1. Exporting to India: Challenges
U.S. exporters must be aware of certain obstacles when exporting to India. But with careful planning and assistance from agencies like US Business Services, exporters of all sizes can definitely succeed in the Indian market. According to the National Business Guide for India, the challenges include:
High tariffs and protectionist policies
Exporters and investors face an opaque and often unpredictable regulatory and tariff regime. xxx
price sensitivity
Even before the economic slowdown and the pandemic, Indian companies and consumers were extremely price-sensitive.
Infrastructure
Inadequate road, rail, port, airport, education, power grid and telecommunications infrastructure are major obstacles to the country's efforts to achieve strong economic growth. India's continued urbanization and rising incomes have led to increased demand for improved infrastructure to provide public services and sustain economic growth.
Data localization requirements and e-commerce restrictions
The Indian government is aggressively pursuing a policy of requiring Indian data to be processed and stored only in India, which has severely impacted the business of many US companies. The proposed data protection bill currently being passed through the Indian legislature will affect a wide range of businesses in India and internationally. Changes to laws on what and how e-commerce companies can sell online are an unexpected blow to the U.S. online giant. The new law limits discounts for e-commerce companies and prohibits companies from selling products from companies they affiliate or own.
Local content requirements
In specific sectors, including information and communication technology (ICT), electronics and solar energy, the Indian government is seeking local content requirements to stimulate an increase in the contribution of manufacturing to GDP. These policies have had a negative impact on U.S. exporters.
State power
Companies should be prepared to face the different business and economic conditions in India's 29 states and 7 federal territories. Power and decision-making in India is decentralized, with major differences at the state level in terms of political leadership, quality of governance, regulations, taxation, industrial relations and education levels.
Intellectual Property (IP)
India is one of the most challenging major economies in the world in terms of intellectual property protection and enforcement.
2. Customs regulations
First of all, all goods transferred to the inland freight station in India must be transported by the shipping company, and the final destination column of the bill of lading and manifest must be filled in as the inland point. Otherwise, it is necessary to dig out the box at the port or pay a high fee for changing the manifest before transshipment to the inland.
Secondly, after the goods arrive at the port, they can be stored in the customs warehouse for 30 days. After 30 days, the customs will issue a notice of delivery to the importer. If the importer cannot pick up the goods on time for some reason, he can apply to the customs for an extension as needed. If the Indian buyer does not apply for an extension, the exporter's goods will be auctioned after 30 days of storage in customs.
3. Customs clearance
After unloading (usually within 3 days), the importer or its agent must first fill in the Bill of Entry in quadruplicate. The first and second pages are retained by the customs, the third page is retained by the importer, and the fourth page is retained by the bank where the importer pays the tax. Otherwise, high detention fees must be paid to the port authority or airport authority.
4. Return regulations
Indian Customs stipulates that the exporter needs to provide the original importer's certificate of abandonment of the goods, the relevant delivery certificate and the exporter's request for return letters and telegrams, and entrust the shipping agent to complete the return procedures after paying the port storage fees, agency fees and other reasonable fees.
If the importer is unwilling to issue the exporter with the certificate of rejection of the goods, the exporter can rely on the letter of the importer's refusal to pay or take delivery or the letter of the importer's non-payment redemption provided by the bank or the shipping agent, the relevant delivery certificate and the seller's request. The letter and telegram for the return of the goods shall be entrusted to the shipping agent to directly submit the return request to the relevant Indian port customs and go through the relevant procedures.
