Electrical Appliances Quality Control Order 2026: scope, IS 302 standards, dates and relief

"The electrical appliances QCO" usually means the Safety of Household, Commercial and Similar Electrical Appliances (Quality Control) Order, 2026, issued by DPIIT as S.O. 1739(E) on 6 April 2026 and in force from 1 October 2026^[1]. It is an umbrella order: instead of naming one product, it makes the ISI mark compulsory for almost every household or commercial electrical appliance that was not already regulated^[1].

It sits on top of a set of older, product-specific orders. Irons and room heaters have needed the ISI mark since a 2003 order^[3]; mixer grinders since 2019^[4]; toasters and range hoods since 2024^[5]. Microwave ovens and induction stoves are under a different system altogether, CRS^[6].

This page covers the umbrella order in full and maps the older orders around it, so you can tell which rule your appliance falls under. For the full list of QCO changes, see the QCO tracker.

The scope clause. The order applies to all electrical appliances intended for household, commercial or similar use with a rated voltage of up to 250 V for single-phase appliances and 480 V for other appliances, including DC-supplied and battery-operated appliances^[1].

The exclusion. It does not apply to appliances that fall under any other QCO under the BIS Act, or that are notified for mandatory BIS certification under any other Act^[1].

The list. The table names 90 appliance types^[1]. The 2024 and 2025 versions called their lists "illustrative"; the 2026 version introduces its list with "Following list of electrical appliances is given below"^[1]. Read with the "all electrical appliances" scope clause, an appliance missing from the list is not clearly outside the order. Ask BIS if your product is not named.

How the scope grew. The first, 2024 order covered appliances up to 250 V single-phase or 415 V three-phase AC^[7]. The 2025 order extended it to 480 V and to DC and battery-operated appliances^[2], matching the scope of IS 302 (Part 1):2024^[8].

Grouped for reading; the order lists them as entries 1-90^[1].

None are listed. The 2026 order identifies goods by description and Indian Standard only^[1]. Customs and BIS match a shipment to the order by what the product is, not by its tariff line.

Most appliances in the order sit in a handful of headings. Third-party tariff data, which you should confirm with a broker, put them roughly here:

Because the order does not list HS codes, a product cannot escape it by being declared under a different line. Equally, an HS code alone does not prove a product is covered. Keep a short technical description and the IS 302 Part 2 mapping on file for each product.

IS 302 (Part 1):2024 / IEC 60335-1:2020 is the standard named in the order^[1]. The order's note says the latest version of Indian Standards applies^[1]. See IS 302 (Part 1).

Part 2 standards still matter. BIS's implementation guidelines say that where a matching IS 302 (Part 2) standard exists, a licence is granted only after compliance with Part 1 and the relevant Part 2 clauses; where none exists, on Part 1 plus the IEC standards it refers to^[6]. BIS's mapping includes^[11]:

Product manual. BIS issued a product manual for IS 302 (Part 1):2024; the July 2025 version set a sample quantity of two and grouping rules that keep different product types and supply types in separate series^[12]. A revised manual in February 2026 changed the sample quantity, grouping and inspection scheme^[13].

Which edition of Part 1. IS 302-1:2008 and IS 302 (Part 1):2024 run concurrently until 23 February 2027^[14].

The 2026 order steps aside wherever another order already applies^[1]. BIS's guidelines list the main ones^[6].

The umbrella order was issued three times. Each version superseded the one before, and the start date moved twice.

• Exports. Goods made in India for export are outside the order^[1].
• MSME dates. Small enterprises comply from 1 January 2027 and micro enterprises from 1 April 2027^[1]. These follow MSMED Act definitions, so foreign factories generally do not qualify.
• R&D imports. Up to 200 units a year imported by appliance manufacturers for research, not sold, disposable as scrap, with a year-wise record^[1].
• Declared stock. Goods made or imported before the implementation date by a BIS-certified manufacturer, or one that had applied, can be sold for six months after that date, if declared to BIS^[1].
• Transition Facilitation Order. DPIIT may permit companies incorporated under the Companies Act, 2013 to source under BIS Scheme-II licences after an Implementation Committee assessment^[17][18]. Applications are taken for 24 months, and the order lapses after five years unless extended^[18].
• No bill-of-lading relief. DPIIT's February 2026 import exemption (S.O. 775(E)) does not list this QCO^[19].
• Existing voluntary licences. Manufacturers that held a voluntary BIS licence for an appliance under a Part 2 or product standard could switch to a Part 1 licence for the same scope without new testing^[20].

Yes. The 2026 order came into force on 1 October 2026^[1]. As checked on 1 November 2026, BIS's Scheme-I list shows S.O. 1739(E) and the Transition Facilitation Order as the latest instruments, with no later amendment or suspension, and the order no longer appears on BIS's list of upcoming QCOs^[3].

Two dates are still ahead: 1 January 2027 for small enterprises and 1 April 2027 for micro enterprises^[1]. And the old 2008 edition of IS 302 (Part 1) can be used until 23 February 2027^[14].

The order has been pushed back before. The 2025 version had set 19 March 2026^[2], and the 2026 version replaced it^[1]. Many other QCOs were withdrawn in late 2025, though not this one^[21]. Watch the QCO tracker and new rules 2026.

The licence belongs to the factory. Your job is to make sure it exists, covers your models, and that every unit is marked.

BIS's FAQ lists a Scheme-I application fee of Rs 1,000, inspection at Rs 7,000 per man-day, and after the grant decision an annual licence fee of Rs 1,000 plus the product's minimum marking fee^[22]. Marking fees are notified per Indian Standard as an annual minimum plus unit rates^[29]. For IS 302 (Part 1), BIS's September 2026 list sets the annual minimum marking fee at Rs 2,41,000 for the first appliance and Rs 50,000 for each further appliance at the large-scale rate, Rs 1,93,000 plus Rs 50,000 each at the medium rate, and a unit rate of Rs 1.00 per piece^[30].

Foreign factories pay the same fees plus BIS officers' per diem, travel, visa and insurance, and a Rs 10,000 contingency payment^[31]. After grant they furnish a USD 10,000 Performance Bank Guarantee^[25]. Indian micro and small enterprises get concessions on the minimum marking fee until 31 May 2029^[32].

Worked example. A large foreign factory certifying an electric kettle, a coffee maker and a garment steamer under IS 302 (Part 1) would face a minimum marking fee of Rs 2,41,000 + Rs 50,000 + Rs 50,000 = Rs 3,41,000 a year, on our reading of the first-and-subsequent rule^[30]. Add Rs 1,000 application^[31], Rs 14,000 for a two-day visit at Rs 7,000 per man-day^[31][33], Rs 10,000 contingency and Rs 1,000 licence fee^[31]: about Rs 3,67,000 before testing and travel. The unit rate of Rs 1.00 per piece only matters above 3,41,000 marked units. If the same factory also makes mixer grinders, those sit under the 2018 kitchen order and IS 4250, at Rs 79,000 a year for a large unit^[30]. Try your own mix in the compliance cost estimator.

See BIS ISI licence costs and ISI fees.

The factory files online on Manakonline with an Authorised Indian Representative, a process flow chart, machinery and test-equipment lists, raw-material and component details, product drawings, QC staff papers, test reports and plant layout^[34].

An importer cannot apply on the factory's behalf^[35]. The AIR must be an Indian resident, at least a graduate, with no conflict of interest with testing labs^[36]. All foreign applications go through option-1 with a two-day factory visit and samples drawn^[37][33]. Hard-copy FMCS applications stopped on 31 May 2026^[23]. See ISI documents and the Manakonline guide.

Ask for the CM/L number for each model family and check it before you pay. Every ISI licence number takes the form CM/L- followed by digits^[38], and BIS requires it on the product with the Standard Mark, preferably below it^[39].

BIS's free BIS Care app fetches the licensee's details from a CM/L number^[40]. Check three things against your purchase order:

1. The standard. The licence must name the Indian Standard for your item, for example IS 302 (Part 1) for a kettle under the 2026 order.
2. The factory. A licence covers one product standard at one factory^[22], so a licence held by the supplier's other plant does not count.
3. The varieties. The mark may be used only on the varieties, sizes or grades in the licence's scope^[41].

Our guide on how to verify a BIS licence shows each screen. For older-order products, such as an iron or mixer grinder, the licence will name a different standard; check it against the other-orders table.

Sellers are liable alongside importers, and BIS has targeted e-commerce warehouses. Check licences before you list.

In March 2025 BIS reportedly searched an Amazon seller warehouse in Delhi and seized over 3,500 products, including geysers and food mixers, without ISI marks or with fake ones^[42]. In FY 2024-25 BIS reportedly bought 344 QCO product samples from e-commerce platforms, 142 of them without a valid licence^[43]. BIS's 2026 market surveillance guidelines also let branch offices run drives against any QCO violation in their area^[44].

See compliance for Amazon sellers and the Flipkart listing checklist.

Not by law. Many foreign factories still use one, because the 2026 order brings first-time applicants into Scheme-I with factory visits.

BIS has 36 branch offices and 10 of its own laboratories^[45]. Its list of recognised outside labs had 444 entries on 30 October 2026, all of them in India^[46]. Since December 2025 a manufacturer no longer needs an in-house laboratory; shared, cluster or sub-contracted testing at BIS-recognised or ISO/IEC 17025 accredited labs is allowed^[47].

Consultant pricing varies widely, and published prices rarely say what they include. One consultancy lists an ISI professional fee from Rs 40,000, with testing and marking fees extra^[48]. Start with the BIS consultants directory, with city pages such as Delhi and Mumbai, and the BIS labs directory. Our guide to choosing a BIS consultant lists the red flags. For IS 302 testing, see Delhi NCR labs.

Fees, production and consignee reports, market samples and renewal. Appliance licences are new for many factories in 2026, so the first renewal is where gaps show.

• Market surveillance. BIS generally buys two market samples a year per licence for third-party testing^[44], and may draw them anywhere in the supply chain, including the port of entry^[44].
• Consignee reports. Licensees report month-wise production and consignee details every quarter^[44].
• Renewal. An FMCS renewal needs Form XII, production details with consignee addresses, a bank guarantee extended six months beyond validity and the marking fees; late renewal costs Rs 5,000 extra^[49].
• Automatic expiry. Licences more than 90 days past validity expire automatically on the portal^[50].

Set a reminder with the licence renewal date tool, and see ISI licence renewal for the forms.

The usual failures are a product under the wrong order, a model outside the licence scope, or relief that does not exist for this order.

BIS is the certifying and enforcing authority^[1]. Contraventions are punishable under the BIS Act^[1].

Section 17 of the Act bars making, importing, selling, storing or exhibiting notified goods without the Standard Mark^[51], and "person" includes importers, distributors and sellers^[51]. A first contravention carries a fine of at least Rs 2 lakh and up to two years' imprisonment; later ones at least Rs 5 lakh, up to ten times the value of the goods^[51]. BIS can order recall of non-conforming marked goods^[51], and after grant it runs factory and market surveillance^[52].

BIS officers may also search premises and seize goods they believe breach section 17^[53]. See what happens if you sell without BIS.

Each guide covers BIS, EPR, LMPC and labels for one product. Under the 2026 umbrella order: electric kettles. Under older single-product orders: electric irons and room heaters (2003 order), mixer grinders (2018 kitchen order), water heaters, washing machines, refrigerators and ceiling fans. Under CRS instead: microwave ovens and induction cooktops. Under separate rules: water purifiers. Plugs, sockets and cords on these appliances fall under the electrical accessories QCOs.

Check each appliance against both the 2026 umbrella order and the older single-product orders before you rely on a date. The QCO deadline checker tells you whether an order applies on a given date, the QCO data table lists every order with its standards and dates, and the QCO tracker logs each change newest first. BIS's upcoming list showed 30 product entries pending between 6 November 2026 and 1 May 2027 when we last checked^[54]. To screen a whole catalogue, try the HS code approval finder and the compliance cost estimator. Related reading: the electronics CRS order for appliances under Scheme-II and the LMPC guide for retail packs. If you are unsure whether an item is caught, ask for a free compliance check.