Cabinet approves scheme for refund of duties, taxes on exported products

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Friday approved the Scheme for Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) under which a mechanism will be created for reimbursement of taxes, duties and levies which are currently not being refunded under any other mechanism but incurred for exported products.

The scheme is going to give a boost to the domestic industry and Indian exports providing a level playing field for Indian producers in the international market so that domestic taxes and duties are not exported, said Union Minister Piyush Goyal.

At present, Goods and Services Tax (GST) along with import and customs duties for inputs required to manufacture exported products are either exempted or refunded.

However, certain taxes, duties and levies are outside GST and are not refunded for exports like the value-added tax on fuel used in transportation, mandi tax and duty on electricity used during manufacturing.

"These will be covered for reimbursement under the RoDTEP Scheme," said Goyal while briefing reporters after the CCEA meeting.

Under the scheme, an inter-ministerial committee will determine the rates and items for which the reimbursement of taxes and duties will be provided.

In line with Digital India, refund under the scheme in the form of transferable duty credit or electronic scrip will be issued to the exporters which will be maintained in an electronic ledger.

The scheme will be implemented with end-to-end digitisation.

"The refunds under the RoDTEP scheme will be a step towards zero-rating of exports along with refunds such as drawback and IGST. This will lead to the cost competitiveness of exported products in international markets and better employment opportunities in export-oriented manufacturing industries," said Goyal.

The rebate will be claimed as a percentage of the freight-on-board (FOB) value of exports.

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