New Delhi: The Directorate General of Foreign Trade issued a notice stating that the central government has imposed immediate restrictions on imports of laptops, tablets, and personal computers falling under HSN 8471.
The notice mentioned that the import of laptops, tablets, all-in-one personal computers, ultra-small form factor computers, and servers falling under HSN 8741 would be restricted. However, their import would be allowed with a valid license for restricted imports.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry stated that the restriction will not apply to imports made under the Baggage Rules, which may be amended from time to time.
The government has stated that the import of 1 laptop, tablet, all-in-one personal computer, or ultra- small form factor computer, including those purchased from e-commerce portals through post or courier, is exempt from import licensing requirements. It is important to note that imports will still be subject to payment of applicable duties. Furthermore, the government has emphasized that this exemption applies to up to 20 such items per consignment for the purposes of R&D (Research and Development), testing, benchmarking and evaluation, repair and re-export, as well as product development.
The Ministry stated that imports would be permitted under the condition that the imported goods are used exclusively for their intended purposes and not sold. Furthermore, once the intended purposes have been fulfilled, the products must either be rendered unusable or exported. However, the Ministry clarified that a license would not be required for the repair and return of restricted items.
Laptops, tablets, all-in-one personal computers, and ultra-small form factor computers and servers, which are considered essential capital goods, will be exempt from import licensing requirements.
