How to Start an Export-Import Business in India — Registrations, Product and Market Selection, Finding Buyers, Payment Terms, Logistics and the Incentives That Make It Profitable
Video Explanation & Insights
Expert tips: how to kickstart your export-import business
8 videos on this topic
Set up the exporter
| Registration | Why | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Business entity and PAN | Proprietorship works to start; LLP or company for scale and credibility | Bank current account in the entity's name |
| Importer Exporter Code (IEC) | DGFT's ten-digit code — mandatory for any export or import | Online on the DGFT portal with PAN, Aadhaar, bank certificate and address proof |
| GST (regular scheme) and LUT | Exports are zero-rated supplies; composition dealers cannot export | File the Letter of Undertaking each year to export without paying IGST and claim refund of input credit |
| AD code registration | Links your bank to the port so shipping bills can be filed and proceeds tracked | Bank issues the AD code letter; register on ICEGATE for each port you use |
| RCMC from an export promotion council | Membership of the council for your product (APEDA, EEPC, GJEPC, CAPEXIL, Spices Board and others) | Needed for MDA, MAI, fair pavilions and many DGFT benefits; turnover certificate from a CA fixes the class |
| Udyam registration | MSME status for MDA, interest support, procurement and credit guarantee | Free, on the Udyam portal |
| Product approvals | FSSAI for food, BIS / ISI where applicable, drug licence for pharma, quality certifications the buyer wants (ISO, HACCP, Halal, Kosher, SEDEX) | See our licence pages |
Choose the product and the market
Start from what you can source reliably at a competitive price — your own manufacture, a cluster near you, or a product your state is known for — and then check where India already sells it. The DGFT and Department of Commerce trade statistics show India's top export destinations by HS code; the ITC Trade Map shows who else supplies those markets and at what unit price. Agricultural and processed food — rice, spices, marine products, buffalo meat, sugar, fruit and vegetables, tea and coffee — remain India's largest food exports, as the channel's short lists, and APEDA, MPEDA and the commodity boards run dedicated support for them.
- •Check import duty and standards in the target market (buyer's country tariff and SPS / labelling rules).
- •Compute the landed cost: ex-works price, packing, inland freight, customs, ocean freight, insurance — and the incentives on the other side of the ledger.
- •One product, two or three markets to start; widen after the first repeat orders.
Find and verify buyers
- •Trade fairs abroad through your council's India pavilion — with MDA reimbursing a large share of airfare and stall rent.
- •Buyer-seller meets, Indian embassies' commercial wings, council buyer databases, B2B platforms.
- •Verify before you ship or accept an advance: registration, ownership, trade history and a credit report on the foreign company — see our verification page.
- •Sample-against-payment and third-party inspection before the first full order.
Price, payment terms and shipping
| Decision | Options | Guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Incoterm | EXW, FOB, CIF / CIP, DAP | Quote FOB or CIF; know exactly which costs you carry |
| Payment term | Advance TT; Letter of Credit; documents against payment (DP) or acceptance (DA); open account with ECGC cover | First orders: part advance plus LC or full advance; move to DP/DA with ECGC insurance once the buyer is proven |
| Documents | Commercial invoice, packing list, shipping bill, bill of lading / airway bill, certificate of origin, insurance, buyer-specific certificates | A customs house agent (CHA) files the shipping bill; declare RoDTEP and drawback on it |
| Proceeds | Realise within the FEMA period; bank issues e-BRC | e-BRC is proof for GST refunds and scheme claims |
The incentives that make export profitable
Export margins are thin; the government schemes are the margin. Remission schemes return the duties embedded in your product (RoDTEP; RoSCTL for apparel), duty drawback and Advance Authorisation return or waive duty on imported inputs, EPCG lets you import machinery duty-free against an export obligation, IGST is refunded in full, export promotion councils and the MSME Ministry subsidise fairs, and every state has an incentive package — Rajasthan's RIPS returns 75% of SGST and gives interest and capital subsidies to exporting units. Explore each on our export schemes and subsidy pages.
- 1Before the first shipment: IEC, GST + LUT, AD code, RCMC, Udyam; product approvals; ICEGATE and DGFT logins.
- 2On every shipping bill: RoDTEP and drawback declarations; correct HS code.
- 3Monthly: IGST / ITC refunds, scrip monetisation, e-BRC follow-up, SOFTEX for services.
- 4Yearly: LUT renewal, RCMC renewal, MDA / MAI applications for fairs, state scheme claims.
Starting exports: questions we are asked
An entity with PAN and bank account, IEC from DGFT, GST registration with an LUT, AD code registration at the port, and RCMC from your product's council. Product approvals as applicable.
Council fairs and buyer-seller meets (subsidised under MDA / MAI), embassy commercial wings, B2B platforms — and verify every buyer before shipping.
Advance or a Letter of Credit for new buyers; DP/DA with ECGC cover once the relationship is proven.
No — exports are zero-rated. Under an LUT you export without tax and claim refund of input credit.
RoDTEP / RoSCTL scrips, duty drawback, Advance Authorisation, EPCG, IGST refund, MDA fair subsidy, and state packages such as RIPS.
Yes — registrations, product-market data, buyer verification, payment structuring, documentation with your CHA, and the monthly claim cycle.