Export Documentation from India: The Complete Checklist

On this page

1. What Documents Do You Need to Export from India?
2. Which Registrations Are Required Before You Ship?
3. What Are the Core Commercial Documents?
4. What Does an Export Documents Checklist Look Like?
5. Which Quality and Plant Health Certificates Are Needed?
6. What Shipping and Customs Documents Are Used?
7. Which Documentation Mistakes Commonly Delay Cargo?
8. How Does Elysium Handle Export Paperwork for Buyers?
9. Frequently asked questions

Export documentation from India falls into four groups: the exporter’s registrations (IEC, GST and an export council RCMC), the commercial documents (invoice, packing list and contract), the quality and plant health certificates (certificate of analysis, phytosanitary certificate and others), and the shipping and customs papers (shipping bill and bill of lading). For agricultural products, a certificate of origin is also issued for most shipments. This checklist explains what each document does, who issues it and when you need it.

What Documents Do You Need to Export from India?

A typical agricultural export from India needs about eight to twelve documents. Some are issued once, when the exporter registers. Others are issued for every shipment. The exact set depends on the product, the destination and the buyer’s contract.

For a buyer, the most important point is simple. The documents must match each other and must match what the importing country requires. A correct certificate with a wrong weight or a missing lot number can hold a container at the port for days. That is why good exporters check the full set before the vessel sails, and send scans to the buyer for approval.

Which Registrations Are Required Before You Ship?

Before an Indian company can export food or agricultural products, it needs these registrations:

• Import Export Code (IEC): a ten-digit code issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT). It is needed for almost every commercial export and has no expiry, though it must be updated each year on the DGFT portal.
• GST registration: needed to claim tax refunds or to export under a Letter of Undertaking (LUT) without paying integrated GST.
• Registration-cum-Membership Certificate (RCMC): issued by the relevant export council. APEDA covers most agricultural and processed foods, and the Spices Board issues a Certificate of Registration as Exporter of Spices (CRES).
• FSSAI licence: a central licence from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India is required for food exporters.
• AD code registration: the exporter’s bank account (Authorised Dealer code) is registered at each port it ships from, so export proceeds can be tracked.

As a buyer, you can check these registrations yourself. The IEC can be looked up on the DGFT portal, the GSTIN on the GST portal and the FSSAI licence on FoSCoS. Our verification page shows how to do this in a few minutes.

What Are the Core Commercial Documents?

Commercial documents describe the sale itself. They are prepared by the exporter and form the basis for customs, banking and insurance.

• Sales contract or proforma invoice: sets the product, grade, quantity, price, Incoterm, payment terms and shipment period.
• Commercial invoice: the final bill for the goods. It shows the buyer, seller, description, HS code, quantity, unit price, total value and Incoterm. Customs uses it to assess duty.
• Packing list: shows how the goods are packed, with the number of bags, net and gross weight, marks and container numbers. It does not usually show prices.

What is the difference between a commercial invoice and a packing list? The invoice is about value: what the goods cost and who pays. The packing list is about physical details: how many packages there are, what they weigh and where they are. Customs and the buyer’s warehouse need both.

What Does an Export Documents Checklist Look Like?

The table lists the documents most often used for agricultural exports from India, who issues them and when they are needed.

Common export documents for Indian agricultural shipments. The exact set depends on product and destination.

Which Quality and Plant Health Certificates Are Needed?

Quality and plant health certificates prove that the goods are safe and free from pests. They are the documents most often checked at the destination border.

• Phytosanitary certificate: issued by the Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine and Storage through its online plant quarantine system, after an inspection. It confirms that the goods meet the importing country’s plant health rules. It follows the format set by the International Plant Protection Convention.
• Certificate of analysis: a lab report for the specific lot, covering moisture, purity and safety tests such as aflatoxin, pesticide residues, ethylene oxide or Salmonella. See our guide to the certificate of analysis.
• Health certificate: required for some products and markets. Indian groundnuts going to the EU need one through APEDA’s Peanut.Net, and the Spices Board issues health certificates for spices where required.
• Fumigation certificate: confirms the cargo or packing was treated against pests, with the fumigant, dose and time.

Is a certificate of origin mandatory for agri exports? Not always by law, but it is requested for most shipments. A non-preferential certificate simply proves Indian origin. A preferential certificate, issued under a trade agreement such as the India-UAE CEPA or the ASEAN-India agreement, can reduce or remove import duty in the buyer’s country. If you want that benefit, tell the exporter before shipment, because the form and issuing agency differ for each agreement.

What Shipping and Customs Documents Are Used?

Shipping and customs documents move the cargo out of India and release it at the destination.

• Shipping bill: the export declaration, filed electronically by the customs broker on ICEGATE. After customs checks, a Let Export Order is issued and the container can be loaded.
• Bill of lading: issued by the shipping line. It is a receipt for the goods, the contract of carriage and, in its original negotiable form, the title document the buyer needs to collect the container.
• Insurance certificate: issued when the seller insures the cargo, as under CIF terms.
• Weight and container documents: such as the verified gross mass (VGM) declaration required for container loading.

The Incoterm decides who arranges some of these documents. Under FOB, the buyer books the freight. Under CFR and CIF, the seller does, and CIF adds insurance. See our guide to FOB vs CIF for agri imports.

Which Documentation Mistakes Commonly Delay Cargo?

Most delays come from small errors that are easy to avoid. These are the most common:

1. Different net or gross weights on the invoice, packing list, bill of lading and certificates.
2. Buyer or consignee names that differ between documents or from the import licence.
3. Product descriptions or HS codes that do not match across documents. Check yours with our HS code finder.
4. A missing lot or container number on the certificate of analysis.
5. The wrong certificate of origin form for the trade agreement.
6. A phytosanitary certificate missing an additional declaration that the importing country requires.
7. Originals sent late, so the container waits at the port and storage charges build up.

The simplest fix is a draft check. Ask the exporter to send drafts of every document before they are finalised, and compare them with your import permit and your bank’s letter of credit terms.

Related reading: FOB vs CIF vs CFR: Incoterms Compared for Importers and Certificate of Origin: Types, Uses and How to Get One in India.

How Does Elysium Handle Export Paperwork for Buyers?

We prepare the full set of export documentation for every shipment and send drafts to you for approval before the originals are issued. Elysium Agri Corporation holds IEC AAKFE8383N, an APEDA RCMC, a Spices Board CRES, an FSSAI Central Licence and GST registration. Scans of each are on our certificates page.

Each shipment can include a certificate of analysis from a NABL-accredited lab, a phytosanitary certificate, a certificate of origin (preferential where a trade agreement applies), a fumigation certificate and a health certificate where required. Our lab testing page lists the tests behind each COA, and the landed cost calculator helps you plan the total cost to your door.

Tell us your product, destination and the documents your customs needs. Request an export quote →

Frequently asked questions