India’s Commerce Department engages industry stakeholders to shape proposals for the 2027-28 Union Budget, aiming to boost exports, simplify customs, and support manufacturing amidst geopolitical and tariff challenges.
India’s Commerce Department has opened consultations with exporters and industry groups as it prepares proposals for the Union Budget 2027-28, with officials seeking tax, customs and procedural changes at a time of heightened uncertainty in global trade. The discussions come as businesses contend with disruption linked to the West Asia crisis and tariff measures introduced by the United States, which industry figures say are adding pressure to competitiveness and supply chains. According to a source quoted by BusinessLine, exporters are expected to push for measures that would help offset rising compliance costs and preserve export momentum.
The department has asked export promotion councils and trade bodies to submit detailed recommendations backed by data and sector-specific reasoning, rather than broad wish lists. In its communication to stakeholders, it said proposals on GST would not be taken up and warned against resubmitting long-running demands that have already been rejected, unless they are accompanied by evidence of earlier submissions and a clear ranking of priorities. The aim is to focus the exercise on fresh, actionable ideas that can be forwarded to the Finance Ministry.
Industry is expected to press for an extension and widening of export support schemes, especially the interest equalisation scheme, alongside lower customs duties on key raw materials and intermediate goods. Businesses are also likely to seek simpler customs procedures and tax changes intended to support manufacturing and investment. For any request involving duty or indirect tax changes, the department has asked for a full account of current rates, price trends, domestic demand and supply conditions, import and export data and an assessment of the likely impact. Direct tax proposals must include detailed justification and indicate whether legislative changes would be needed.
The consultations follow a Budget 2026-27 package that already signalled a manufacturing-led approach to trade policy. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in February that the government wanted to simplify the tariff system, support domestic manufacturing, improve export competitiveness and correct duty inversion. Measures announced then included higher duty-free import limits for seafood processors, similar relief for shoe upper exporters, a longer export obligation period for leather and textile exporters, and customs exemptions for selected aircraft components, MRO inputs and parts used in microwave oven production.
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