New import compliance rules in 2026: every change, dated

Newest first. Date is the date of the notification or order, or the date a rule took effect where that is the event. Status is as of 30 October 2026. Where a fact comes from a news or consultant report rather than an official document, the row says so. Raw-material QCOs (chemicals, polymers, metals, steel) are included because they affect anyone importing those inputs.

These rules have been notified but their start date has not arrived. Dates can move: several in this list have already been deferred at least once. Check the source again before you ship. For a month-by-month view of every deadline, see the compliance calendar; to check one product against its QCO dates, use the QCO deadline checker.

Aluminium beverage cans. S.O. 219(E) of 15 January 2026 sets 1 October 2026 as the general implementation date for aluminium beverage cans (IS 14407:2023)^[17]. BIS's upcoming-QCO list of 30 October 2026 shows 1 April 2027^[10]. The notification deferring the cans has not been located. Until it is, the gazette date (1 October 2026) is the only date in an official legal text; BIS's list suggests enforcement is not yet happening. Our overall status reading for cookware is therefore marked as likely, not verified^[15].

TV sets and IS 18112. The CRS portal's product list still shows 26 July 2026^[62]. MeitY S.O. 4182(E) of 26 July 2026 moved the date to 26 January 2027^[7], and a BIS circular of 31 July 2026 confirms it^[71]. The gazette notification governs; nothing is missing here, but the portal list is out of date.

Glass screen protectors. BIS's own record of the October 2026 guidelines says the MeitY notification number and enforcement date were not found, and the category is not yet on the CRS portal list^[14]. Our gazette research has found it: S.O. 5190(E) of 21 September 2026, effective 1 April 2027^[18].

Old CRS standards on the portal list. The portal list still names IS 13252 (Part 1):2010 and IS 616:2017 for categories that S.O. 4997(E) moved to IS/IEC 62368-1:2023^[62][1]. Both are valid until 1 November 2028^[2].

Stainless steel exemption of 27 April 2026. Its existence is confirmed by a later steel ministry order^[34], but the order itself has not been opened. The B/L cutoff of 26 October 2026 comes only from trade press^[35].

BIS fee concessions of 17 March 2026. Our BIS research verified the gazette notification setting Scheme-I minimum marking fee concessions until 31 May 2029^[47]. Our QCO research had recorded the same date only from consultancy reports^[72]. The verified gazette record is the one to rely on.

Furniture QCO micro and small enterprise relief. As notified, the order did not apply to micro and small enterprises until 18 months after publication^[73]. No extension notification has been found, so on its terms the relief appears to have lapsed around August 2026. That is our reading of the dates, not an official statement^[15].

MeitY's S.O. 4997(E), dated 29 October 2025 and published in the Gazette on 4 November 2025, replaced the two older safety standards used for many CRS electronics, IS 13252 (Part 1):2010 and IS 616:2017, with IS/IEC 62368 (Part 1):2023^[1]. The old standards may run alongside until 1 November 2028 and then stand withdrawn^[2].

The same notification added extended reality products at S. No. 65, with the old standards allowed only until 1 May 2026^[2]. BIS issued migration guidelines in March 2026 and FAQs in July 2026; we have seen their titles, not their contents^[22].

Who it hits: makers and importers of laptops, phones, power banks, earphones, speakers, TVs and other IT and audio-video products listed against those standards^[62]. See IS 13252 (Part 1) and IS 616.

The 2021 CRS order has now been amended 14 times^[3]. The changes in this period:

• Extended reality devices joined CRS through S.O. 4997(E)^[2], with an implementation date of 5 December 2025 per the portal list^[62].
• Standalone hard disk drives. S.O. 2204(E) widened the entry from USB external drives to all standalone drives from 5 November 2026^[32]; S.O. 5689(E) then moved that to 1 May 2027^[8].
• Glass screen protectors become category 66 from 1 April 2027^[18].
• TV sets must also meet IS 18112 from 26 January 2027, after several deferrals^[7].
• Highly Specialized Equipment made or imported in fewer than 100 units per model per year can be exempted on a specific MeitY exemption, from 15 June 2026^[24].
• LED lamps and luminaires. BIS first set 2 August 2026 as the last date for the old IS 16102 (Part 1):2012 edition^[53], then moved the last date for the revised IS 16102 (Part 1):2026 to 2 February 2027^[20]. Concurrent running of the revised IS 10322 Part 5 luminaire standards also ends on 2 February 2027^[21]. See LED bulbs and LED luminaires.
• Smart glasses and wearables were sorted into existing categories by BIS guidance^[19].

As of October 2026, BIS's status is that the CRS order is in force, with TVs, screen protectors and standalone HDDs pending^[10]. See BIS CRS.

Conformity Assessment Amendment Regulations, 2026. Notified on 25 February 2026 with a corrigendum on 28 April 2026^[33]. BIS's circular of May 2026 says a CRS licence is now granted for five years and renewed for five, with fees paid annually in advance^[6]. Under the original 2018 scheme a CRS licence ran for two years at first grant^[74], so a licence granted now runs more than twice as long before renewal. The licence renewal date calculator works out the new expiry, and the CRS fee calculator totals the annual fees. If the annual fee and production details are not received on time, the suspension and cancellation provisions apply^[31].

What is reported, not verified. Consultants report that the CRS processing fee became Rs 25,000 a year payable in advance^[75], and that a missed annual fee leads to 90 days' suspension, revocable with a Rs 5,000 late fee^[75]. The full gazette text has not been located, so treat these figures as unconfirmed by us.

Fee concessions. From 17 March 2026 to 31 May 2029, Scheme-I minimum marking fee concessions are 80% for micro enterprises, 50% for small, 80% for start-ups, and an extra 10% for women-entrepreneur enterprises^[47].

FMCS goes online-only. From 1 June 2026, BIS accepts foreign manufacturer applications only through Manakonline^[30]. See BIS FMCS and CRS renewal.

From July 2025 a large number of raw-material QCOs were withdrawn or rescinded. The biggest single step came on 12 November 2025, when the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals rescinded 14 QCOs with immediate effect, covering polyester yarns and fibres, polyethylene, polypropylene, PVC, ABS, EVA, polyurethanes and polycarbonate among others^[4]. Metals QCOs for aluminium, copper, nickel, lead, zinc and tin followed on 13 November 2025^[15].

The gazette orders give only the public interest as the reason. Business Standard reported that the withdrawals followed recommendations of a high-level committee headed by NITI Aayog member Rajiv Gauba; that is a news report, not an official statement^[76].

Steel took a different route: rather than rescinding, the Ministry of Steel made entries inoperative. S.O. 5134(E) suspended 42 entries for three years and 13 for one year^[63], and S.O. 3300(E) suspended more in June 2026^[23].

No official count. BIS's Scheme-I table numbers QCOs up to 136, but that list includes withdrawn orders and is not a count of QCOs in force^[15].

On 12 February 2026 DPIIT issued three general relief orders:

• S.O. 775(E): goods shipped before a QCO's implementation date (per the bill of lading), with the bill of entry filed within 180 days, are exempt for 26 already-implemented QCOs, including both footwear orders, hinges and electrical appliances; documents go to BIS within 7 days of clearance^[5].
• S.O. 776(E): the same 26 QCOs exempt goods where the purchase order predates implementation and the bill of lading and bill of entry fall within 180 days^[55].
• S.O. 777(E): a common Udyam threshold (plant and machinery up to Rs 1 crore, turnover up to Rs 5 crore) in eight QCOs, including ceiling fans, air coolers and furniture^[56].

Transition Facilitation Order. On 25 June 2026 DPIIT issued S.O. 3417(E). It lets DPIIT permit companies, after assessment by an Implementation Committee, to source goods under 10 scheduled QCOs (including toys, footwear, furniture and electrical appliances) through BIS Scheme-II licences^[16]. Applications are accepted for 24 months, the order lapses after 5 years unless extended, and DPIIT is to issue detailed guidelines^[16]. We have not located those guidelines.

• Cookware. S.O. 3850(E) of 21 August 2025 replaced the 2024 order^[67]. S.O. 219(E) then re-set aluminium utensil and can dates^[17], and S.O. 1661(E) moved stainless steel utensils, sinks and three-piece cans to the Ministry of Steel^[46]. See cookware QCO.
• Furniture. In force from 13 February 2026^[16], with an R&D import exemption of 200 units a year^[57] and 180-day transition relief^[50]. See furniture QCO.
• Footwear. Old stock may now be sold until 31 July 2027^[27]. See footwear QCO.
• Electrical appliances. A new QCO, S.O. 1739(E), applies from 1 October 2026^[16]. Our research has not reviewed its scope.

Battery annual returns. MoEFCC has again extended the annual return deadline. FY 2024-25 returns were due by 30 September 2025^[69], and FY 2025-26 returns are due by 30 November 2026^[9]. The rules let the government relax filing timelines by up to nine months^[77]. See battery EPR and EPR annual returns.

Battery EPR number marking. This deadline was before this period but still trips up importers. Producers had to mark batteries with their EPR registration number by 31 March 2025^[77]. Importers can mark it on the equipment or its packaging^[78], or use a barcode or QR code after informing CPCB^[79].

Plastic packaging barcode or QR code. From 1 July 2025, a PIBO may give the rule 11 label information by barcode or QR code on the packaging, in a product brochure, or by printing a unique number issued under any law. This is an option, not a requirement, and PIBOs must tell CPCB which method they use^[70]. See plastic EPR.

Plastic enforcement. CPCB issued directions to plastic raw-material manufacturers on 4 July 2025^[48] and revised show-cause notices for FY 2022-23 on 11 March 2026^[48]. By 25 June 2026, 62,175 PIBOs were registered, 52,935 of them importers^[48].

FY 2026-27 targets (from 1 April 2026). E-waste recycling targets stay at 70% for 2026-27^[40]. Plastic minimum recycling rises to 70% of the target for Category I and 50% for Categories II and III^[41], and mandatory recycled content becomes 40% for Category I, 10% for Category II and 5% for Category III^[41]. Portable batteries other than consumer-electronics rechargeables move to 60% of 2023-24 placement^[42].

Not verified. Our research did not find any e-waste rule amendment or plastic return extension dated in this period; if one exists, it is not on this page yet.

Three things: LMPC registration no longer expires, the registration form asks for more, and the penalties for wrong labels were rewritten. From 29 May 2026, rule 27(5) says an LMPC registration certificate stays valid until cancelled^[11].

The same Third Amendment Rules, G.S.R. 418(E) of 29 May 2026^[11], made three more changes that matter to importers:

• Responsible director. A company's application must name the director responsible for violations under the Act and rules^[11].
• Annual update. A company or firm must update its details on the online portal every year, including address, products, the numbers imported in the previous year and country of origin^[11].
• Labelling in bonded warehouses. Importers may complete the mandatory declarations in bonded warehouses of AEO Tier-2 and Tier-3 operators, as long as every retail pack carries them before it leaves^[11].

Penalties. The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2026 replaced the old fines with a ladder that starts with an improvement notice. For a pre-packaged commodity whose package does not carry the required declarations, a first offence now gets an improvement notice, a second a penalty of up to Rs 5 lakh, and later offences a fine of Rs 25-50 lakh; the section expressly covers importers and e-commerce platforms^[38]. Ignoring an improvement notice can lead to suspension or revocation of the registration after a hearing^[38]. Offences can be compounded before or after prosecution^[38], and fines rise by 10% of the minimum every three years^[38]. These amendments were reportedly brought into force from 1 May 2026^[39].

Coming next. The e-commerce country-of-origin filter for imported products is reported to start on 1 July 2027 after G.S.R. 312(E) replaced the original 1 July 2026 date^[36][54]. We read this in secondary form, so treat the date as likely.

See LMPC registration, the importer registration guide, label rules and the cost of LMPC registration.

BIS issued new market surveillance guidelines for ISI-mark (Scheme-I) licences on 25 February 2026, run by a Certification, Surveillance and Monitoring Department at BIS headquarters^[51]. Generally two samples a year are bought from the market for each licence, rising to three or four depending on the maker's record over the previous two years^[51].

What importers should note:

• Samples can come from the port. Samples are normally bought in the open market but may be taken from organised buyers or any point in the supply chain, including the port of entry^[51].
• Consignee reporting. Licensees must file month-wise production and consignee details on the portal every quarter^[51].
• A failure means closer watching. After a first non-conformity the licence moves to enhanced surveillance every three months until consecutive samples conform^[52].
• QCO violations. BIS branch offices may also run surveillance in their areas for any breach of the BIS Act or a QCO^[51].

These guidelines are for ISI-mark licences. Electronics under CRS follow MeitY's separate surveillance process, run with STPI, which is explained on the CRS surveillance page. For what happens when goods fail, read selling without BIS: what happens and ISI licence renewal.

From CBIC Circular 06/2026-Customs of 1 February 2026, every importer can get out of charge without manual intervention, provided the duty or cess is paid and no compliance requirement or alert is outstanding in the system^[12]. Before that, automated out of charge was limited to AEO Tier 2 and Tier 3 importers, from 1 January 2025^[82].

Two limits matter for regulated goods. First, a pending compliance requirement, such as a BIS, WPC or EPR condition flagged against the bill of entry, blocks the automatic route. Second, a customs officer can still put a HOLD on a consignment on the basis of intelligence^[58]. The same circular brought Auto Goods Registration on arrival for AEO entities, approved Eligible Manufacturer Importers, importers with a longstanding supply chain and Direct Port Delivery users^[58].

See out of charge, customs clearance documents, ICEGATE and why shipments get held at Indian ports.

Start from the product, not the notification. Most changes on this page touch one standard, one QCO or one approval, so match your goods to those first and then read only the rows that apply. If you would rather have someone check, ask for a free compliance check.