commerce between the territory of the parties along routes that have been mutually agreed upon for trade with third countries.

The DGFT amended the procedure in continuation to Public Notice No. 9/2002-2007 dated 30th April, 2002 as amended from time to time in sync with Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue) Notification No. 9/2003-Customs dated 15th January, 2003 for import of items under Tariff Rate Quota (TRQ) under India Nepal Treaty in accordance with Paragraphs 1.03 and 2.04 of the Foreign Trade Policy 2023.

The following are the changes:

1. DGFT(Hqrs) shall be the designated authority for allocation and monitoring of all TRQ (Tariff Rate Quota) items under Revised India-Nepal Treaty.
2. Accordingly, the DGFT is authorised for allocation and monitoring of 10,000 MT of TRQ of Copper products under Chapter 74 and HS code 8544 of ITC(HS) 2022, Schedule 1 (Import Policy) and 2500 MT of Zinc Oxide from Nepal.
3. The quota so allocated to each manufacturer/ exporter on a quarterly basis would be communicated by the designated authority of Nepal (Department of Commerce) to DGFT, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India over email at policy2-dgft@gov.in.
4. Imports will be permitted through the Land Customs Stations (LCS) at: Kakarbhitta/Naxalbari, Biratnagar/Jogbani, Birganj/Raxaul, Nepalgunj/Nepalgunj Road and Mahendranagar/Banbasa.
5. The Indian importer shall file online application for TRQ certificate on the DGFT Website (www.dgft.gov.in) by navigating to Home page →Services → Import Management System → Tariff Rate Quota (TRQ) → ‘Apply for TRQ’
6. The importer shall mandatorily upload/provide reference to the TRQ issued to the Nepalese Exporter by the competent authority in Nepal.
7. The TRQ issued shall contain the name and address of the importer, Importer -Exporter Code (IEC), Customs notification number, tariff item as applicable, quantity and validity period of the TRQ.
8. The TRQ authorisation shall be issued electronically by the DGFT and transmitted to Indian Customs EDI System (ICES).
9. Imports against the TRQ shall be allowed only upon debiting electronically in the ICES system or on debit as endorsed.
10. For the Financial Year 2023-24, there shall be no end date for applying for the TRQ Certificate online on DGFT website. The DGFT shall monitor the cumulative quantities for TRQ Certificates issued. No further TRQ Certificates shall be issued once the stated TRQ quantity limit is reached.
11. The year in respect of these imports will be the period from 1st April to 31st March, i.e., financial year in India.
12. TRQ Certificate shall be valid for a maximum period of 12 months or the end of the financial year, whichever is earlier.
13. Further, the DGFT reserves the right to make any changes in the modalities/allocation process at any point of time, as deemed fit.
14. Other modalities shall remain the same as notified earlier time to time; and
15. Procedure for application for import of items under TRQ under Revised India-Nepal Treaty as enumerated above is inserted under Annexure VI of Appendix 2A.

Henceforth, the DGFT(Hqrs) shall be the designated authority for allocation and monitoring of all TRQ items under Revised India-Nepal Treaty. Accordingly, revised procedure for allocation and monitoring of Copper products and Zinc Oxide under TRQ under Para 2.92 of the HandBook Procedures, 2023 is notified.

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