DGFT Clarifies PSIC Requirements for Scrap Imports From Safe Countries

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Dated: 24.10.2026

DGFT Clarifies PSIC Requirements for Scrap Imports From Safe Countries

India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has clarified when imports of metallic waste and scrap can enter without a Pre-Shipment Inspection Certificate (PSIC), including clearance through eligible Inland Container Depots (ICDs).

What has changed

Public Notice No. 35/2026-27, dated 21 October 2026, amends paragraph 2.51(d)(v)(iv) of the Handbook of Procedures, 2023. The amendment makes the PSIC exemption framework more precise for metallic waste and scrap imported from specified “safe countries/regions.”

The core rule remains that imported metallic waste and scrap requires a PSIC issued in the country of origin. However, an exemption is available for both shredded and unshredded scrap when all prescribed conditions are met.

Countries and regions eligible for exemption

The PSIC exemption applies to metallic waste and scrap originating in the following designated safe countries/regions:

United States
United Kingdom
Canada
New Zealand
Australia
European Union

Imports from these locations do not need a PSIC only if they satisfy the documentation, port-entry and trans-shipment conditions set out in the notice.

Conditions for importing without a PSIC

1. Supplier or scrap-yard certification

Each consignment must carry a certificate from the supplier or scrap-yard authority confirming that it contains no radioactive material or explosives.

This requirement is central to the exemption. The certificate must accompany the cargo, rather than being treated as a post-arrival formality.

2. Entry through a designated sea port

The consignment must enter India through one of the following approved sea ports:

Chennai
Tuticorin
Kandla
JNPT
Mumbai
Mundra
Kattupalli
Hazira
Kamarajar
Adani Gangavaram

The notice also requires mandatory radiation and explosive screening through portal monitors and container scanners at the entry port.

3. No trans-shipment benefit

A consignment trans-shipped through one of the designated safe countries or regions cannot claim the PSIC exemption merely because it passed through that location. The exemption is intended for qualifying imports from those designated origins and does not extend to trans-shipment arrangements.

ICD clearance is expressly covered

A significant clarification is that the exemption can also apply where Customs clearance for home consumption takes place at an Inland Container Depot.

For ICD clearance, the import must still have entered through an approved sea port and met every applicable condition at that port, including the supplier/scrap-yard certificate and mandatory safety screening. Evidence that these conditions were fulfilled must be provided at the ICD.

Practical impact for importers

The amendment provides clearer operational guidance for importers, suppliers, freight forwarders and Customs-facing compliance teams. Importers sourcing eligible metallic scrap from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, Australia or the European Union may avoid the PSIC requirement, but only with complete safety certification and compliant routing through a designated port.

For example, a scrap shipment from Canada entering through Mundra may qualify for PSIC exemption if it is accompanied by the required non-radioactive/non-explosive certificate, undergoes the mandatory port checks and is not routed as a trans-shipment claim. If it is later cleared at an ICD, documentary proof of compliance at Mundra must be available there.

Key takeaway

The DGFT has retained PSIC as the default import requirement for metallic waste and scrap while defining a controlled exemption for eligible safe-country imports, including those cleared at ICDs, subject to certified safety, designated-port entry and anti-trans-shipment safeguards.

In case you face any issues related to Indirect Tax-Customs, GST, Foreign Trade Policy (FTP), Arbitration matters and Central Licensing and related advisory matters in India then please feel free to get in touch with SJ EXIM Services.

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Source: DGFT

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