DGFT clears 642 UK cars for import under India-UK FTA quota

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has approved applications from seven companies to import 642 cars from the UK for the remainder of this year, under the tariff rate quota (TRQ) provisions of the India-UK free trade agreement, an official said on Wednesday.

“The Directorate had received applications from eight companies. We have approved applications of seven. Quota has been approved for 642 cars,” the official said. DGFT had invited applications in July for allocation of the 2026 import quota for fully-built passenger cars and goods vehicles under the pact’s duty concession provisions.

The window was for a quota of about 5,000 units — meaning uptake in this first round has come in well below the ceiling. Only original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), dealers, and channel partners duly authorised by UK OEMs were eligible to apply for the TRQ.

Under the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which took effect on July 15, New Delhi has agreed to allow import of a total of 3.78 lakh units of conventional-engine passenger cars — including mass-segment models — from the UK at concessional customs duty over the first 15 years of the pact’s implementation.

Govt invites applications for car imports under India-UK trade agreement Tariffs on automotive imports will fall from around 110 per cent to 10 per cent under the arrangement, with quotas applying on both sides. Duties on standard petrol and diesel cars will drop initially to a range of 30–50 per cent, before falling to 10 per cent by the fifth year.

Annual caps under the TRQ mechanism start at 20,000 units in the first year and rise to 37,000 units by year five, within the overall 15-year ceiling of 3.78 lakh vehicles. The automobile sector was among the most contentious in the CETA negotiations, alongside dairy and agriculture, given domestic industry’s longstanding protection.

The phased, quota-linked duty cuts were designed to give Indian manufacturers time to adjust while offering British carmakers calibrated market access — a structure that could also serve as a template in India’s ongoing trade talks with other partners, including the US and EU.