Updated on August 02, 2025 06:24:13 PM
The IJCEPA Certificate is a Certificate of Origin issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) in India. The DGFT-issued IJCEPA Certificate ensures that the commodity intended for export is entirely and legitimately manufactured or produced in the originating or exporting country, meeting all necessary qualifications and standards under trade agreements. In order to properly verify the goods, the exporter is required to produce multiple essential documents before the DGFT authorities to prove that the goods have been genuinely and lawfully manufactured in India. This ensures a high level of transparency and compliance with international trade policies and norms, safeguarding the credibility of exports.
The necessity of obtaining a Certificate of Origin is mainly for hassle-free customs clearance in the designated importing country. In case the goods being imported lack a Certificate of Origin, the importing country's customs authorities will tax the goods, often leading to substantially higher import costs for the buyer due to additional duties and levies. The IJCEPA Certificate of Origin functions as a key trade document used by the importing country to ensure that the products fall under duty-free eligibility, confirming that the goods are rightfully originating from the country as stipulated under a free trade agreement. This certification is instrumental in fostering smoother trade relations between the participating nations, reducing trade restrictions, and promoting mutual economic growth through structured trade frameworks.
CEPA Certificate [Sample]
Table of Content
In order for exporters to claim tariff benefits during trade between India and Japan, they must have the India-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IJCEPA) certificate of origin, or IJCEPA Certificate. By lowering or doing away with customs taxes on a variety of goods between the two countries, this agreement was signed in an effort to advance free trade.
Proof that the exported goods are from India and are eligible for preferential tariff concessions under this trade agreement is provided by the IJCEPA certificate. These lower tariffs greatly benefit exporters who deal in industries such as machinery, textiles, chemicals, automobiles, and other products.
Businesses must finish the IJCEPA registration process through the designated authority in order to receive this certificate. This entails completing the required verification procedure and submitting the required paperwork, including packing lists, commercial invoices, and declarations of origin. Once authorized, the certificate needs to be shipped with the package in order for Japan's customs to clear it.
Indian exporters can improve their product competitiveness in the Japanese market, reduce buyer costs, and boost overall trade volumes under the bilateral agreement by obtaining an IJCEPA certificate.
To apply for an IJCEPA Certificate of Origin, the exporter must submit the following documents to the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT):
The IJCEPA Registration refers to registration under the India-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IJCEPA) which facilitates trade. Here’s the step-by-step process:
To obtain an IJCEPA Certificate of Origin, exporters are required to pay a fixed registration fee. Below is the detailed breakup of the total charges applicable for IJCEPA certificate issuance:
| Particulars | Fees |
|---|---|
| Government Fee | ₹708 |
| One-time registration fee | ₹500 |
| Application Fee | ₹2000 |
| Total Fee | ₹3208 |
Note: SAFTA Certificate has to be issued for each invoice & The aforementioned Fees is exclusive of GST.
The India-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IJCEPA) offers several benefits to businesses engaged in trade between India and Japan, such as:
In India, the authorized agencies responsible for issuing certificates of origin are clearly listed in Appendix 35 of the Handbook of Procedures, Volume-1, as per 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 |
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
Conclusion
The IJCEPA Certificate of Origin guarantees compliance of the goods with the originating country standards, hence promoting free passage through customs without paying extra taxes. The exporters are required to file certain documents with the DGFT. It costs ₹ 3,236 by including the government, one-time registration, and application fees. The certificate is valid for a period of 12 months with the need to renew the IEC every year. It also provides the India and Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which aims at promoting bilateral trade through the offering of tariffs, investments and the betterment of protection of intellectual property rights.
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.
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:
The criteria in the (RoO) rules of origin sets out specific & detailed conditions on the level of processing that an imported item from a non Free Trade Agreement partner country must undergo in the Free Trade Agreement partner country (or other eligible countries in the region) before being eligible to be called an originating product of a Free Trade Agreement partner country. Some of the common standards used are :-
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.
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