DGFT automates issuance of Free Sale and Trade Certificates to reduce processing time for exporters | Today’s news
New Delhi: The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has automated the issuance of export clearance certificates for unregulated goods, cutting red tape for business owners navigating the national trade bureau.
Under DGFT’s new workflow, routine application for Free Sale and Commerce certificates, will skip manual checking by regional officials. Instead, the system relies on an automated rules-based algorithm to validate and issue business documentation.
The change resolves a long-standing complaint by exporters about unpredictable processing delays at regional trade offices. By moving routine verification to an automated system, officials are trying to speed up compliance shipments while reserving manual review for high-risk or irregular applications.
The move is the latest push by New Delhi to digitize trade infrastructure and increase export competitiveness. However, trade authorities have retained the post-approval safety net, which gives regional officials the power to audit auto-approved certificates based on internal risk indicators.
Requests that require verification or do not meet the parameters prescribed for automated processing may continue to be routed to the appropriate RA for manual processing.
In addition, some applications that are automatically approved may subsequently be flagged by the relevant regional authority for review within the system’s ‘risk management parameters’.
Automation plus manual control
The new framework therefore seeks to combine automated processing for eligible applications with manual review and risk-based review in cases requiring additional verification.
The DGFT said the measure is expected to reduce avoidable manual intervention, improve predictability of processing and facilitate faster issuance of free sale and trade certificates to eligible exporters.
The initiative is also expected to strengthen rules-based paperless processing while maintaining appropriate authentication and oversight of applications that require review.
According to the DGFT, the automated mechanism will make the issuance of free sale and trade certificates “more efficient, transparent and predictable” for exporters and administrations.
The facility of Free Sale and Trade Certificates is governed by Para 2.34 of the Manual of Procedures under which DGFT issues such certificates to exporters for items outside the purview of Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 1940.
The latest change effectively moves eligible FSC applications from previous manual verification to a “system-driven process”, while retaining County Office intervention where applications do not fall within automated processing parameters or are selected for risk-based review.
The move is part of the government’s wider promotion efforts ease of doing business for the exporting community through greater digitization and automation of business processes.
