Business · India Bureau
Seven firms cleared to import 642 UK vehicles under India trade pact
India's trade regulator has approved applications from seven companies to import 642 fully-built passenger cars from the United Kingdom this year under concessional tariff provisions. The allocations fall under the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement that took effect in July.
LSN India ·
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has greenlit the import quota requests, selecting seven out of eight applications received, according to an official announcement on Wednesday. The approved quota of 642 units represents a portion of the 2,026-unit allocation the commerce ministry's arm opened for applications in July.
Under the tariff rate quota mechanism of the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), Indian importers can bring in vehicles from Britain at reduced customs duty rates. The DGFT had sought applications against a quota of approximately 5,000 units for the remainder of the financial year.
The bilateral trade agreement, which came into force on July 15, permits India to import a total of 3.78 lakh units of conventional-engine passenger cars from the UK, encompassing vehicles across various price segments including the mass market, at concessional duty levels. The arrangement is part of broader market access commitments under CETA.
The approval marks the first allocation under the vehicle import quota scheme. Officials said the selected companies would now proceed with their shipments from British manufacturers before the year concludes.