India Opens Tariff-Rate Quota Applications for UK Car Imports Under CETA
The government began accepting applications for a tariff-rate quota (TRQ) allowing concessional-duty import of vehicles from the United Kingdom under the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)
The first phase covers 9,316 passenger vehicles for the current calendar year
Applications are being accepted over a defined window, from July 21 to August 4
Only Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), authorised dealers and channel partners of UK vehicle manufacturers are eligible to apply
The scheme is administered by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT)
India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)
CETA is a bilateral free trade agreement between India and the United Kingdom, covering goods, services, investment and related provisions. It is described as India's most comprehensive trade agreement with a G7 economy and the UK's most significant bilateral trade agreement since leaving the European Union.
The car import quota application window is the first operational step in implementing CETA's automobile tariff concessions, translating the treaty's negotiated commitments into an actual import mechanism.
Tariff-Rate Quota (TRQ) Mechanism
A tariff-rate quota is a two-tier trade policy tool that allows a specified quantity of a good to be imported at a lower (concessional) tariff, while imports beyond that quantity attract the normal, higher tariff. It lets a country liberalise trade gradually while protecting domestic industry from an unlimited surge in imports.
The DGFT's application window operationalises the TRQ for UK vehicles — importers must secure an allocation within the 9,316-unit cap to access the concessional 10% duty rather than the standard, much higher import duty on completely built-up cars.
Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT)
The DGFT is the government body under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry responsible for implementing India's Foreign Trade Policy, including issuing import-export licences, allocating tariff-rate quotas, and administering trade agreement-related schemes.
DGFT is the implementing authority inviting and processing the vehicle import applications, making it the institutional link between the CETA treaty text and importers on the ground.
- India-UK CETA signed: 24 July 2025, London; entered into force: 15 July 2026
- First-phase vehicle import quota: 9,316 passenger vehicles for the current calendar year
- Application window: July 21 to August 4
- Tariff on UK-origin vehicles under quota: reduced from about 110% to 10%
- Total vehicle quota over the agreement period: up to 3.78 lakh conventional passenger and goods vehicles from the UK
- UK tariff elimination on entry into force: duty-free access for 99% of Indian tariff lines