Export incentive schemes will be available for postal shipments from January 15: CBIC

New Delhi: The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) on Friday said export incentive schemes like duty drawback, RoDTEP, and RoSCTL will now be available to postal shipments.

The incentives are expected to significantly enhance the competitiveness of MSME exporters, especially from smaller towns and remote areas, and give a major fillip to postal exports, the finance ministry said in a statement.

“The CBIC has extended export-related benefits under the Duty Drawback, Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) and Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) schemes to exports made through the postal mode in electronic form, with effect from 15th January 2026,” it said.

EY India Tax Partner Saurabh Agarwal said that by extending RoDTEP and RoSCTL benefits to the postal route, the government has dismantled a long-standing compliance barrier for MSMEs in remote clusters.

“As we approach the Union Budget 2026, this reform signals a strong commitment to ‘Ease of Doing Business’ by turning post offices into a potential gateway for global commerce, ensuring India’s ‘Viksit Bharat’ journey is inclusive and digitally driven,” Agarwal said.

The finance ministry said this measure aims to provide a level-playing field for exporters using the postal channel and to create a conducive and inclusive ecosystem for the growth of cross-border e-commerce.

To operationalise these benefits, CBIC has approved amendments to the Postal Export (Electronic Declaration and Processing) Regulations, 2022, enabling exporters to claim Duty Drawback, RoDTEP, and RoSCTL benefits for goods exported through the postal route.

India currently has 28 Foreign Post Offices (FPOs) notified under Section 7 of the Customs Act, 1962. CBIC has undertaken several measures to strengthen cross-border trade through the postal and courier modes.

The Postal Export (Electronic Declaration and Processing) Regulations, 2022, enable end-to-end electronic processing of export declarations for postal exports.

Further, the Postal Import Regulations, 2025, were notified to facilitate the electronic processing of postal imports. Automation of IGST refunds for postal exports was

implemented in September 2024.