New Delhi: Apple, HP, Lenovo, Dell and other IT hardware companies will get a one-year window to freely import laptops, PCs, servers and other IT hardware products under a new import management system that takes effect on 1 November. MeITy apparently has already conveyed this to these companies at a meeting regarding the import management system . This flexibility is intended to allow companies to develop local manufacturing capabilities. Accordingly, the government will begin imposing restrictions, starting November 2024, reducing the percentage of imports permitted each year.
Registrations under the import management system will begin from 1 November, though the import restrictions will begin a year later. There will be a sunset clause included in the restrictions, which will be 2030, after which it will be reviewed. Imports will be meanwhile curtailed in a staggered manner. After November 2024, import quantities will be determined based on factors including the amounts imported in the previous year, products manufactured locally in the previous year and quantities exported from India in the previous year.
The industry has suggested that FY23 should not be kept as the base year for determining the import quantities since it has been a low-performance year for most companies in the IT hardware space. Most companies were keen on beginning local production by 2025, with a few likely to begin next year. This aligns with thePLI) scheme for IT hardware —laptops, tablets, all-in-one personal computers, servers and ultra-small form factor devices—offering eligible companies incentives worth ₹17,000 crore over six years.
Companies will choose between FY24 and FY25 to begin availing of incentives under the scheme. The government expects to draw investments of ₹5,000 crore, generating 75,000 direct jobs and incremental production worth ₹4.7 trillion. The government has assured that there will not be any supply chain disruptions, which will also help in ensuring that companies wanting to build their local manufacturing capacities face any hiccups.
India plans to introduce the import management system to permit the import of laptops, servers and other IT hardware products from trusted jurisdictions. Imports from non-trusted jurisdictions will be limited to a certain number of units.
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