Even as India and the United States inch closer toward a broader trade understanding after years of uneven progress, a quieter but more persistent challenge continues to plague Indian exporters: non-tariff barriers (NTBs). These regulatory and procedural hurdles — ranging from labelling and testing norms to mismatched standards — are emerging as key obstacles to India’s export ambitions in the American market.
India plans targeted sectoral push at unfettering through multilateral trade bodies such at WTO
With bilateral trade talks resuming and both governments signalling intent to reduce friction, India’s Commerce Ministry is now turning its focus to these behind-the-border barriers. In coordination with export promotion councils, the Ministry is compiling a detailed dossier of sector-specific NTBs, aiming to raise them at both bilateral and multilateral forums such as the WTO.
According to a senior commerce department official, “Tariff negotiations dominate headlines, but the real drag on exporters are these unseen and ever-shifting regulatory hurdles. We are systematically documenting them to ensure they are addressed in upcoming trade engagements.”
Leading the charge is the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), which reports that compliance with NTBs often eats into 10–15 per cent of an exporter’s revenue—especially for small and medium enterprises. In apparel, for instance, Indian exporters face a battery of US regulations on quality, labelling, and sustainability.
“Each rule may seem manageable,” said an AEPC (Apparel Export Promotion Council) official, “but together, they force redesigns and repeated testing, adding layers of cost and uncertainty.”
Since 2019, India’s textile and apparel exporters have faced over 130 NTB-related notifications globally—four from the US alone—covering everything from cotton traceability to chemical residue limits.
The Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) has flagged hurdles like pre-shipment inspections, slow customs clearance, and technical certification norms that don’t align with Indian standards. Progress on Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs), which would enable Indian certifications to be accepted in the US, has been slow.
Pharmaceutical exporters, represented by Pharmexcil, face additional complexity. They cite issues such as data exclusivity demands, patent linkage, and shifting US FDA site inspection norms as barriers to predictability and access.
Meanwhile, agricultural and processed food exports—managed by APEDA—are bogged down by sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures. Inconsistent chemical residue thresholds, labelling disputes, and protracted product registration timelines have led to entire consignments being delayed or rejected, particularly for basmati rice and mango pulp.
Encouragingly, the Commerce Ministry has taken a coordinated approach, seeking inputs from over a dozen export councils to draft a comprehensive NTB database. This is expected to guide discussions with US trade representatives and bolster India’s position in global trade talks.
India is also pushing for the restoration of Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) benefits, withdrawn by the US in 2019. But as one FIEO official pointed out, “Even if GSP returns, it won’t help unless the NTB fog lifts.”
With US-India trade relations on an upswing, NTBs have become the next critical frontier. Whether through regulatory alignment, capacity building, or smart negotiations, addressing these technical hurdles could unlock billions in potential.
Here is a telling comment: “NTBs may not make headlines,” said a Commerce Ministry official, “but solving them is key to a level playing field in one of our most important export markets.”
