Wt/tpr/M/313/Add. 1 31 July 2015
Measure Directly Affecting Imports
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- 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.1 Measure Directly Affecting Imports 3.1.5 Other charges affecting imports Page 42 Para 3.27
- 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.1 Measure Directly Affecting Imports 3.1.9 Import prohibitions, restrictions, and licensing
- Question: Why does India maintain import quotas on these two products Reply
- Reply
- Question: How often is the list of Indian standard products updated Reply
- 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.1 Measure Directly Affecting Imports 3.1.12 Standards and other technical requirements
- Question: Please indicate the criteria for determining which product should carry the mandatory BIS certification mark Reply
- 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.2 Measures Directly Affecting Exports 3.2.4 Export prohibitions, restrictions, and licensing
- Question: Could India gives detailed information on the list of products that are prohibited for export Reply
- Sl. No. Tariff Code/ Chapter Description
3.1 Measure Directly Affecting Imports 3.1.4 Tariffs 3.1.4.1 Applied tariffs Page 40 Para 3.22 "The simple average applied MFN tariff in 2014-15 is 13%, up from 12% at the time of the last Review (2010-11). The overall increase is mainly due to a rise in tariffs in agriculture (WTO definition), whose overall average at 36.4% remains considerably higher than the average for non-agricultural products (9.5%). The increase in the average tariff for agriculture is mainly due to an increase in tariffs for cereals and preparations thereof (from 30.4% in 2010-11 to 40.9% in 2014-15), oilseeds and fats (from 18.5% to 33.2%), and sugars and confectionary (from 33.4% to 41%). Above average tariff protection is also found in a number of other products such as beverages, spirits and tobacco (77.5%), and coffee and tea (74.8%). The average MFN tariff for non-agricultural products also rose from 8.9% to 9.5%, primarily due to increased tariffs on transport equipment from 21.5% to 32.1%. Average tariffs also rose for minerals and metals, chemicals, textiles, leather and rubber and electric machinery (Table 3.4)." Question:
Reply: The effective tariff rate of agricultural products is fixed in response to the price volatility in the domestic market and as a measure of balancing the interests of consumers and domestic farmers. 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.1 Measure Directly Affecting Imports 3.1.5 Other charges affecting imports Page 42 Para 3.27 "The AD and SAD continue to be applied to imports in lieu of excise (CENVAT) and local state taxes respectively. The AD, which was introduced in 1975 to offset domestic excise taxes, is currently charged at the general rate of 12.5%, raised from 10% at the time of previous Review. […] Imports that are exempt from customs duty, either through an exemption notification or by the tariff and the AD, are exempt from payment of the SAD as well." Question:
Reply: Additional Duty of Customs (CVD) is levied at a rate equivalent to the rate of excise duty charged on the domestic production of a similar item. Similarly, Education Cess and Higher Education Cess charged as a percentage of the Excise Duty for domestic goods was also charged on similar imported goods. However, w.e.f 01.03.2015, Education Cess and Secondary & Higher Education Cess leviable on all excisable goods has been fully exempted. Simultaneously, the standard ad valorem rate of duty of excise (i.e. CENVAT) has been increased from 12% to 12.5%. Similarly, Special Additional Duty (SAD) is charged on imported goods in lieu of sales tax/value added tax charged on the domestic sale of goods. Both these taxes are in the nature of countervailing/equalizing taxes and thus would apply to imported goods so as to provide a level playing field for domestic industry. Moreover, the credit of these additional duties is available to be set-off against domestic taxes such as Central Excise Duty and Service Tax under the CENVAT Credit Rules. Likewise, a full refund of the SAD can be claimed by an importer once the imported goods are sold in the domestic market on payment of State VAT. 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.1 Measure Directly Affecting Imports 3.1.9 Import prohibitions, restrictions, and licensing 3.1.9.4 Import quotas Page 51 Para 3.51 "India maintains import quotas for marble and similar stones (HS 25151100 and 25151210) and for sandalwood (HS 44039922). Quotas are established annually and administered on an MFN basis. There is no maximum limit to be allocated per applicant. Applications are examined upon receipt and assessed according to the criteria stated in the notifications and circulars issued by DGFT on a yearly basis." Question:___How_often_is_the_list_of_Indian_standard_products_updated__Reply'>Question:
Reply: India maintains import quota on Marble and similar stones on the ground of "Conserving exhaustible natural resources". These items have been notified to WTO in 1997(WT/BOP/N/24 dated 22.05.1997) by India under Article XX(g). For sandalwood, Import restrictions have been put on because India imports only legally produced Sandalwood and does not become party to illegal international trade in sandal wood and also to keep account of imported sandalwood so that illegally felled domestic sandalwood is not passed off by the unscrupulous elements as imported sandalwood.
Reply: Quotas are being determined in consideration of the need of certain categories of marble and sandalwood for Indian market. 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.1 Measure Directly Affecting Imports 3.1.12 Standards and other technical requirements 3.1.12.1 Standards Page 59 Para 3.87 "Standards in India are established based on the provisions of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) Act 1986 and BIS Rules 1987. The BIS is responsible for formulating and enforcing standards for 14 sectors, and development of activities relating to certification of product and quality systems, testing and calibration, enforcement, international cooperation, and creating awareness among consumers; other agencies are responsible for enforcement of standards (and technical regulations) in other areas (Table A3.3). Sectoral coordination committees have been established for food processing, power, steel, automotives, textiles, and information technology, in order to develop harmonized standards at the national level. International standards are often adopted as Indian standards under the numbering system of ISO/IEC, or are harmonized with international standards in areas of India's trade interests." Question:
Reply: The list of Indian Standards is updated as and when the Standards are published/revised/withdrawn and is available on BIS website http://www.bis.org.in. 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.1 Measure Directly Affecting Imports 3.1.12 Standards and other technical requirements 3.1.12.3 Certification and conformity assessment Page 60 Para 3.96 "The BIS is the national certifying body. Conformity assessment procedures are regulated by the BIS Act 1986, the BIS Rules 1987, and BIS (Certification) Regulations 1988. The central Government, on grounds of public interest, notifies which articles or processes should conform to an Indian standard and should bear the BIS certification mark under a licence from BIS. Some 92 products are subject to the mandatory BIS certification mark. As at 1 January 2015, there were 842 products under voluntary certification. According to the authorities, the requirements for the use of the BIS certification mark are the same for domestic and imported products. Besides the normal product certification scheme, the BIS also grants licences to environment friendly products under a special scheme and awards the ECO mark to such products." Question:
Reply: The criteria for determining which product shall carry the mandatory BIS Certification Mark is as per clause 14 of BIS Act 1986 which is reproduced below: "14. If the Central Government, after consulting the Bureau, is of the opinion that it is necessary or expedient so to do, in the public interest, it may, by order published in the Official Gazette, a.notify any article or process of any scheduled industry which shall conform to the Indian Standard; and b.direct the use of the Standard Mark under a licence as compulsory on such article or process. Explanation - For the purposes of this section, the expression "scheduled industry" shall have the meaning assigned to it in the Industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951." The various Ministries of the Government of India issue Quality Control orders from time to time, relevant link for which are given in BIS website, http://www.bis.org.in and websites of other ministries of the Government of India.
Reply: The details of the products covered are given in the BIS website http://www.bis.org.in/cert/prod_cert_scheme.asp.
Reply: The specific criteria for products covered under eco-marking scheme are given at http://www.bis.org.in/cert/prod_cert_scheme.asp. 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.1 Measure Directly Affecting Imports 3.1.13 Sanitary and phytosanitary requirements Page 63 Para 3.107 "The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), established under FSSA, is mandated to establish standards for articles of food and to regulate their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import with a view to ensuring availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption, and contributing to the development of international technical standards for food, sanitary and phytosanitary standards. Other main institutions involved in the establishment and implementation of SPS measures are the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying, and Fisheries in the Ministry of Agriculture; the Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine and Storage in the Ministry of Agriculture; the BIS; and other state government agencies. India's national enquiry points under the WTO SPS Agreement are: the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying, and Fisheries for animal health and related issues; the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for food safety related issues; and the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation for plant health or phytosanitary issues. Between 2011 and 2014, India made 23 notifications to the Committee on SPS Measures." Question:
Reply: The regulations notified by the FSSAI are equally applicable to the domestically produced product as well as imported products without any discrimination. 3 TRADE POLICIES AND PRACTICES BY MEASURE 3.2 Measures Directly Affecting Exports 3.2.4 Export prohibitions, restrictions, and licensing 3.2.4.1 Export prohibitions Page 67 Para 3.125 "Export prohibitions apply mainly for environmental, food-security, marketing, pricing, and domestic supply reasons, and to comply with international treaties. Since its previous Review, the list of products subject to export prohibitions in India has remained largely unchanged; on 9 September 2011, export prohibition on non-basmati rice and wheat was removed. (Table A3.4)." Question:
Reply: The list of items which are prohibited for exports is attached as Annex A at the end of this note. These can also be seen at dgft.gov.in. Annex A- List of Items prohibited for exports
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