Customs Duty Update – Foreign Ecommerce Purchases Will Now Attract 41.49% Duty, Books Included In Tax Net
Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has made some sweeping changes in the customs duty framework, for imported items. If you are a shopper who uses foreign online shopping portals such as AliExpress, ThinkGeek and others, then be prepared to shell out more customs duty.
The changes have been implemented by amending the Customs Tariff Act, 1975.
From now on, Customs Duty on Personal Items imported via any medium, including e-commerce portals, have been increased to 41.492%, which is an increase of 8-12%, compared to last rate slabs.
As per a 2015 amendment, the maximum slab of customs duty, 28.8% was applicable on products such as car parts, electronic appliances such as TV, music systems, video games, mobile phones, phone accessory, digital cameras, cosmetic goods, apparels, and food supplements.
As per the new notification by CBEC, the slab of customer duty on personal goods has been now increased to 41.492%.
Note here, that the new customs duty would be applicable for only those purchases which are more than Rs 2000. For less than Rs 2000 purchases, 14.7% customs duty would be implemented.
For purchases which are more than Rs 50,000 but less than Rs 2000, there would be customs duty of 41.492% and only after adjudication for policy violation under CTH 9804.
New Custom Duty Payable
| Personal Use Goods Value | Customs Duty Payable (all inclusive) |
| Rs 0 – Rs 2,000 | 14.712% |
| Above Rs 2000 – Rs 50,000 | 41.492% |
| Above Rs 50,000 | 41.492% and only after adjudication for policy violation under CTH 9804 |
Those who are actively shopping for cheap products on sites like AliExpress, eBay (US); or shopping electronic appliances and gadgets from ThinkGeek and Amazon (US) will feel the difference of this increased customs duty.
Another major change in the new custom policy is the inclusion of books into the tax net.
Earlier, there used to be no customs duty on educational books, which has now been stopped. This decision will severely impact medical and engineering students, who are required to purchase lots of imported books, via foreign online shopping portals.
We will keep you updated as we receive more information in this regard.
fake details, fake article …
Please correct this line. There are other small errors as well, in this article.
“For purchases which are more than Rs 50,000 but less than Rs 2000, there would be customs duty of 41.492% and only after adjudication for policy violation under CTH 9804.”
Swap the figures of 50k and 2k in case you still dont get it.
I have ordered a few items through Aliexpress. 2 in 10 items never arrive. There is no information if the items are stuck with custom or lost in transit. Products arrive in 50-60 days. Sometimes the product is lost in China itself while in transit. Packaging of all items are torn and checked by Indian custom department. Some items arrive damaged in transit. All items arrive through India Post if cheap shipping is selected. I have ordered only products that cost less than 2-3 dollars. There was no custom duty charge on any item perhaps because of low value items. I do not know if this new rule changes that. I ordered only those items (electronic parts) that cannot be found on Indian ecom websites. Aliexpress looks the ultimate in ecom website with wide variety and cheaper prices. However, some products cost same or even lower on Indian ecom websites. In some cases, after comparison, I preferred Indian sites because there was not much price difference and the product arrives in a week.