How to start an export business in India: the 2026 step-by-step guide

Updated 15 October 2026 · Be12 EXIM team, Chennai

You can register an export business in India in about a week and ship your first order within a month. The hard part is not the paperwork; it is getting product, buyer, price and payment terms right. Here is the full path, in order.

1. Register the business

1. Entity and bank account. A proprietorship is fastest. An LLP or private limited company helps with banks and larger buyers. Open a current account with a bank that handles foreign exchange; this becomes your AD (Authorised Dealer) bank.
2. GST registration. Exports are zero-rated. Your GSTIN goes on every export invoice.
3. IEC (Import Export Code). Apply on the DGFT portal with PAN, address proof and a cancelled cheque. The fee is ₹500. You must update or confirm your IEC every year between 1 April and 30 June, or DGFT deactivates it.
4. AD code registration. Your bank issues an AD code letter. Register it on ICEGATE at each port you will ship from, so shipping bills, drawback and IGST refunds link to your bank account.
5. GST LUT (form RFD-11). A Letter of Undertaking lets you export without paying IGST. File it on the GST portal for every financial year, before you ship.
6. Class 3 digital signature (DSC) for DGFT and ICEGATE filings.

2. Choose product and market

Find your product’s 8-digit ITC-HS code. It decides whether export is free, restricted or prohibited, which certificates you need, the import duty in the buyer’s country and your RoDTEP rate.

Get an RCMC (Registration-cum-Membership Certificate) from the right body: APEDA for agri and processed food, Spices Board, MPEDA for marine, AEPC for garments, EEPC for engineering, Pharmexcil for pharma, or FIEO for multi-product exporters. Most benefits need it.

Check product licences: FSSAI for food, drug licence for pharma, plant quarantine registration for agri. Then shortlist 2-3 countries where demand is real and duties are low. India’s trade agreements (UAE CEPA, Australia ECTA, ASEAN, EFTA TEPA) can cut duties sharply with a preferential certificate of origin. DGFT’s Trade Connect has country guides and a tariff explorer.

3. Find buyers and price right

• Trade fairs and export council buyer-seller meets, Indian missions abroad, B2B portals, LinkedIn and import data.
• Price from the bottom up: product cost + packing + inland transport + CHA + port charges + bank charges + margin = FOB. Add freight for CFR and insurance for CIF. Try our export price calculator.
• Send samples and a proforma invoice with clear Incoterms, validity and payment terms. See Incoterms for Indian exporters.

4. Secure the order and payment

Get a signed purchase order or contract covering quality, quantity tolerance, packing, Incoterm, delivery date and payment terms. For new buyers, advance payment or a letter of credit from a sound bank is safest. If you must give credit (D/A or open account), insure the buyer with ECGC.

5. Ship it

1. Appoint a CHA (customs broker) and freight forwarder; compare 2-3 freight quotes.
2. Prepare documents: commercial invoice, packing list, certificate of origin and product certificates. Full list: export documents checklist.
3. Your CHA files the shipping bill on ICEGATE. Customs examines and gives the Let Export Order (LEO), your official export date.
4. The carrier issues the bill of lading (sea) or airway bill (air). Check it matches your invoice and LC exactly.

6. Get paid and claim benefits

• Realise payment within 9 months of export under FEMA; your bank can extend for genuine reasons. Details: payment realisation and eBRC.
• Generate the eBRC on DGFT once the bank reports the realisation.
• Duty drawback is credited automatically; RoDTEP scrips go to your ICEGATE ledger. RoDTEP claims lapse a year after LEO.
• Report export invoices in GSTR-1 so IGST refunds or LUT exports match your shipping bills.

FAQs