With effect from 1st April 2017 the time within which an import bill of entry and payment of applicable customs duties must be made have been reduced. Breach of the new time limits may result in the imposition of additional charges or penalties.

Submitting the Import Bill of Entry

The import bill of entry must be presented to India Customs within 24 hours (excluding public holidays) of the day on which the aircraft, vessel or vehicle carrying the imported goods arrives at the point of entry where the goods are to be cleared.

Where the bill of entry is not presented within those time limits and there is insufficient cause for such delay (as determined by India Customs), the importer of records (IOR) may be required to pay additional charges as follows:

• INR 5,000 per day (USD80 per day) for the first 3 days of default and then INR 10,000 per day (USD160 per day) for each day of default thereafter.

Payment of Customs Duties

Importers of records are required to pay any applicable customs duty:

1. Where customs duty is self-assessed, on the day on which the bill of entry is presented;
2. Where India Customs has assessed or re-assessed the duty amount, within 24 hours (excluding public holidays) from the day on which the bill of entry containing that assessment or re-assessment has been provided to the importer by India Customs.