Budget 2015: Rules for Electronic Goods Import May Be Eased

New Delhi: The government is mulling relaxing criteria for imports of electronic items such as microwave oven, laptop, mobile phone and TV by allowing brand owners register the products with authorities concerned.

The proposed change in rules will benefit most of the Indian mobile brands and multinational companies who don't have a manufacturing base in the country and, hence, import their brands.

At present, it is mandatory to register around 30 categories of electronic products under 'Electronics and IT Goods (Requirement for Compulsory Registration) Order, 2012' and the same can be done by product manufacturers only.

"Industry has been asking that in many cases since the product design and quality assurance of product is controlled by the brand owners and since brand owners were willing to take the liability under compulsory registration scheme (CRS) in most such cases," an official note of the Department of Electronics and IT (DEITY) said.

This CRS is aimed at providing safe, secure and quality product to India consumers while checking influx of sub-standard imports. Government also intends to promote manufacturing eco-system in country through this order.

"A draft criteria for registration by brand owners under 'Compulsory Registration Order' has been evolved," the note said.

Brands which are registered in India and have had minimum turnover of Rs 50 crore for the last two successive years can register products they sell under the proposed rule.