How to Start Exporting from India: From Setup to Your First Shipment

The export process is a chain of decisions, not a pile of forms

A first shipment becomes easier to manage when you separate four questions: can this legal entity export the goods, can the exact product be exported to the intended market, is there a buyer and commercial deal worth pursuing, and can the shipment/payment be executed with consistent documents? A registration cannot answer all four.

The sequence below deliberately delays product-specific certificates, RCMC decisions and port-specific work until you know what product and transaction you are actually pursuing. That avoids paying consultants for generic packages that may include things you do not need.

Set up the exporter identity before you buy product-specific services

Use the same legal identity consistently across DGFT, tax, bank, customs and commercial documents. IEC is the core importer-exporter identifier for most commercial cross-border activity, subject to current exemptions and rules. DGFT's published application material identifies a ₹500 IEC application fee; always verify the live portal at the time you apply.

Udyam/MSME registration is a separate business-registration question. The official Udyam portal states that registration itself is free. GST applicability is also a tax question rather than a universal export licence. If an agency quotes one combined package, ask it to separate statutory fees from its professional/service charge.

Classify the exact product and check policy before prospecting

A product category such as electronics, garments, food or machinery is not specific enough for customs classification. Describe the actual article, composition/material, form or processing, construction and intended function where those facts affect classification. Use international HS-6 to structure research, then verify India's ITC(HS) extension and current export policy separately.

Policy status and HS classification are not the same thing. After classification, check whether the item is free, restricted, prohibited, controlled under SCOMET or subject to a product regulator, testing, health/phytosanitary requirement, certificate, labelling rule or destination-market condition.

1. 1
   Describe the article technically

   Write what it is made of, its form/processing and function; do not start from a brand name.

2. 2
   Find HS candidates

   Read the hierarchy and competing descriptions rather than accepting a keyword hit as a ruling.

3. 3
   Verify ITC(HS)

   Confirm the India tariff item and current DGFT/Customs policy notes.

4. 4
   Check product/destination conditions

   Identify any regulator, test, certificate, label, origin or destination-market requirement before quoting.

Choose a market using demand, access and execution—not only export value

TradeStat can show India's commodity/country trade history, and UN Comtrade can provide a comparable first-pass view of partner-country flows. Use those sources to build a shortlist, then test whether the commercial route is actually accessible.

An FTA is not a blanket promise of zero import duty. Preferential treatment depends on the product line, the importing country's schedule, rules of origin, proof/documentation and other conditions. Use a tariff/market-access source such as Market Access Map and then verify the destination's current official tariff and product rules for a material decision.

Find buyers from evidence, then verify them before commitment

Useful buyer sources include Trade Connect, relevant export-promotion councils/commodity boards, APEDA buy leads for applicable agricultural products, Indian missions/consulates, trade fairs, industry associations, direct company research and shipment data you are licensed to use. Shipment activity can prove past sourcing behavior; a buy lead can show stated demand. Neither proves creditworthiness.

Preserve the reason each company is in your shortlist: source URL/provider, date found, product evidence, location and contact role. Then independently verify legal identity, domain/contact consistency, authority to buy, physical address where material, payment/bank instructions and any unusual urgency or requested workaround.

Build the quote from seller-paid responsibility, not a competitor's headline price

Start with product/purchase/manufacturing cost, export packing, inland/origin charges, inspection/testing, bank/payment cost and finance/FX buffer. Add main carriage, insurance and destination costs only when the agreed delivery responsibility puts them on the seller. Then calculate break-even and margin at the quantity and currency being quoted.

Write the Incoterm® rule together with the exact named place or port and the edition. 'FOB price' or 'CIF price' without an exact location leaves material responsibility ambiguous. Save the FX rate/date and freight assumption used so the quote remains reproducible after markets move.

Carry one transaction record into every commercial and shipping document

Once the buyer accepts the commercial basis, keep product description, HS/ITC(HS) reference, quantity, price/currency, Incoterm® + place, package count, weights and parties consistent across the PO/acceptance, pro forma when used, commercial invoice, packing list, customs declaration and transport documents.

The core document set depends on the movement and product. India's published foreign-trade framework recognizes transport documents, commercial invoice cum packing list (or separate invoice and packing list) and the applicable customs declaration as core trade documents; regulated goods and payment arrangements can add more evidence.

Shipping and payment must be planned together

The forwarder/carrier moves goods; the customs broker handles customs filing; the bank/payment route handles money and documents. These roles overlap operationally but do not replace the exporter's responsibility to understand the declared commercial facts and agreed release/payment conditions.

Advance payment, open account, documentary collection and documentary credit expose different timing and document risks. If a letter of credit is used, the exact credit terms and documentary requirements matter; UCP 600 is the current ICC ruleset for documentary credits when incorporated. ECGC offers several insurance products, but cover percentage, premium, exclusions and claim conditions are product-specific—do not assume a universal 90% guarantee.

Reconcile the shipment after delivery and receipt

Do not overwrite the original estimate when actual charges arrive. Record final freight, storage/exam/amendment, bank deduction, realized FX, buyer credit/claim and cash receipt. Compare them with the quotation snapshot and identify the variance driver.

The first shipment is valuable even when the margin is imperfect if you can explain exactly what changed. That evidence should update your next freight assumption, FX buffer, lead time, documentation checklist and buyer/payment decision.

• Keep the original quotation/cost snapshot.
• Record actual cash received and value date.
• Record actual freight and exception costs.
• Explain margin variance by cause.
• Update the next quote from evidence rather than memory.

Worked scenario: first commercial export from idea to closeout

Assume a small Indian exporter wants to sell a processed food product to a buyer in the UAE. The disciplined path is not ‘get every certificate, then find customers’. First establish the exporter identity and IEC position, describe/classify the exact product, check policy/product authority, screen the UAE trade/access picture, find and verify a buyer, obtain the buyer specification, then cost the actual delivery term.

Only after the commercial requirement is real should the exporter finalize transaction-specific inspection/certification, packing, customs and logistics evidence. After shipment, bank receipt, freight variance and any claim are reconciled back to the original quote.