India defers import certification requirements for some chemicals

Petrotahlil - India has deferred the implementation of mandatory Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certification requirement on imports of ethylene glycol, toluene, butyl acrylate, terepthalic acid and phthalic anhydride to mid-2021.

On 24 December 2020, India’s Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers extended the new certification norms by 180 days. The new BIS standards on imports of these products were initially supposed to be implemented from January 2021.

The new certification requirements may now come into force around June 2021, a government official in the Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers said, adding that the new timelines would be applicable after publication in the official gazette.

Similarly, BIS certification standards for methanol, acetic acid and aniline which were supposed to come into force in August 2020, will now be implemented only by May 2021, he added.

“The certification process has got delayed mainly due to the problems caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown. This made it difficult to complete the certification process for international suppliers of the chemicals,” the government source said.

India has introduced mandatory certification for chemicals and other imports as a non-tariff barrier against inferior imports. Caustic soda was the first chemical to be covered under this certification in April 2018.

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