Several products from different countries around the world make their way into India every year. As a country, we import billions of products via various methods such as air, rail and waterways. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade is the governing body for all the import-export that India does. When it comes to both importing and exporting, Importer Exporter Code (IEC) as laid down by the DGFT is used to legally sanction the purchase or selling. Here’s a look at all the items the DGFT has prohibited for import in India.

The DGFT maintains records of all the articles that may be imported to India. On this list, is a category of items which under no circumstances may be imported to our country. Failure to comply with the norms stated in this list can lead to severe repercussions. Every seller or manufacturer who imports or exports goods to and from India must be aware of the items on these lists. 

Items prohibited for import into India

The items mentioned below have been sourced from a prohibited articles list as seen on Schedule 1 of the ITC(HS) Classifications of  Items. However, sellers and manufacturers are cautioned to cross-check the list before finalising the import of any article to ensure that it is not present on the list.

Restricted domestic animals:

• 0101 10 10- Horses
• 0101 10 20- Asses
• 0101 90 10- Polo Horses 
• 0101 90 20- Mules and hinnies livestock
• 0102 10 10- Adult Bulls
• 0102 10 20- Adult Cows
• 0102 10 30- Adult Buffaloes and calves
• 0103 10 00- Purebred breeding animals
• 0104 10 10- Sheep or lamb for breeding 
• 0104 20 00- Goats
• 0105 11 00- Any member of the species Gallus domesticus except grandparent poultry 
• 0105 12 00 -Turkeys except for Grandparent stock 

Restricted wild animals:

1. 0106 11 00- Primates As per Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 
2. 0106 12 00- Whales, dolphins, manatees and dugongs as per Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972
3. 0106 20 00- Reptiles as per Import Licensing Note No. 6 in the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 
4. 0106 31 00- Birds of prey
5. 0106 32 00- Psittaciformes as per Import Licensing Note No. 6 in the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 
6. 0106 90 10- Bees and other insects
7. 0201 10 00/0202 10 00- Chilled or frozen Carcasses and half-carcasses
8. 0201 20 00/0202 20 00- Chilled or frozen bone 
9. 0201 30 00/0202 30 00- Chilled or Frozen Boneless 
10. 0206 21 00- Tongues
11. 0206 22 00- Livers
12. 0206 30 00- Edible affal
13. 0210 20 00- Meat of bovine animals
14. 0301 10 00- Ornamental Fish
15. 0301 91 00- Trout 
16. 0301 92 00- Eels 
17. 0301 93 00-Carp
18. 0301 94 00- Bluefin tunas
19. 0301 95 00- Southern bluefin tunas 
20. 0407 00 10- Eggs of gallus domesticus 
21. 0410 00 20- Turtle eggs and salanganes’ nests 
22. 0511 10 00- Bovine semen

Restricted plants:

• 0601 20 90- Chicory plants and roots as per Plants, Quarantine (Regulation of Imports into India) Order, 2003.
• 0602 20 20- Cactus as per Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna & Flora 
• 0701 10 00-Potatoes

Restricted seeds:

1. 0909 10 11- Anise As per Licensing note (2) in Policy on Seed Development, 1988 and as per Plants, Fruits and Seeds (Regulation of import into India) Order, 1989.
2. 0909 10 21- Badian
3. 0909 20 10- Coriander
4. 0909 30 11- Black Cumin
5. 0909 30 21- Other Cumin
6. 0909 40 10- Caraway
7. 0909 50 11- Fennel
8. 0909 50 21- Juniper Berries
9. 1001 90 31-Meslin
10. 1002 00 10- Rye
11. 1003 00 10- Barley
12. 1004 00 10- Oats  
13. 1005 10 00- Maize
14. 1006 10 10- Rice  
15. 1007 00 10- Sorghum
16. 1008 10 10- Buckwheat
17. 1008 20 11- Jawar
18. 1008 20 21- Bajra
19. 1008 20 31- Ragi 
20. 1008 30 10- Canary 
21. 1201 00 10- Soyabeans
22. 1202 10 91- Groundnut
23. 1204 00 10- Linseed
24. 1207 20 10- Cotton
25. 1207 40 10- Sesamum
26. 1207 50 10- Mustard
27. 1209 10 00- Sugar beet 
28. 1209 91 40- Seeds of fruits except for Pomegranate 

Others:

• Ginger
• Poppy
• Durum Wheat
• Flour
• Roots and tubers of dried leguminous vegetables
• Coca leaf 
• Poppy
• Jojoba 
• Serpentina Roots 
• Agarwood
• Opium Restricted

Restricted materials:

1. 2514 00 00- Slate as per  Policy Circular No.12,13,20,25,28,65 and 67
2. 2515 11 00- Marble and travertine Blocks, slabs or otherwise
3. 2515 20 90- Ecaussine and other calcareous stone 
4. 2516 20 00- Sandstone
5. 2516 90 10- Pakur stone

Restricted hazardous substances:

• 2524 90 14- Amosite as per Convention on the PIC procedure for hazardous chemicals and pesticides.
• 2612 10 00-Uranium ores and concentrates as per Atomic Energy Act, 1962 
• 2612 20 00- Thorium ores and concentrates
• 2615 90 20- Niobium tantalum ores and concentrates
• 2844 30 21- Thorium oxide
• 2844 30 22- Thorium hydroxide
• 2844 30 23- Thorium nitrate
• 2844 50 00- Spent fuel elements and cartridges for nuclear reactors
• 2845 10 00- Heavy water (deuterium oxide)

Restricted pollutants:

1. 2903 14 00- Carbon tetrachloride as per “Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete Ozone Layer”.  
2. 2903 19 20- Trichloroethane
3. 2903 41 00- Trichlorofluoro methane
4. 2903 42 00- Dichlorodifluoro methane
5. 2903 43 00- Trichlorotrifluoroethanes
6. 2903 44 10- 1,2 Dichlorotetra-fluoroethane
7. 2903 44 20- Chloropenta fluoroethane, Chlorotrifluoro-methane, Pentachloro fluoroethane and the rest 

Tetrachlorodi-fluoroethane Heptachlorodi-fluoropropane, Hexachlorodi-fluoropropane, Pentachlorotri-fluoropropane, Tetrachlorotetra-fluoropropane, Trichloropenta-fluoropropane, Dichlorohexa-fluoropropane, Chlorohepta-fluoropropane, Heptachlorodi-fluoropropane, Hexachlorodi-fluoropropane, Pentachlorotri-fluoropropane,Tetrachlorotetra-fluoropropane, Trichloropenta-fluoropropane, Dichlorohexa-fluoropropane, Chlorohepta-fluoropropane, Bromochlorodifluoro-Methane, Bromotrifluoro-methane, Dibromotetra-fluoroethanes, perhalogenated derivatives, Halogenated derivatives of methane, ethane or propane 

Restricted chemicals:

DDT-Technical 75 Wdp, Ethchlorvynol (INN, Acetic anhydride, Amfetamine (INN),benzfetamine-

Dexamfetamine , Dextropropoxyphene(INN) and its salts , Fenproporex (INN) and its salts , Levorphanol (INN) and its salts, Allobarbital (INN), amobarbital (INN), barbital (INN), butalbital (INN), butobarbital (INN), cyclobarbital (INN), methylphenobarbital (INN), pentobarbital (INN), secbutabarbital (INN), secobarbital (INN), and vinylbital (INN), Ephedrine alkaloids, Poly Chlorinated Biphenyls, Gun powder Industrial explosives, Detonating fuses , Fireworks,

Restricted miscellaneous:

• 4403 99 22- SandalWood as per Policy Circular No. 1 (RE-06) / 2004-09 dated 7.4.2006 
• 4801 00 10- Newsprint, in rolls or sheets 
• 4802 55 50- Bank, bond and cheque paper, paper for security printing, currency paper, stamp paper
• 4802 55 60- Currency note paper
• 4907 00 20- Banknotes
• 6309 00 00- Worn clothing and rags

Restricted waste and scrap:

1. 7503 00 90 Nickel 
2. 7802 00 90 Lead
3. 7902 00 90 Zinc 
4. 8002 00 90 Tin
5. 8101 97 00 Tungsten
6. 8102 97 00 Molybdenum
7. 8103 30 00 Tantalum
8. 8104 20 90 Magnesium
9. 8105 30 00 Cobalt
10. 8106 00 20 Bismuth and bismuth alloys
11. 8107 30 00 Cadmium
12. 8108 30 00 Titanium
13. 8109 30 00 Zirconium
14. 8110 20 00 Antimony
15. 8112 13 00 Beryllium
16. 8112 22 00 Chromium
17. 8112 52 00 Thallium
18. 8401 40 00 Parts of Nuclear reactors
19. 8525 50 40 Communication jamming equipment
20. 8526 10 00 Radar apparatus 
21. 8801 00 20 Balloons

Restricted goods 

Helicopters, Aeroplanes, Spacecraft (including satellites), Warships, Self-propelled Artillery weapons, Rocket launchers; flame throwers; grenade launchers; torpedo tubes, revolvers or pistols and cartridges.

Restricted luxury items:

Worked tortoise-shell, mother of pearl, bone (excluding whalebone), horn, coral and other animal carving materials, Stuffed animals and birds (taxidermy), ivory, unrendered fats, sperm oil, exotic oils.

Note: All the items covered in this article are subject to conditions laid upon by the government. The list gives you an overall idea of the restricted items and may change as per the government notifications and amendments. Get in touch with our experts to know more and to set up your import-export business.