Updated on January 11, 2025 03:58:13 PM
APTA Certificate is a Certificate of Origin issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade in India. The DGFT APTA Certificate ensures that the commodity meant to be exported is completely manufactured or produced in the originating country or the exporting country. In order to verify the goods, the exporter has to produce multiple documents before the DGFT to prove that the goods have been manufactured in India, complying with all necessary standards, rules, and regulations. The exporter may also need to provide evidence of the manufacturing process and origin of raw materials. The necessity for APTA Certificate of Origin is primarily for customs clearance in the importing country. In case goods imported do not come with a Certificate of Origin, the importing country’s customs authorities will tax the goods at higher rates, imposing additional duties that could raise the cost of the products. The APTA Certificate of Origin is used by the importing country to ensure that the products are duty-free and the goods are originating from the country under a free trade agreement, which helps in reducing tariffs, lowering costs, and promoting trade between countries by ensuring fair trade practices.
APTA Registration [SAMPLE]
Here’s a list of important documents typically required for APTA (Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement) registration to ensure smooth processing.
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APTA registration enables businesses to export goods under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, ensuring preferential trade benefits and smoother transactions. Here’s a step-by-step process:
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The APTA registration fee in India is ₹3,500, which includes a ₹2,000 ID creation fee and a ₹1,500 certificate generation fee per invoice, which is mandatory for all applicants applying.
APTA (Asian Pacific Trade Agreement) registration provides businesses with various benefits that can enhance their trade prospects within the member countries. Some of the key benefits include:
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India has enhanced its market access commitments for neighbouring service providers. These commitments provide companies with an opportunity to build market expertise and grow by international expansion. Under Free or Preferential Trade Agreement there are multiple options where certificate of origin can be generated from India for import benefits to importing companies:-
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ICPTA - India Chile Preferential Trade Agreement
SAFTA - South Asia Free Trade Agreement
SAPTA - SAARC Preferential Trade Agreement
IKCEPA - India Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement
IJCEPA - India Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements
AIFTA - ASEAN India Free Trade Agreement
ISFTA - India Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement
Ind-Aus ECTA- India australia economic cooperation and trade agreement
GSP - Generalized System of Preferences
GSTP - Global System of Trade Preferences
IMCECA - India Malaysia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement
ISCECA - India Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement
The authorized agencies in India for issuing the certificate of origin are listed in Appendix 35 of the Handbook of Procedures Vol-1 under the Foreign Trade Policy.
These are:
| Agreement | Agencies authorized to issue Certificate of Origin |
|---|---|
| Asia Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) | Export Inspection Council (EIC); Export Development Authorities; Development Commissioners of EPZs and SEZs; FIEO |
| Global System of Trade Preferences (GSTP) | EIC for all products; Tobacco Board, Guntur for tobacco and tobacco products |
| India Afghanistan PTA | EIC |
| India ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement | EIC |
| India Chile PTA | EIC |
| India JAPAN CEPA | EIC |
| India Mercosur PTA | EIC |
| India Singapore CECA | EIC |
| India South Korea CEPA | EIC |
| South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) | EIC |
The four methods of supply –
Method 1: Cross border supply (supply from the territory of a Party into the territory of the other Party). For Instance an architect can send his architectural plan through electronic means; a lecturer can send teaching material to students in any other country; a doctor sitting in France can advise his patient in India through digital means. In all these cases, trade in services takes place and this is equal to cross-border movement of goods.
Method 2: Consumption abroad ( consumption in the territory of a Party by the service consumer of the other Party). For Instance a tourist using hotel or restaurant services abroad; a ship or aircraft undergoing repair or maintenance services abroad.
Method 3: Commercial presence (by a service supplier of a Party, through commercial presence in the territory of the other Party). In this case, the service supplier establishes a legal presence in the form of a representative / branch office / joint venture / subsidiary in the host country & starts supplying services. For Instance a bank opens its branch in another country.
Method 4: Presence/movement of natural persons (by a service supplier of a Party, through presence of natural persons of a Party in the territory of the other Party). For Instance Independent service suppliers (e.g. doctors, engineers, individual consultants, accountants, etc.) who provide services in another country. However, GATS covers only temporary movement & not citizenship, residence or employment on a permanent basis in the foreign country.
The APTA Certificate of Origin that is offered by the Indian Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) acts as an assurance that export goods are both manufactured and produced in the originating country. This certificate is required for import clearance in the importing country to avail trade at less tariff under the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement and affordable trade. Exporters need to present legal documents on origin as well as processing of the products to be exported. Some of the advantages APTA registration has include affordable trades that help in improving and bringing out better trade relations between the different members of the society.
At Professional Utilities, we leverage our industry knowledge and expertise to help businesses navigate complex regulations, minimize risks, and optimize operations for maximum efficiency and profitability.
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A Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) or Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) is different from a traditional (FTA) Free Trade Agreement in two ways.
Firstly, CEPA or CECA are more comprehensive and ambitious than an FTA in terms of coverage of areas and the type of commitments. While a traditional Free Trade Agreement focuses mainly on goods; a CECA/CEPA is more ambitious in terms of a holistic coverage of many areas like services, investment, competition, government procurement, disputes etc.
Secondly, CEPA/CECA looks deeper at the regulatory aspects of trade than a Free Trade Agreement. It is on account of this that it encompasses mutual recognition agreements that cover the regulatory regimes of the partners. An MRA recognises different regulatory regimes of partners on the presumption that they achieve the same objectives.
Countries negotiate Free trade Agreements for a number of reasons:
India has preferential access, economic cooperation and Free Trade Agreements (FTA) with about 54 individual countries. India has signed bilateral trade deals in the form of Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) / Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) / Free Trade Agreement / Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) with some 18 countries. India is a late & cautious, starter in concluding comprehensive PTA covering substantially all trade with some of its trading partners.
Country of origin / Rules of origin (ROO) are the criteria needed to determine a product for purposes of international trade. Their significance is derived from the fact that duties & restrictions in several cases depend upon the source of imports.
Rules of origin are used:
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