The companies will have to seek fresh approvals to import laptops and tablets starting from January 1, as per an announcement by the Indian government on Tuesday.
Further, the government is planning to issue these guidelines shortly.
Need Of New Approvals For Laptop Imports
As per an earlier development, India has launched an “import management system” during November 2023.
In order to utilize this system, they required companies to register with the government the quantity and value of their laptop and tablet imports.
Basically, this data would further be utilized for monitoring the imports, as per information provided by the government.
Earlier this system which was due to expire this month, now it has been extended until year-end.
Moving ahead, a government notification which was issued on Tuesday states that ” the importers would be required to apply for fresh authorisations for the period from 01.01.2025 subject to detailed guidance to be provided shortly.”
How Did This Happen?
The country has announced the new system for laptops, tablets, personal computers and servers after it rolled back an earlier plan to impose a licensing regime, requiring the likes of Apple , Dell and HP to obtain licenses for shipments of imported laptops and tablets.
It appears that the laptop licensing policy was reversed after facing criticism from industry and Washington.
The Indian government appears to have reversed the laptop licensing policy during March after lobbying by US officials who remained concerned about New Delhi’s compliance with WTO obligations and new rules it may issue.
The Government’s original move to introduce a licensing regime for import of laptops and personal computers last year was aimed squarely at discouraging imports from China.
It holds a great significance as China commands a lion’s share in the supply of these devices to India.
China’s share in overall laptop imports became more prominent since the government rolled back the policy temporarily last October, amid severe pushback from the industry.
The former Indian Trade Service officer and head of economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), Ajay Srivastava noted, “India’s repeated delay in implementing laptop import restrictions, likely influenced by US concerns, needs to end. It’s time for India to enforce these measures and boost local production. Such restrictions would push American tech giants like Apple, Dell, and HP, which manufacture in China, to set up operations in India.”
