CEPA Certificate Registration

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CEPA Registration in India - Process, Fees & Documents

CEPA full form is Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement. It is a trade agreement between countries that aims to liberalize and promote trade in goods and services between the participating countries.

India has signed CEPA agreements with several countries, including Japan, South Korea, and Singapore. These agreements aim to boost trade and economic cooperation between India and these countries.

CEPA agreements typically involve reducing or eliminating tariffs and other trade barriers & measures to promote investment and facilitate the movement of people and goods between the agreed countries.

CEPA Certificate [Sample]

Table of Content

What is the CEPA agreement?
Rules of origin under CEPA
Documents required for CEPA certification
Process of India-UAE CEPA registration
Fees & Validity of CEPA Certificate
Eligibility of products under CEPA Certificate
Benefits of CEPA Certificate agreement
Responsibility for exporters CEPA Certificate agreement
Non-compliance & penalties
Issuing authorities of CEPA in India
Other free trade agreements
Frequently Asked Questions

What is the CEPA Registration?

CEPA registration is a process through which an entity can trade with others countries under special preferential treatment of CEPA agreement. Exporters of various products and services can benefit from traffic reduction under this agreement.

Exporters can get the certificate of origin from government agencies such as DGFT, the spices board of India, and other government-recognized apex bodies.

CEPA- Rules of origin (RoO)

Per the CEPA agreement between India and other nations, the products shall be deemed as originating in a party country per the following criteria.

Wholly Obtained goods
Value-added Criteria for goods
Change in headers & subheadings
Change in the harmonized system (HS)
Final production before export must be done in the exporting nation.
Sharing specific product details with authorities to comply with preferential treatment
The Product has undergone adequate working or manufacturing per the Product specific rules (PSR) as agreed by the parties under CEPA

Proof of origin:

Exporters are required to give evidence of the Product's origin by any of the following means:-

Entirely digital certifications issued by any approved government organizations.
A paper certificate of origin of CEPA registration in electronic or hard copy format issued by the appropriate government authority.
A certificate of origin of the declaration given by a licensed exporter as per the requirements.

Documents Required for CEPA Certificate of Origin

To apply for a CEPA Certificate of Origin, the following documents and details are required to ensure a smooth and efficient process for verifying the origin of goods being exported.

Organization based Digital Signature Certificate
DGFT Login ID
Updated Import Export Code
Digital Signature Certificate software
Mobile No. & Email address
Commercial Invoice
Purchase Bill that has details of quantity, origin of raw materials, consumables used in product meant for export
Manufacturer Exporter Declaration on the company’s Letterhead
Product Description
Purchase order from importer company

Documents required for IUCEPA registration

Process for CEPA Registration

The process for CEPA Registration involves several key steps to ensure the authenticity and compliance of your products for export. These steps are outlined as follows:

1 - Account ID creation:- An account will be created on the DGFT site using DSC or any other recognized government portal to apply for CEPA certification.

2 - Documentation:- When applying, the applicant must provide verifiable documents and any pertinent paperwork to corroborate the authenticity of their products.

3 - Verification & authorization:- The issuing authority will assess and conduct a full inspection through a risk management system to verify & authenticate the origin of the Product.

4 - Certification:- Once the approval has been given following verification and inspection. Authorities will issue a CEPA certificate, also known as a Certificate of origin. As per the CEPA agreement's established norms certificate should be in English. The certificate must contain all the necessary information about the Product and the exporting entity.

Cost & validity of CEPA Certificate Registration

The fee required for the registration of the CEPA certificate is 3,208 rupees, including our professional fees. The registration will be valid for up to 12 months from the date of issuance.

Exporters can apply for re-issuance of the certificate of origin once the validity period has expired.

The fee can be breakdown into the following:-

Particulars	Fees
Government Fee	₹708
One-time registration fee	₹500
Application Fee	₹2000
Total Fee	₹3208
Validity of CEPA	12 months from the date of issuance

Note: The aforementioned Fees is exclusive of GST.

Product Eligibility under CEPA Certificate agreement

If the Product meets the following criteria, it will be considered to have come from a contracting nation and be eligible for preferential treatment.

Wholly Obtained Or Produced Products such as

Live animals
Agri products
Products made of animals
Products made of Marine animals
Products made of natural resources
Product produced in the territory of the country exclusively
Products have undergone sufficient working or production according to the Product Specific Rules

Note:- Exporters must provide a certificate of origin for their Product to establish the authenticity as per the agreed CEPA free trade agreement among the participating parties.

Benefits of CEPA Certificate Registration

The main benefit of this agreement is that it allows for an easier flow of goods and services between the two countries, which can lead to increased trade and economic growth.

Reducing tariffs & trade barriers in preferred countries
Encouraging cross- border transactions between the territories of the Contracting counties.
Promoting fair competition in the free trade states
Ensuring equitable benefits to all Contracting countries
Effective mechanism for joint administration & resolution of disputes
Framework for regional cooperation and enhance mutual benefits for trade.

Responsibility of Exporters under CEPA Certificate

Under the CEPA Certificate, exporters have specific responsibilities to ensure compliance throughout the certification process. These responsibilities include:

The exporters are responsible for providing asked documents during the CEPA certification process.
Exporters proving misleading information and documents are liable to be punished or penalized.
Exporters need to keep minimum information & supporting documents of their products for 5 years from the expiry date of their CEPA certificate.
The exporter shall keep appropriate accounting records of the production supply of the products.
The exporter shall notify the issuing authority, custom authority, and the importer of any chances that could affect the accuracy or validity.

Non-compliance & Penalties

Non-compliance with the CEPA Certificate of Origin regulations can lead to significant penalties. The following outlines the consequences for non-compliance:

Customs duties will be charged if the Product's certificate of origin shows that it doesn't meet the rules of origin of CEPA.
Each Party must also ensure civil and administrative laws are to be followed. When necessary, it will use criminal punishments for people who break its customs laws.

List of Issuing Authority for CEPA Registration

Agency	Product Category
Export inspection Council & Export inspection Agencies	All products
Marine Products Export Development Authority and regional offices	Marine products
Development Commissioner, Handicraft & regional offices	Handicraft
Spices Board	Spices and Cashew Nuts
Coir Board	Coir and Coir products
Textile Committee and regional offices	Textiles and Clothing
Central Silk Board and regional offices	Silk products
MEPZ special Economic Zone	All products by Units in Madras SEZ and EOUs located within the jurisdiction.
Kandla Special Economic zone	Kandla Special Economic zone
SEEPZ Special Economic Zone	All products manufactured by Units in SEEPZ SEZ and EOUs located within the respective jurisdiction
Cochin Special Economic Zone	All products manufactured by Units in Cochin SEZ and EOUs located within the respective jurisdiction
NOIDA Special Economic Zone	All products manufactured by Units in Noida SEZ and EOUs located within the respective jurisdiction
Visakhapatnam Special Economic Zone	All products manufactured by Units in Visakhapatnam SEZ and EOUs located Within the respective jurisdiction
Falta Special Economic Zone	All products manufactured by Units in Falta SEZ and EOUs located within the respective jurisdiction
Directorate General of Foreign Trade and regional offices	All products
Tobacco Board	Tobacco and tobacco products
Agricultural and Processed Food Products	Agricultural Products Export Development Authority /APEDA)

Other Free Trade Agreement

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:-

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

APTA - Asia Pacific 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

FAQs on CEPA Certificate

What does CEPA stand for?

CEPA stands for comprehensive economic partnership agreement. It is a free trade agreement between India and other countries.

What are the benefits of CEPA?

Promote cross-border trade
Less duty on imported goods
Increase the volume of exports from India
There will be less duty on goods exported from India.

Where to get a CEPA certificate of origin?

You can get the CEPA certificate of origin in 3 simple steps

Contact us
Provide documents
Issuance of CoO (certificate of origin)

How is cepa/ceca different from FTA (free trade agreement)?

CECA/CEPA is more ambitious in terms of comprehensive coverage of many areas, such as services, investment, IPR, government procurement, and litigation; in contrast, a standard FTA focuses only on products.

With how many countries has India signed the CEPA trade agreement?

India has signed CEPA/CEPA agreements with various countries to promote trade and investments.Here is the list of countries India has signed CEPA agreements: