Government expected to extend the import management system for laptops and tablets for three months

• The Indian government is expected to extend the import management system by three months.
• The import management system has been developed by IT hardware such as laptops and tablets.
• The deadline for the review of the scheme is September 30.

The Indian government is expected to extend the current import management system for the import of certain IT hardware such as laptops and tablets for three months ahead of the September 30 deadline.

According to a PTI report, an official source familiar with the matter confirmed that the import management system will be extended.

According to the official, these imports stood at $8.4 billion in 2023-24 against the authorisation of about $9.5 billion. The official also added that most of these imports were from China.

In October 2023, the government had rolled out an import management/ authorisation for imports of laptops, personal computers and certain other IT hardware products. The system is aimed at monitoring inbound shipments of these items into the country without hurting market supply.

“The current system, which the government calls the Inventory Management System, essentially a registration programme, expires on September 30. We don't know what's going to happen after that, because even trusted companies are required to register their products and get import permissions. There's a real risk that if this programme isn’t reinstated, all of these products are going to be cut off,” said Jason Oxman, President, Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) earlier this month.

On November 1, 2023, the government cleared over 100 applications, including those of Apple, Dell and Lenovo, which sought permission for imports of these IT hardware products worth nearly USD 10 billion, on the first day of implementation of the new system.

"A formal request is coming for an extension of the existing system. With a three month extension, this whole year will be covered. So this current year, I do not see any disruption," the official said.

The new licence regime applies to laptops, personal computers, microcomputers, large or mainframe computers, and certain data processing machines.

With inputs from PTI.

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