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India Opens First Car Import Quotas Under IndiaUK Trade Pact

The DGFT has begun a limited application round to allocate 2026 tariff‑rate quotas that start a 15‑year duty phase‑down for UK‑made vehicles.

Overview

  • The Directorate General of Foreign Trade opened a timed application window running from July 21 to August 4, 2026 for the first‑round TRQ allocations for calendar year 2026.
  • The first phase makes 9,316 passenger‑car units available and divides that amount by engine size with stepped duty cuts for each band.
  • Cars up to 1,500 cc and mid‑size petrol/diesel categories each have 2,329 units and will face a 50% basic customs duty down from 66%, while high‑end petrol over 3,000 cc and larger diesel models have 4,658 units and will face 30% duty down from about 110%.
  • The goods‑vehicle first‑round TRQ is 1,164 completely built units of a planned 2,500 for year one and those imports will attract 37% duty instead of 44%.
  • Only OEMs, authorised dealers or channel partners may apply and each applicant must submit a pre‑purchase agreement from the UK OEM; the allocations operationalise CETA’s staged, administratively managed opening that could affect import volumes, dealer sourcing and retail prices.