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Informist, Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2025

 

--Govt source:May extend duty refund plan for exporters on trade uncertainty

--Govt source: Likely to extend duty refund plan for exporters by a year

--CONTEXT: Government's duty refund plan for exporters set to end Sept 30

 

By Krity Ambey

 

NEW DELHI – The government is likely to extend its flagship export promotion scheme, Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products, or RoDTEP, by a year amid an increasingly uncertain global trade and tariff landscape, a commerce ministry official said. The scheme is set to end on Sept. 30.

 

Under the scheme, the government reimburses duties and taxes paid by exporters on imported inputs. In May, the government also expanded the benefits of the scheme to exporters from special economic zones and export-oriented units. 

 

Export promotion associations have already submitted proposals seeking an extension of the RoDTEP scheme, the official told Informist. It is a helpful scheme and there is "definitely" a case to extend it, the official added. 

 

Besides, Indian exporters especially require support in the present context, the official said, referring to the tariff announcements by the US. The White House has already imposed 25% reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods, and has also announced the levy of an additional 25% duty from Aug. 27 as a penalty for India's purchases of Russian crude oil amid the Ukraine conflict.

 

Indian exporters are likely to see an immediate setback as shipments to the top export destination are more expensive now due to the extra tariffs. With exports worth $86.51 billion to the US in 2024-25 (Apr-Mar), the country accounted for nearly 20% of India's total exports. India also had a trade surplus of $40.82 billion with the US in the last fiscal. 

 

Other than US tariffs, the sudden flare-up of conflicts around the world and disturbances on key trade routes further add to the uncertainties, the official mentioned. The latest instance of trade-route disruption was in June when Iran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz in the aftermath of an escalation in the conflict with Israel.

 

"At a time when the global scenario is so uncertain, we can at least provide the exporters with some certainty," the official said. Exporters are of the view that the scheme should be extended for a longer period of time to ensure certainty, and the commerce ministry also subscribes to the view, according to the official. The RoDTEP scheme, rolled out in 2021 for nine months, has been extended multiple times in the last four years, with each extension being 6–12 months long. 

 

In the Budget for FY26, the government allocated INR 182.33 billion for the scheme. The government had disbursed INR 179.51 billion under the scheme in the last fiscal, as per the revised estimate for FY25.  End

 

US$1 = INR 87.13

 

Edited by Tanima Banerjee

 

 

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