India has extended key export-support schemes amidst ongoing disruptions in West Asia, aiming to shield businesses from rising costs and logistical uncertainties, with measures now lasting into late 2026.
India has extended two export-support measures as officials seek to shield businesses from the effects of continued disruption in West Asia and wider logistics uncertainty. The Commerce Ministry said on Friday that it had pushed back deadlines for the RELIEF scheme and the Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products, or RoDTEP, as exporters contend with higher freight charges, elevated insurance costs and shipping risk linked to the region’s instability.
The extension to RELIEF applies to Component II of the Resilience & Logistics Intervention for Export Facilitation, a time-limited part of the Export Promotion Mission. According to the ministry, the component is designed to encourage exporters to take out coverage from the Export Credit Guarantee Corporation for shipments to specified regions, with 95% risk cover. It applies to standalone policies and whole turnover policies taken out on or after 16 March 2026, and covers full container load, less-than-container load and reefer cargo, while excluding energy shipments. The government said premiums for eligible shipments will not rise above pre-disruption levels during the covered period.
The RELIEF package was first unveiled on 19 March with a budget of ₹497 crore to help exporters absorb the shock of maritime disruption, rising insurance premia and war-related shipping risks across the Gulf and the wider West Asia corridor. Business Standard reported at the time that the plan was structured around three strands, aimed at insured exporters, upcoming shipments to the Gulf and non-ECGC MSME exporters. Officials now say the extension is intended to keep trade flows moving and support export resilience while geopolitical and logistics conditions remain unsettled.
Separately, the government has extended RoDTEP until 31 December. The scheme will remain available to domestic tariff area units, advance authorisation holders, special economic zone units and export-oriented units. RoDTEP reimburses embedded duties, taxes and levies that are not otherwise refunded on exported goods, including earlier-stage indirect taxes. The ministry said the existing rates and value caps notified on 30 September will stay unchanged, a move that follows an earlier extension reported in April and is meant to preserve certainty for exporters facing persistent cost pressure.
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