Must seek fresh approvals for laptop imports from January 1: Govt to importers

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry on Tuesday said that companies will have until the end of the year to freely import laptops and personal computers, but will have to seek fresh approvals from January 1. Existing permits issued till September 30 will stay valid till the end of the year. The ministry further informed that “detailed” guidelines for approvals will be released shortly.

This comes after India had announced the new system for imports of laptops, tablets, personal computers and servers last year after it rolled back an earlier plan to impose a licensing regime following criticism from industry over shortages and United States Trade Representative (USTR) during the G20 meeting in India.