Importers Help Desk

Import clearance through customs in India involves complex and time-consuming procedures. In the following few pages we have endeavored to enlist in detail almost all the aspects of clearance. You can also access formats of some of the vital documents required to be submitted to the Indian Customs.

List of documents required for clearance of import consignments

General

	Bill of Lading (original Bill of Lading should be duly signed and stamped by the bank on the reverse side of documents through bank, and should also be endorsed by an authorized person with the company’s stamp, giving his designation)
	Invoice
	Packing List
	Indent/Performa Invoice/Purchase Order (specially the document which is referred to in the Invoice)
	Catalogue/Technical Literature
	Copy of L/C
	Insurance Certificate/Insurance Premium Memo required only if terms are C&F/F.O.B.
	Certificate of Origin
	Valuation & Declaration forms - duly filled and signed
	I.E.C. Code No.
	Industrial License/S.S.I. Registration
	Permanent I.T. Account No.
	'N' form, 'N' form Declaration and 'N' form Undertaking
	Modvat Declaration (if applicable)
	Freight Certificate & Freight Bill (if freight payable in India)
	Blank Letterheads
	Authority later to C.H.A. (i.e. Exim Transtrade (I) Pvt. Ltd.)
	Original Documents (bank attested)

Air Consignments

	Airway Bill (A.W.B.)
	Cargo Arrival Notice (C.A.N.)
	Authority letter addressed to the Airline in favor of the C.H.A. for collection of documents and Delivery Order
	Bank Delivery Order - in case A.W.B./C.A.N. is in favor of Bank

In case of Bond being given for any reason - copy of the power of attorney given to the person signing the bond with his signature duly shown. His designation must also be shown on the bond below his signature. In case of bank guarantee, a covering letter from the bank certifying that the bank guarantee is issued and the persons signing the same are authorized to do the same.

Customs also send a letter to the bank to re-check that the bank has issued the guarantee or not. In case of E.P.C.G. (Export Promotion Capital Goods Scheme) the bond must be endorsed with the company seal.

Note : Above listed are documents required in the normal case of clearance to ensure smooth and quick clearance of import consignments. Over and above these documents, in case of any doubt the custom officers can ask for any other papers, which on demand will be called for from the importer.

All the above listed documents are required for the clearance of any import consignment. However, certain additional documents are also required other than those mentioned above, for different types of products, different schemes under which they are imported or by different modes they are imported.

	Chemicals/Dyes/Other Raw Materials
	Machinery & Spares
	Consignments under the E.P.C.G. Scheme (Export Promotion Capital Goods Scheme)
	Consignments under the D.E.E.C. Scheme (Duty Exemption Entitlement Certificate)
	Consignments under the Pass Book Scheme
	Free of Charge Consignments
	Project Import
	Consignments under the D.E.P.B. Scheme (Duty Entitlement Pass Book)
	Consignments under 100% E.O.U. Scheme (Export Oriented Unit)

Chemicals/Dyes/Other Raw Materials

	Printed Literature
	End-use declaration
	Certificate of Analysis
	Test Bond - required in case of 1st Import from a new supplier or in absence of literature or previous test report.

Iron & Steel/Other Metals

	Mill's test certificate
	Detailed packing list.

Machinery and Spares

	Original Catalogue and Write-up
	Separate value of Spares - individual as well as consolidated.(separate letters)
	Container and case wise packing list
	In case of accessories the catalogue must show a detailed list of standard accessories, as in case of optional accessories duty will be assessed on merits. In case of optional accessories their separate values should be specified.
	In case of Electrical goods their ratings should be specified (e.g. volts/amps/watts).
	Free of Charge Consignments
	Material of construction for generic items such as washers, seals, etc. since their classification depends upon the material they are made up of in case of items made from plastics, rubber etc.
	In case of bearings, their weight and their inner and outer diameter and their types should be specified, as the rate of duty depends upon these factors.

Consignments under the E.P.C.G. Scheme

	Original E.P.C.G. license with the list of Import items duly attested by D.G.F.T. (Director General of Foreign Trade).
	Bond for clearance under E.P.C.G. as per the Customs format (Bank Guarantee if required).
	Description of all items in the E.P.C.G. license must tally exactly with the Import documents. e.g.: if the import documents show the goods as "Tsudakoma Air Jet Looms Zac, model no. - along with spares and accessories" the E.P.C.G. license also must bear the exact description and the model number must also tally with the catalogue.
	The model number on the documents and the catalogue must also tally with that on the machine itself, as during physical verification of cargo, this is the most important aspect for verifying the goods in relation to the documents.

Consignments under the D.E.E.C. Scheme

	Original Import part of the DEEC book and Original Advance License (custom purpose copy).
	In case of prior imports, Bond/Bond with Bank guarantee.
	In case Export obligation period of the license has expired - DEEC copies of the shipping bill, A.R.4 copies, and duly audited export DEEC book.

Consignments under the Pass Book Scheme

	Annexure "C" (in quadruplicate).
	Original Pass Book.

Consignments under D.E.P.B. Scheme

Original D.E.P.B. license.

Consignments under 100 % E.O.U. Scheme

	Documents for registration of E.O.U. at customs.
	End-use Bond.
	Transit Bond (if cargo is to be sent to place other than port of import)
	Warehousing Bond

Free of Charge Consignments

	Correspondence regarding free supply with the supplier
	Evidence of value/Price list/Previous Import documents
	Transit Bond (if cargo is to be sent to place other than port of import)
	In case of spares - catalogue of the spares as well as that of the main machine

Project Import

	Recommendation letter with list of plant and machinery for project import (in original) from the concerned ministry
	Industrial license
	Purchase order and order confirmation
	Project report
	Statement of other plant and machinery
	Plant layout.
	Flow diagram.
	Catalogues and drawings.
	Application in appendix "A" - duly filled and signed.
	Continuity bond + 2% of the project value as revenue deposit in cash up to INR 5 million.
	In case the deposit amount is more than I.N.R. 5 million, then bank guarantee can be given for the amount in excess of I.N.R. 5 million.

In case of collaboration agreement or any relationship with the supplier, copy of the relevant agreement (in such cases customs may load the value for purpose of calculation of duty).

Note: The policies, procedures, List of Documents Required, Export Schemes and Instructions detailed above are merely for the purpose of Information and general overview which are subject to change, modify or alter as per government regulation with out any prior intimation.

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