Customs India

Baggage Rules as on 25.5.2013.

(You have to read along with latest modifications,if any.
we are not responsible for any errors in this info)

  •  Every passenger entering India has to pass through a Customs check. 
  • He / She must fill up the Disembarkation Card clearly mentioning the quantity and value of goods that he has brought. 
  • On his / her arrival the passenger is first cleared byImmigration Officer, who retains the Immigration portion of theDisembarkation Card. 
  • Thereafter the passenger takes the deliveryof his/her baggage from the conveyer belts & passes throughCustoms. 
  • The passenger has the option of seeking clearance throughthe Green Channel or through the Red Channel subject to the natureof goods being carried. 

GREEN AND RED CHANNELS
For the purpose of Customs clearance of arriving passengers,a two channel system has been adopted
(i) Green Channel for passengers not having any dutiable goods. 
(ii) Red Channel for passengers having dutiable goods.
 However,
(i)All the passengers shall ensure to file correct declaration of their baggage.
(ii) Green channel passengers must deposit the Customs portion of the disembarkation card to the Customs official at the gatebefore leaving the terminal.
(iii) Declaration of foreign exchange/currency has to be made before the custom officers in the following cases :
(a) where the value of foreign currency notes exceed US $5000 or equivalent
(b) where the aggregate value of foreign exchange includingcurrency exceeds US $ 10,000 or equivalent-Passengers walking through the Green Channel with dutiable / prohibited goods are liable to prosecution/penalty and confiscation of goods.-Trafficking of Narcotics and Psychotropic substances isa serious offence and is punishable with imprisonment.
  • 2 DUTY FREE ALLOWANCES AND ENTITLEMENTSFOR INDIAN RESIDENTS AND FOREIGNERSRESIDING IN INDIA A Resident means a person holding a valid passport issuedunder the Passports Act,1967 and normally residing in IndiaI.For passengers coming from countries other than(a) Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar or China.(b) Pakistan by Land Route Duty – Free Entitlements For For P assengers For Pas sengersBonafide Baggageof age 10 Y e a r s o f age below 10& aboveYearsUsed personal effectsFREE*FREE*(excluding jewellery)required for satisfyingdaily necessities of lifeOther articles carried inperson or in accompaniedbaggage(a) if Stay abroad forVa l u e d upto Valued uptomore than three daysRs.35000/-Rs.15000/- #(b) if Stay abroad upto Valued uptoVa l u e d u p tothree daysRs.15000/-Rs.3000/-*If returning after stay abroad of more than three days.# Notification No.37/2012 dated 23.04.2012 Note:1. The free allowance shall not be pooled with the free allowanceof any other passenger.2. The free allowance is not applicable to the following goods1. Fire arms.2. Cartridges of fire arms exceeding 50.3. Cigarettes exceeding 200 or cigars exceeding 50 ortobacco exceeding 250 gms.4. Alcoholic liquor or wines in excess of 2 litres.5. Gold or si,lv ienr any form, other than ornaments.
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  • 3 3. One laptop computer (notebook computer) over and above thesaid free allowances mentioned above is also allowed dutyfree if imported by any passenger of the age of 18 years andabove.4. The goods over and above the free allowances shall bechargeable to customs duty @ 35% + an education cess of3% i.e. to say the effective rate is 36.05%.5. Alcoholic drinks and tobacco products imported in excess offree allowance are chargeable to custom duty at the ratesapplicable to their commercial imports as per the CustomsTariff Act, 1962.6. Passengers normally resident of India who are returning froma visit abroad Indian currency upto Rs. 7,500 is allowed.7. In case the value of one item exceeds the duty free allowance,the duty shall be calculated only on the excess of freeallowance.II. For passengers coming from(I) Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar or China, otherthan by land route(ii) Pakistan by land route Used personal effectsFREEFREE(excluding jewellery)required for satisfyingdaily necessities of lifeOther articles carried inperson or in accompaniedbaggage Note:1. The free allowance shall not be allowed to be pooled with thefree allowance of any other passenger.2. The free allowance is not applicable to the following goods Duty – Free Entitlements For For P assengers For Pas sengersBonafide Baggageof age 10 Y e a r s o f age below 10& aboveYearsif Stay abroad for more thanthree daysRs.6000/-Rs.1500/-
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  • 4 (a) Fire arms.(b) Cartridges of fire arms exceeding 50.(c) Cigarettes exceeding 200 or cigars exceeding 50 ortobacco exceeding 250 gms.(d) Alcoholic liquor and wines in excess of 2 litres.(e) Gold or silver, in any form, other than ornaments.3. One laptop computer (notebook computer) over and above thesaid free allowances mentioned above is also allowed dutyfree if imported by any passenger of the age of 18 years andabove.4. The goods over and above the free allowances shall bechargeable to customs duty @ 35% + an education cess of3% i.e. to say the effective rate is 36.05%.5. Alcoholic drinks and tobacco products imported in excess offree allowance are chargeable to custom duty at the ratesapplicable to their commercial imports.6. Import of Indian currency is prohibited. However , i n the case ofpassengers, who are resident of India and are returning from avisit abroad, Indian currency upto Rs. 7,500 is allowed.7. Incase the value of one item exceeds the duty free allowance,the duty shall be calculated only on the excess of such amount.
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  • 5 SPECIAL ALLOWANCES FOR PROFESSIONALSRETURNING TO INDIA An Indian passenger who was engaged in his profession abroadshall on his return to India be allowed clearance free of duty, inaddition to the aforesaid allowances, articles in his bonafide baggageto the extent as mentioned below:- (a) Indian p assenger (i ) U s e d household articles upto anreturning afteraggregate value of Rs.12000/-atleast 3 month(ii) P r o f e s s io nal equipment upto a valueof Rs.20,000/-(b) Indian p assenger (i ) U s e d household articles upto anreturning after atleastaggregate value of Rs.12000/-6 month(ii) P r o f e s s io n a l e q uipment upto a valueof Rs.40,000/-(c) Indian passenger(i) Used household articles and personalreturning after a stayeffects, (which have been in theof minimum 365 dayspossession and use abroad of theduring the precedingpassenger or his family for at least six2 years on terminationmonths), and which are not mentioned inof his work, and whoAnnex I, Annexure II or Annexure III of thehas not availed thisBaggage Rules 1988 upto an aggregateconcession in thevalue of Rs.75,000.preceding three years.Notes: For the purposes of baggage rules Professional Equipmentmeans: Such portable equipments, instruments, apparatus and appliancesare required in the profession in which the returning passenger wasengaged. This expression includes items used by carpenters,plumbers, welders, masons and the like; This concession is notavailable for items of common use such as Cameras, CassetteRecorders, Dictaphones, Typewriters, Personal Computers andsimilar items. DUTY FREE ALLOWANCES AND ENTITLEMENTSFOR TOURISTS DEFINITION OF TOURIST? A tourist is a passengera)who is not normally a resident in India;b)who enters India for a stay of not more than six months in thecourse of any twelve months period for legitimate non-immigrant
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  • 6 purposes, such as : touring, recreation, sports, health, familyreasons, study, religious pilgrimage, or business;A tourist arriving in India shall be allowed duty free clearanceof articles in his bonafide baggage to the extent as mentionedbelow:- Articles allowed free of duty(1)( 2 ) a) To u rists of Indian origin (i) used personal effects and travelcoming to India othersouvenirs, if -than tourists of Indian( a ) these g oods are for personal use of theorigin coming by landtourist, a n d routes as specified in( b ) these goods, other than those consumedAnnexure IVduring the stay in India,are re-exportedwhen the tourist leaves India for a foreigndestination.(ii) articles a s allowed to be cleared underrule 3 or rule 4.(b) T o urists of foreign(I) u s e d personal effectsorigin, other than(ii) articles o t h e r t h an those mentioned inthose of PakistaniAnnexure I upto a value of ‘ 8000 fororigin coming frompersonal use of the tourist or as giftsPakistan, coming toand travel souvenirs if these are carriedIndia by air.on the person or in the accompaniedbaggage of the passenger.(c) To urists –( i ) used personal effects(I) of Pakistani origin(ii) a r t i cles o ther than those mentioned incoming from PakistanAnnexure I upto a value of ‘ 6000 forother than by landpersonal use of the tourist or as giftsroutes;and travel souvenirs if these are carried(ii) of P akistani origin oron the person or in the accompaniedforeign tourists comingbaggage of the pa s s e n ger.”by land routes asspecified inAnnexure IV;(iii) o f Indian origincoming by landroutes as specifiedin Annexure IV.

  • FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs) 
  • 1. What are the Channels of Clearance?
  • There are two Channels for Customs Clearance:i)Green Channel for passengers not having any dutiablegoodsii)Red Channel for passengers having dutiable goods.Passengers are advised to report at the appropriatechannel for Customs Clearance.
  • 2. Who can bring Jewellery as baggage?
  • An Indian passenger who has been residing abroad for over one year is allowed to bring jewellery, free of duty in his bonafide baggage upto an aggregate value of Rs. 50,000/- (in the caseof a gentleman passenger) or Rs.1,00,000/- (in the case of a lady passenger).
  • 3. What are the norms for the import of Alcoholic drinks /Cigarettes as baggage?
  • Following quantities of Alcoholic drinks and Tobacco productsmay be included for import within the duty free allowancesadmissible to various categories of incoming passengers :-Alcoholic liquors or Wines upto 2 litres-200 Cigarettes or 50 Cigars or 250 gms. of T o b a cco.The rate of duty applicable on these products over andabove the above mentioned free allowance is as under :(i)CigarettesBCD @100%+ educational cess@ 3%(ii) WhiskyBCD @150% + ACD @ 4% + educationcess NIL.(iii) BeerBCD @100% + ACD NIL + 3% educationcess4. Who can import gold as baggage?Any passenger of Indian Origin or a passenger holding a validpassport, issued under the Passport Act, 1967, who is coming
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  • 9 Conditions(i)The weight of silver (including ornaments) should not exceedthe quantity of 10 kgs. per passenger.(ii) Such passenger is coming to India after a period of not lessthan six months of stay abroad. However, short visits duringthese six months shall be ignored if the total duration of suchshort visits does not exceed 30 days and the passenger hasnot availed of the exemption under this scheme, at the time ofsuch short visits.(iii) The duty at the rate of 6% Advelorem + 3% Education Cessis paid by the passenger in convertible foreign currency. Tariffvalue of silver is taken as per the notifications issued fromtime to time.(iv) The passenger can either bring the silver himself at the time ofarrival or import the same within fifteen days of his arrival inIndia.(v) The passenger can also obtain the permitted quantity of silverFrom Customs bonded warehouse of State Bank of India andMetal and Mineral Trading Corporation subject to conditions(i) and (iii). He is required to file a declaration in the prescribedForm before the Customs Officer at the time of arrival in Indiastating his intention to obtain the silver from the Customsbonded warehouse and pay the duty before clearance.6. What are the norms for Import of Foreign Exchange /Currency?Any person can bring into India from a place outside Indiaforeign exchange without any limit. However, declaration offoreign exchange/currency is required to be made in theprescribed Currency Declaration Form in the following cases:-(a) Where the value of foreign currency notes exceeds US$5000/- or equivalent
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  • 10 (b) Where the aggregate value of foreign exchange (in theform of currency notes, bank notes, traveler chequesetc.) exceeds US$ 10,000/- or its equivalent7. What are the norms for the Import of Indian Currency?Import of Indian Currency is prohibited. However, in thecase of passengers normally resident in India who are returningfrom a visit abroad, import of Indian Currency upto Rs. 7,500 isallowed.8. While coming into India how much foreign exchangecan be brought in by NRIs?An NRI coming into India from abroad can bring with him foreignexchange without any limit provided if foreign currency notes,travellers cheques, Forexplus Card exceed US$ 10,000/ - orits equivalent and/or the value of foreign currency exceedsUS$ 5,000/- or its equivalent, it should be declared to theCustoms Authorities at the Airport in the Currency DeclarationForm (CDF), on arrival in India.9. What are the norms for the Import of firearms?-Import of firearms is strictly prohibited.-Import of Cartridges in excess of 50 is alsoprohibited.However, in the case of persons transferring theirresidence (as per conditions specified in the rules) toIndia for a minimum period of one year, one firearm ofpermissible bore can be allowed to be imported subjectto the conditions that:1)the same was in possession and use abroad by thepassenger for a minimum period of one year and thatsuch firearm can be disposed off after ten years of itsimport. However, this facility can be availed only once.
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  • 11 2)the passenger has a valid arms licence from the local(Indian) authorities;3)the customs and other duties as applicable shall bepaid.10. What are the norms for the Import of Pet Animals?11. What are the norms for the Import of Baggage ofDeceased Person?Used, bonafide personal and household effects belonging to adeceased person are allowed to be imported free of duty subjectto the condition that a Certificate from the concerned Indianmission (Embassy / High Commission) is produced at thetime of clearance regarding the ownership of the goods by thedeceased person.12. What are rules & regulations for the import of Un-accompanied Baggage?The passengers can also send their baggage through cargowhich is treated as unaccompanied baggage. However, no freeallowance is admissible in case of unaccompanied baggagewhich is chargeable to Customs duty @ 35% advalorem + 3%Education Cess and only used personal effects can beimported free of duty.Provisions of Baggage Rules are also extended tounaccompanied baggage except where they have beenspecifically excluded.The unaccompanied baggage should be in the possessionabroad of the passenger and shall be dispatched within oneImport of pets upto two numbers per passenger areallowed as baggage only to persons transferring theirresidence to India after two year of continuous stay abroadin terms of Baggage Rules 1998 subject to production ofrequired health certificate from country of origin andexamination of the said pets by the animal quarantineofficer without an import licence issued by DGFT.
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  • 12 month of his arrival in India or within such further period as theDeputy / Assistant Commissioner of Customs may allow.The unaccompanied baggage may land in India upto twomonths before the arrival of the passenger or within such period,not exceeding one year as the Deputy / AssistantCommissioner of Customs may allow, for reasons to berecorded, if he is satisfied that the passenger was preventedfrom arriving in India within the period of two months due tocircumstances beyond his control, such as sudden illness ofthe passenger or a member of his family, or natural calamitiesor disturbed conditions or disruption of the transport or travelarrangements in the country or countries concerned on anyother reasons, which necessitated a change in the travelschedule of the passenger.13. What is Detained Baggage?A passenger may request the Customs to detain his baggageeither for re-export at the time of his departure from India or forclearance subsequently on payment of duty.The detained baggage would be examined and full details willbe inventorised.Such baggage are kept in the custody of the Customs.14. What am I supposed to do in case of MishandledBaggage?In case the baggage has been lost or mishandled by theAirlines, a simplified procedure is in place for clearance ofsuch baggage which allows the passenger to have delivery ofhis baggage at his door step by the Airlines.There is no need to handover the passport or the keys of thebaggage to the airlines. The passenger has to first file a propertyirregularity report (PIR) with the airlines for the missingbaggages. At the same time, he has to file a declarationindicating contents in the missing baggages. The passenger
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  • 13 is required to obtain a certificate to that effect from the airlinesand get it countersigned by Customs indicating specificallythe unutilized portion of the free allowance. This would enablethe passenger to avail the unutilized portion of the duty freeallowance when his baggage is delivered by the airlines. Finally,the passenger is required to submit all these documents withthe concerned airlines for clearance and delivery of goods onhis behalf.The examination of the mishandled baggage would be carriedout in the presence of the passenger.15. What are the norms for Airlines / Vessel Crew members?Crew members are required to submit the correct declarationbefore Custom authorities with respect to the currency goldornaments and electronic goods etc. in their possession onarrival as well as departure.Crew member is allowed to bring items like chocolates,cheese, cosmetics and other petty gift items for their personalor family use upto a value of Rs.1500 only at the returning ofthe aircraft from foreign journey. However, a crew member onfinal pay off or at the termination of his engagement with theAirline shall be eligible for allowances as a common passenger.16. Whether a passenger can import satellite phone?Satellite phone is not permitted to be imported except againsta licence to be issued by the WPC wing of Ministry ofCommunication and Information Technology. OUT GOING PASSENGERS 1. What should you do when you leave India for abroad?All the passengers leaving India are subject to clearance byCustom Authorities. Only bonafide baggage is allowed to becleared by passengers. There is a procedure prescribedwhereby the passengers leaving India can take the exportcertificate for the various high value items such as camera,
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  • 14 video camera, as well as jewellery from the Customs authorities.Such an export certificate facilitate re-importation of suchgoods while bringing back the things to India as no duty ischarged. The advantage of having the Export Certificate is thatthe concessions you are entitled to, when you return, are notaffected. OTHER INFORMATION 1. Export of most species of wild life and articles made from wildflora and fauna, such as ivory, musk, reptile skins, furs,shahtoosh etc. is prohibited.2. Trafficking of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances isprohibited.3. Export of goods purchased against foreign exchange broughtin by foreign passengers are allowed except for prohibitedgoods.4. Carrying of Indian currency notes in the denomination of Rs.500 and Rs. 1000 to Nepal is prohibited.5. Export of Indian Currency is strictly prohibited. HoweverIndian residents when they go abroad are allowed to take withthem Indian currency not exceeding Rs. 7,500.6. To u r i sts while leaving India are allowed to take with them foreigncurrency not exceeding an amount brought in by them at thetime of their arrival in India. As no declaration is required to bemade for bringing in foreign exchange / currency not exceedingequivalent of U.S. $ 10000, generally tourists can take out ofIndia with them at the time of their departure foreign exchange/currency not exceeding the above amount.7. Indian residents going abroad are permitted to take with themforeign currency without any limit so long as the samehas been purchased from an authorized foreign exchangedealer.
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  • 15 PROHIBITED AND RESTRICTED GOODS Certain goods are prohibited (banned) or restricted (subject tocertain conditions) for import and/or export. These are goods ofsocial, health, environment, wild life and security concerns. While itis not possible to list all the goods, more common of these are : PROHIBITED GOODS -Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic substances.-Pornographic material-Counterfeit and pirated goods and good infringing any of thelegally enforceable intellectual property rights.-Antiquities. RESTRICTED GOODS -Firearms and ammunition.-Live birds and animals including pets.-Plants and their produce e.g. fruits, seeds.-Endangered species of plants and animals, whether live ordead.-Any goods for commercial purpose: for profit , gain orcommercial usage.-Radio transmitters not approved for normal usage.-Gold and Silver, o t h er than ornaments (For import only)-Indian and foreign currency in excess of prescribed limits:-foreign currency in excess of US$ 5, 000 in the form of currencynotes or equivalent US$ 10, 000 or equivalent in the form ofcurrency notes, bank notes or travellers cheque is required tobe declared on arrival.
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  • 16 -foreign currency in excess of amount legally obtained or in thecase of tourists in excess of the amount declared on arrival orin excess of the exempted limit of declaration at the time ofdeparture. PENAL PROVISIONS Please note that “non-declaration, misdeclaration and concealmentof imported goods is an offence under the Customs Act which mayresult in confiscation, fine, penalty and even prosecution”.The Indian Customs Act empowers imposition of heavy penalties forthose passengers who:-attempt to walk through the Green Channel with prohibited,restricted or dutiable goods.-misdeclare their goods at the Red Channel-attempt to export prohibited or restricted goods.-abet the commission of any of the above offences.The Penal Provision may lead to:-absolute confiscation of goods, or-imposition of heavy fine in respect of the concerned goods ifthese are released;-imposition of penalty on individual or concerned entities-Arrest and prosecution including invocation of preventivedetention in serious cases.


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