This guide covers who can import machinery into India, what is restricted, which duty route to use and how customs clearance works. It is for manufacturers setting up a factory and for suppliers shipping to Indian customers. Choose the duty route before you place the order, because it changes the landed cost.
The mandatory BIS safety certification for machinery was withdrawn in January 2026, although some websites still show it as coming. The section on entry rules below covers what still applies.
Who is the importer?
Every commercial import into India needs an importer with an Importer-Exporter Code (IEC), issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT). The IEC must be updated every year between April and June, or it is deactivated. A deactivated code can stop a shipment at the port, so check its status before the machine leaves your supplier. The importer also needs a GST registration to claim the import tax back, because the GST number is what links the tax paid at import to the credit.
For a manufacturer, the importer is normally your Indian company. In our experience, a foreign company without an Indian entity usually cannot import for itself, so the Indian customer or a local partner acts as importer of record. This is important because the importer is responsible for the duty, the paperwork and any dispute with customs. If you are the supplier, agree early who that is.
Safety rules and used machinery
Safety certification: India issued an order that would have made BIS certification mandatory for a wide range of industrial machinery. The Ministry of Heavy Industries withdrew it in January 2026 by notification S.O. 239(E), which leaves BIS machinery certification under Scheme X voluntary. Some certification-agency websites still show the old September 2026 enforcement date. That information is out of date.
This does not mean machinery is free of certification. Product-specific quality control orders still require listed products to carry the BIS Standard Mark under a valid BIS license. For a foreign manufacturer, that means applying for its own license. The list changes, so check your product’s customs code against the BIS list of products under compulsory certification before you order, and again before you ship.
Used machinery: Used machinery is allowed, with conditions. Under paragraph 2.31 of the Foreign Trade Policy, second-hand capital goods are generally free to import, while other second-hand goods need an authorization. Refurbished spares need a chartered engineer’s certificate showing at least 80% of their original life remaining. Some second-hand goods are restricted even when a factory buys them: desktop computers, air conditioners and diesel generating sets need an authorization, and so do electronics and IT goods covered by the 2021 Compulsory Registration Order. Used generator sets are a common factory purchase, so check before you buy one. You may still see older age limits quoted online. The policy table in the Mondaq guide lists none for capital goods, but read the DGFT text itself before you buy.
For a whole machine, the policy does not require a chartered engineer’s certificate; that rule applies to refurbished spares. But customs still has to value the machine, and a used machine has no list price. In our experience, a chartered engineer’s certificate issued in the country of supply supports the value and avoids most valuation disputes. It should state the machine’s age, condition, remaining life and its value in the year of manufacture. The serial numbers on the invoice, the certificate and the machine should match. Where they do not, or where the certificate gives no value, customs can set its own value and clearance slows down.
Classification and duty
Two main charges apply to most machinery: customs duty and integrated GST (IGST). You assess them yourself. The importer or its agent classifies the goods under an HS code (the customs tariff code) and calculates the duty when filing the bill of entry. That puts responsibility for the code on you, and a wrong code can come back as a dispute long after the machine is installed.
Describe the machine on the invoice by model, function and technical specification, not by a general name such as “equipment” or “spare parts.” Customs uses the description to test the HS code, and a vague line is the quickest way to a query. If the machine ships in several crates, the packing list should let the officer match each crate to the invoice.
Classification gets harder with a complete production line. Item by item, each machine falls under its own tariff heading with its own rate. Under the project import scheme described below, a qualifying project goes under one heading at one rate. Decide before you order whether you are buying a line or separate machines, and ask the supplier to invoice accordingly.
The IGST you pay at import is generally available as input credit to a registered business, subject to the conditions in the GST law. For many manufacturers it is therefore a cash-flow cost, not a final cost. Confirm with your GST advisor that your product and use qualify, then build it into the cost model.
Duty relief for factory projects
Three main routes exist, and the choice belongs in the project plan, not in the customs office. Others, such as a special economic zone, an export-oriented unit or a bonded manufacturing scheme that defers duty, have their own conditions and are outside this guide.
Standard assessment: Each machine is classified under its own HS code and pays the duty rate set for that code. It is the simplest route and usually the most expensive.
Project import: For a qualifying new plant or substantial expansion, the scheme treats the machinery and related goods as one package. They are classified together and pay one duty rate, instead of a separate rate for each machine, and not every plant qualifies.
Registration requires the original contract and an approved list of items from the sponsoring authority, and the application states the project’s location, products and capacity. The regulations require registration on or before importation. Treat that as the legal limit and register before the goods ship. Customs later carries out a plant site verification (Comptroller and Auditor General of India). The rate and the notification that sets it change, so check the one in force when you register.
EPCG (Export Promotion Capital Goods): The scheme allows capital goods to be imported at zero customs duty and zero IGST, but only against an export obligation equal to six times the duties and taxes saved, to be met within six years of the authorization, with no revalidation. A factory that sells only inside India cannot meet that obligation, so for it the scheme does not apply. An exporter should model its export plan before applying, because the obligation is binding.
An exporter buying a full line compares project import and EPCG, while a factory serving the Indian market looks at project import first. A supplier delivering a single machine usually faces standard assessment.
Customs clearance in practice
The importer files a bill of entry electronically. If you sell through an Indian distributor, the distributor can be the importer. A risk management system then decides which shipments are assessed, examined or cleared without intervention. In our experience, high-value machinery, used machinery and anything with a debatable HS code is more likely to be examined.
Have these documents ready before the vessel arrives: the commercial invoice, the packing list, the bill of lading or airway bill, the importer’s IEC and GST details, and the insurance document. Add the technical catalogue or specification sheet, which helps the officer accept your HS code. For used machinery, add the engineer’s certificate or other proof of value. For a project import or EPCG, add the contract registration or the authorization. The consignee name, value and description should match across all of them. In our experience, a mismatch between the invoice and the packing list causes more delay than any rule.
Machinery commonly enters through Nhava Sheva near Mumbai, Chennai or Mundra. Choose the port that suits your site, and use a clearing agent who handles machinery there regularly. Delays usually come from four sources: a valuation query, a disagreement over the HS code, missing or inconsistent documents, and, for project imports, registration paperwork that is not ready. Port storage charges build up while you resolve them, so settle documents and codes before the ship arrives, not after.
Landed cost and timeline
Build the cost from the factory gate to your site, in this order: machine price, freight and insurance, customs duty, IGST, port and handling charges, the clearing agent’s fee, transport to site, and an allowance for storage if clearance is delayed. Then subtract the IGST you expect to recover, and note when you will recover it. On a large line, the gap between paying IGST at the port and recovering it later is a working-capital cost.
Add time as well as money. Project import registration and an EPCG authorization both come before the goods are cleared, so ask your clearing agent for current processing times and start early.
A workable sequence
For a new factory, a workable order is:
Before the purchase order: confirm who the importer is, choose the duty route (including whether the plant qualifies for project import), and check the HS codes and the BIS list.
At signing: make the contract and the invoicing match the route. A project import contract has to be registered, so describe the machines and the supplier’s scope clearly in it.
Before shipping: register the contract or obtain the EPCG authorization, check that the IEC is active, and collect the documents above.
At arrival: ask your agent to file the bill of entry as early as the rules allow, and to be ready for queries.
After clearance: keep the records. Customs verifies the plant for project imports, and an EPCG holder must track the export obligation until it is closed.
If you are the supplier
If your Indian customer is the importer, your job is to make their import easy. Agree the Incoterm early. Under DAP the buyer clears customs, while under DDP you carry the duty and need your own importer registration, which most foreign sellers avoid. Provide a commercial invoice with the HS code and serial numbers and, for used equipment, the engineer’s certificate.
Demo machines and trial units are a separate case. India accepts ATA Carnets for exhibition goods and professional equipment, and the carnet brochure lists equipment for demonstration and testing in that category. A carnet is valid for a maximum of 12 months and cannot be extended or renewed. Goods entered under a carnet cannot be sold, so if the customer decides to buy the demo machine, it needs a separate import clearance with duty. Ask customs before you ship.
Spare parts follow the same process as the machine, each with its own HS code. If your product falls under a product-specific quality control order, settle the BIS requirement before you quote.
Common mistakes
- Choosing the HS code last: Settle it before the purchase order. The code sets the duty rate, and your supplier needs it for the invoice.
- Registering a project import contract late: The regulations require registration on or before importation. Register before the goods ship.
- Treating used machinery like new: Valuation is where used machines get held. Bring a chartered engineer’s certificate or other proof of value, make sure the serial numbers match, and check that the item is not on the restricted list.
- Letting documents disagree: The consignee name, value and description on the invoice, packing list and certificates should match.
- Letting the IEC lapse: It must be updated every year between April and June, and a deactivated code can stop a shipment at the port.
- Relying on outdated BIS information: The mandatory machinery certification was withdrawn, but product-specific quality control orders still apply. Check the BIS list for your product.
- Expecting EPCG to help a factory that sells only in India: The scheme requires an export obligation of six times the duties saved, which a domestic-only factory cannot meet.
Where we can help
We help manufacturers and suppliers plan the import route, choose between the duty schemes, line up a clearing agent and prepare used-equipment valuation before shipment. If you are planning a shipment to India, we would be glad to talk it through.
