The short answer
Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26 dated 6 March 2026 lets a scheduled commercial bank lend a micro, small or medium enterprise (MSME) that exports through e-commerce up to Rs 50 lakh as cash credit or overdraft. The government covers up to 90% of the bank’s risk and funds a 2.75% upfront interest subvention. It is a loan, not a grant. The notice names no partner bank.
The rule that decides everything: at least six months of exports by post or courier in your own name (or stock in an overseas warehouse or an E-Commerce Export Hub), certified by a chartered accountant.
Verified as on 19 October 2026 against DGFT Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26 dated 6 March 2026 with its annexures, DGFT Trade Notice No. 29/2026-27 dated 1 October 2026, DGFT Trade Notice No. 20/2025-26 dated 2 January 2026 and DGFT Notification No. 36/2026-27 dated 15 September 2026. Written by Pratham Agarwal, Founder, Rasp International.
Rs 50 lakhceiling on the direct facility, Trade Notice 31/2025-26, Annexure-II para 5(a)
6 monthsminimum postal or courier export record, Annexure-II para 1(c)(i)
20%of past postal or courier e-commerce sales sets the limit, Annexure-X para 7(d)
2.75%upfront interest subvention, Annexure-II para 5(b)
| Scheme or instrument | Credit Assistance for E-Commerce Exporters: a Direct E-Commerce Credit Facility (up to Rs 50 lakh) and an Overseas Inventory E-Commerce Credit Facility (up to Rs 5 crore) |
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| Governing body | DGFT runs it. The Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) and the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company (NCGTC) implement it, Annexure-III |
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| Parent policy | Export Promotion Mission (EPM), Niryat Protsahan sub-scheme |
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| Legal basis | DGFT Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26 dated 6 March 2026, run as a pilot through Exim Bank |
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| Who it is for | MSMEs with an active Importer Exporter Code (IEC) and Udyam registration that export through e-commerce |
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| What you get | Cash credit or overdraft for up to 365 days, up to 90% cover for the bank (75% overseas) and a 2.75% subvention capped at Rs 15 lakh a year, Annexure-II para 5 |
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| Validity or deadline | Credit sanctioned on or after 6 March 2026. Your DGFT intent is valid until the end of the financial year |
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| Where you apply | Intent on the DGFT portal, which gives a Unique Identification Number (UIN), then an eligible bank, Annexure-IV |
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Why we wrote this
The headline travels faster than the conditions. Sellers hear “Rs 50 lakh loan” and expect it at the branch. Paragraph 2 of Trade Notice 31/2025-26 sets a narrower aim: to “enhance access to working capital” so MSMEs can “manufacture goods in advance of anticipated demand”. The amount depends on your export record and the bank’s own decision.
Our cross border e-commerce export setup guide and our Export Promotion Mission overview already list the two facilities. This post is a self-check to run before you visit the bank, with the papers to carry. Rasp International has served 500+ exporters since 2019 and is ISO 9001:2015 certified.
What the Credit Assistance for E-Commerce Exporters is
The Credit Assistance for E-Commerce Exporters is a working capital scheme that lets banks lend cash credit or overdraft (a running limit you draw and repay as sales money comes in) to MSME e-commerce exporters, with government cover for the bank and an interest subvention for the borrower, run by DGFT with Exim Bank and NCGTC under the EPM’s Niryat Protsahan sub-scheme. An interest subvention is a cut in your interest rate that the government funds.
- Exim Bank checks your identity, eligibility and limit, Annexure-II para 6(d).
- NCGTC manages the E-Commerce Credit Trust, the government fund that pays the bank if a covered loan goes bad, Annexure-III para 3(a).
- Member Lending Institution (MLI) is a lender registered with NCGTC for this scheme, Annexure-II para 6(a). Only an MLI can give you this loan.
- E-Commerce Export Hub (ECEH) is a warehouse facility for export stock, which the notice uses but does not define.
Eligibility self-check: 15 situations and the rule for each
| Your situation | What the notice says | Where |
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| Active IEC and Udyam registration | Needed. IEC not suspended, cancelled or on the Denied Entity List (DGFT’s list of barred firms). Udyam valid and linked to the IEC. | Annexure-II 1(a); Annexure-IV c |
| Six months or more of postal or courier exports | You meet the first route: a “proven track record of at least six months”. | Annexure-II 1(c)(i) |
| Only four months of courier exports | Not yet. The other routes need stock in an overseas warehouse or an ECEH. | Annexure-II 1(c) |
| One year of online selling inside India, no exports | New MSMEs with “one year of regular domestic e-commerce operations” are also eligible. How this sits with the export record is not stated. | Annexure-II 1(b) |
| Stock in an overseas warehouse | Overseas Inventory facility: up to Rs 5 crore, limit up to 50% of inventory cost. | Annexure-II 5(a); Annexure-X 2(e) |
| Stock in an ECEH warehouse | Direct facility, limit set by a risk model on last year’s sales, stock value, returns and a 0 to 5% sector risk deduction. | Annexure-X 2(c) |
| Sales through a global marketplace or your own website | No marketplace is named. The definition covers “e-commerce marketplaces or non-platform-based e-commerce channels”. The test is the post or courier record. | Annexure-X 1(d) |
| Loan tagged SMA-2 or NPA in the last two years | Not eligible. Special Mention Account 2 (SMA-2) is a bank’s warning tag on an overdue loan. A Non-Performing Asset (NPA) is a bad loan under Reserve Bank of India rules. | Annexure-II 2.1(c) |
| Firm, partner or director on the bank’s defaulter list | Not eligible. | Annexure-II 2.1(d) |
| Supplies to a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) or deemed exports | Support “shall not be admissible”. | Annexure-II 4(e) |
| Overdraft sanctioned before 6 March 2026 | Not covered. Only credit “sanctioned on or after” that date. | Annexure-II 4(j) |
| Grew out of the MSME category this year | Still eligible for three years from reclassification, under Ministry of MSME Notification S.O. 4926(E) dated 18 October 2022. | Annexure-II 4(h) |
| Same credit already covered by another scheme or an insurer | Not eligible if another scheme covers it. Not eligible to the extent an insurer covers it. | Annexure-X 5(a) and 5(b) |
| Prohibited goods or a sanctioned country | Excluded: goods prohibited under Schedule-II of ITC(HS) 2022 (Indian Trade Clarification based on Harmonized System, the export policy list) and trade with sanctioned countries. | Annexure-V 1 and 2 |
| Your bank is not a scheduled commercial bank | The direct facility is “only through Scheduled Commercial Banks”. Overseas inventory also allows All India Financial Institutions. Either must be an MLI. | Annexure-II 2.1(e), 2.2(e), 6(a) |
Three ways in: which facility fits your model
One notice, three routes. Pick the column that matches how your goods leave India.
| Point | Direct, post or courier | Direct, ECEH stock | Overseas inventory |
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| Route in Annexure-II 1(c) | (i) six months of postal or courier exports | (iii) current stock in ECEH warehouses | (ii) current inventory abroad |
| Who can lend | Scheduled commercial banks | Scheduled commercial banks | Banks or All India Financial Institutions |
| Limit rule (Annexure-X) | 20% of past postal or courier e-commerce sales, para 7(d) | Exim Bank risk model, para 2(c) | Up to 50% of inventory cost, para 2(e) |
| Ceiling (Annexure-II 5(a)) | Rs 50 lakh | Rs 50 lakh | Rs 5 crore |
| Cover for the bank | Up to 90% | Up to 90% | Up to 75% |
| Yearly cover fee the bank pays (Annexure-X 9(a)) | 0.5% | 0.5% | 1.0% |
| Collateral (Annexure-X 2(f)) | None beyond primary security (stock, warehouse receipt or receivables) | None beyond primary security | Not stated, check with your bank |
| Detailed lender rules | Printed in Annexure-X para 7 | To be “separately notified by Exim bank”, para 7(a) | To be “separately notified by Exim bank”, para 7(a) |
| Export test at renewal (Annexure-X 7(h)) | At least 50% of the two-year average postal and courier exports, never below the credit limit | Not stated | Not stated |
The 2.75% people confuse it with. DGFT Trade Notice No. 20/2025-26 dated 2 January 2026 gives a separate 2.75% a year subvention on pre-shipment and post-shipment rupee export credit, up to Rs 50 lakh of benefit a year per MSME exporter. The e-commerce subvention is capped at Rs 15 lakh a year, Annexure-II para 5(c). The Annexure-IV declaration rules out a second scheme “for the same activity”, so one credit line cannot carry both.
Rasp International handles RCMC registration with the right Export Promotion Council.
Talk to our team for a free assessment. 500+ exporters served since 2019.
What most people get wrong about the Rs 50 lakh
The Rs 50 lakh is a ceiling, not an amount you are owed
Annexure-X para 7(d) says the limit “may be up to 20%” of your postal or courier cross-border e-commerce sales in the previous two years, “subject to a maximum cap” of Rs 50 lakh. Para 2(b) says the bank sanctions the lower of that figure and its own assessment.
The 90% protects the bank, not you
Paragraph 3 of the notice says the cover “will be available to banks”. If you default, the Trust pays the bank, but Annexure-X para 8(e) says the bank must “maintain its recourse to the borrower for entire amount of credit facility”.
It is a loan with a rate cut, not a subsidy
Annexure-II para 3(d) gives “an upfront subvention on the applicable interest rate” with the sanction. Ask for the rate before and after the subvention in your sanction letter.
Where the official text does not agree with itself
Annexure-X para 2(d) sets the limit at “20% of average e-commerce exports sales in the past two years”. Para 7(d) says up to 20% of sales “in the previous two years”. One reads as an average, the other as a total.
Illustrative example. A seller exports Rs 30 lakh by courier in year one and Rs 50 lakh in year two: Rs 80 lakh in total, Rs 40 lakh a year on average. On the para 2(d) reading the limit is Rs 8 lakh. On the para 7(d) reading it is Rs 16 lakh.
The certificates differ too. Annexure-IV wants a chartered accountant’s certificate on three years of revenue and export turnover. Annexure-X para 7(d) wants one on two years of postal and courier exports. And Annexure-X carries a note that it “shall not be part of the Trade Notice”: Exim Bank is to issue it to banks as a circular.
Before you buy stock against this loan: ask your bank which reading of the 20% rule the Exim Bank circular uses, and which rate and cover apply on your sanction date. Annexure-II para 4(c) reviews both twice a year, from 1 April and 1 October. Keep the answer in writing.
Who qualifies and who does not
You can apply if all of these are true.
- An MSME with Udyam registration linked to an active IEC.
- Six months of postal or courier exports, or current stock in an ECEH or an overseas warehouse.
- Standard loan accounts, never SMA-2 or NPA in the last two years.
- Export figures a chartered accountant will certify.
- A bank registered with NCGTC as an MLI.
You are out in these cases.
- Deemed exports and supplies to an SEZ (Annexure-II para 4(e)).
- Credit sanctioned before 6 March 2026 (Annexure-II para 4(j)).
- Credit already covered under another scheme (Annexure-X para 5).
- Prohibited goods or trade with sanctioned countries (Annexure-V).
- A firm under investigation, or with unpaid penalties, under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act 1992, the Customs Act 1962 or the Foreign Exchange Management Act 1999 (Annexure-IV declaration 1).
Edge cases the notice settles
You bank with two lenders. Annexure-II para 4(d) caps the subvention and credit you may receive in a financial year. Para 4(g) says staying within the cap “shall rest with the beneficiary” and any excess is recoverable.
You file the intent in February and the bank sanctions in April. Annexure-IV para d keeps each intent valid “until the end of the financial year”. A UIN from February 2027 lapses on 31 March 2027. File a fresh intent if the sanction slips.
The rate changes after your sanction. Annexure-II para 4(f) applies revised rates and cover only to credit “sanctioned and disbursed on or after” the change.
A partner dies or retires. Annexure-X para 13(b) keeps the cover alive if the bank continues the facility to the surviving partners before the account turns NPA.
How to walk into the bank with the right papers
The order matters. Annexure-IV para a says you file the intent on the DGFT portal “prior to applying for the export credit facility”.
- Count your record. Months of postal or courier exports in your own IEC. Fewer than six means wait, unless you hold ECEH or overseas stock.
- Fix your registrations. Link Udyam to your IEC first. Part A of the intent form is filled from your IEC and cannot be edited.
- Get the certificates. Three years of revenue and export turnover (Annexure-IV), and two years of postal and courier exports in your bank’s format (Annexure-X para 7(d)).
- Ask your bank. Check that it is registered with NCGTC as an MLI. The intent form makes you pick from a list of eligible banks.
- File the intent. The form asks for products and HS codes (Harmonized System product codes), markets, three years of export value, facility, loan amount, estimated rate, tenure, bank account and IFSC (Indian Financial System Code). You get a UIN.
- Take the UIN to the bank. If it sanctions, the bank sends Exim Bank your firm details, export data, account status and financials (Annexure-II para 6(c)).
- Wait for the cover. Exim Bank has three business days for in-principle approval and NCGTC one business day (Annexure-II para 6(d)). The bank then pays the cover fee.
- Plan the renewal. The facility runs up to 365 days, and renewal depends on the export test in Annexure-X para 7(h).
The lapse rule. Your intent ends with the financial year. If the bank misses the cover fee deadline in Annexure-X para 9(b), the cover lapses. The fast track. None exists in the notice.
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Five groups of sellers this affects
1. Marketplace sellers shipping by courier. It fits if the exports sit in your own IEC. Pitfall: 20% of a thin record is a small limit.
2. Small sellers using India Post. Postal exports count the same as courier, Annexure-II para 1(c)(i). Pitfall: a chartered accountant must certify them, so keep every record. Our post on drawback and RoDTEP on courier and postal exports shows how to file those parcels so the claims reach customs.
3. Brands selling from their own website. Annexure-X para 1(d) names “non-platform-based e-commerce channels”. Pitfall: one ledger for domestic and export sales makes the certificate hard to sign.
4. Sellers holding stock abroad. Up to Rs 5 crore. Pitfall: Exim Bank’s detailed rules are still to be notified, Annexure-X para 7(a).
5. Domestic online sellers starting to export. Annexure-II para 1(b) opens the door after one year of domestic e-commerce. Pitfall: the notice does not say this replaces the export record. To find the first overseas buyers that build that record, read our posts on the Source from India listing on Trade Connect and MSME Global Mart membership.
Illustrative composite, not a client: a home decor seller with eight months of courier exports needed stock money before the festive season. The owner applied for an ordinary overdraft first and filed the DGFT intent later, though Annexure-IV para a requires it “prior to applying”. The overdraft sat outside the scheme: no cover for the bank, no 2.75% subvention. The point of no return was the day the application went in without a UIN.
How Rasp International helps
We file on the client’s behalf in the client unit’s name, and give an authority letter only when a client asks. For this notice we read your export record against the three routes, line up your IEC and Udyam details and file the DGFT intent. You and we both hold the portal logins, kept safe and confidential. We sign an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) and an SLA (service level agreement) with every client.
The credit decision stays with your bank and Exim Bank. For other bank products see trade finance options for exporters.
Honest limits
- It will not make a bank lend. Annexure-II para 3(b) leaves sanction to each bank’s “own due diligence procedures”.
- It will not protect you from default. The cover pays the bank, which still recovers the full amount from you (Annexure-X para 8(e)).
- It will not lend beyond your record. On the post or courier route the limit is 20% of past sales, whatever your plans (Annexure-X para 7(d)).
What Is Not Yet Notified, Checked on 19 October 2026
- Partner banks. The notice names none. Check with your bank whether it has registered with NCGTC as a Member Lending Institution.
- The Exim Bank circular. Check with your bank whether it has the Annexure-X circular, which reading of the 20% rule it applies and how it treats a six month record.
- ECEH and overseas inventory rules. Annexure-X para 7(a) leaves them to Exim Bank. Check with your bank.
- Rate and cover reviews. No DGFT trade notice revises the 2.75% or the cover levels, and Trade Notice 29/2026-27 of 1 October 2026 left other provisions “unchanged”. Check with your bank which apply on your sanction date.
- The cover fee. The bank pays it to the Trust (Annexure-X para 9(b)). The notice is silent on passing it to you. Check with your bank.
- The certificate format. Annexure-X para 7(d) mentions a “prescribed format” that is not attached. Check with your bank.
- “Recognised e-commerce platforms”. Annexure-X para 1(e) uses the phrase without a list. Check with the DGFT regional authority if your bank raises it.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Rs 50 lakh e-commerce export credit a loan or a subsidy?
It is a loan. Under DGFT Trade Notice 31/2025-26 a bank gives you cash credit or an overdraft that you repay in full. The government covers up to 90% of the bank’s risk and funds a 2.75% upfront interest cut. Nothing is a grant.
Which banks give the e-commerce exporter loan under Trade Notice 31/2025-26?
The notice names no bank. The direct facility comes only from scheduled commercial banks registered with NCGTC as Member Lending Institutions, Annexure-II para 6(a). The DGFT intent form lists eligible banks for you to pick. Check with your own bank whether it has registered.
Does my online marketplace sales history count?
Trade Notice 31/2025-26 names no online marketplace. Annexure-X covers sellers on “e-commerce marketplaces”, but the six month test in Annexure-II para 1(c)(i) is exporting “through postal or courier”. Take the postal or courier record behind those sales to the bank and ask how it treats your platform.
What if I have only four months of courier exports?
You do not meet the six month route in Annexure-II para 1(c)(i) yet. The other routes need stock in an overseas warehouse or an E-Commerce Export Hub. The practical step is to wait two more months, keep every courier record in your own IEC, then file.
Can a new seller with no export history apply?
Annexure-II para 1(b) makes new MSMEs with “a minimum of one year of regular domestic e-commerce operations” eligible. It does not say whether they still need the six month export record. Your limit comes from past export sales, so check with your bank before you file.
How much credit will my bank actually sanction?
On the post or courier route, Annexure-X sets the limit at up to 20% of your postal or courier e-commerce sales over two years (one paragraph says the average), capped at Rs 50 lakh. The bank sanctions the lower of that figure and its own assessment.
Do I need collateral for the e-commerce export loan?
For the direct facility, Annexure-X para 2(f) allows no collateral beyond primary security: a warehouse receipt, a charge on your stock or a charge over your receivables. The notice says nothing similar for the overseas inventory facility, so check with your bank.
What documents do I need before I go to the bank?
Annexure-IV asks for a valid IEC, Udyam registration linked to it and a chartered accountant’s certificate on three years of revenue and export turnover. File the intent on the DGFT portal and carry the UIN. The bank also needs a certificate on two years of postal or courier exports.
Do I need an RCMC to apply for this credit?
The Annexure-IV document list does not include a Registration cum Membership Certificate (RCMC). Separately, DGFT Notification 36/2026-27 dated 15 September 2026 removed the RCMC requirement for an export consignment with a free on board (FOB) value up to Rs 3,00,000. Larger consignments still need one where the policy requires it.
Does the credit cover every product and HS code?
No. Annexure-V excludes goods prohibited for export under Schedule-II of ITC(HS) 2022, trade with sanctioned countries and products “deemed illegal under host country laws”. Restricted items such as wildlife and forestry products are allowed only on export policy conditions. The intent form asks for HS codes.
Can I take this 2.75% and the EPM interest subvention together?
Not on the same credit. Trade Notice 20/2025-26 runs a separate 2.75% subvention on pre-shipment and post-shipment export credit. The Annexure-IV declaration confirms the help is not availed under any other government scheme “for the same activity”. Use one scheme per credit line.
How long does approval take after the bank applies?
Annexure-II para 6(d) gives Exim Bank three business days for in-principle approval and NCGTC one business day to approve. That clock starts only after your bank has appraised and sanctioned the facility. The notice sets no time limit for the bank’s own appraisal.
What happens if I cannot repay the loan?
The bank may claim from the Trust after the account turns NPA, but Annexure-X para 8(e) keeps its full recourse to you. Para 8(h) allows defaulted borrowers to be listed on the Trust’s website. While money stays owed to the Trust, para 5(d) bars fresh support.
Is my DGFT intent valid for more than one year?
No. Annexure-IV para d says each declaration of intent stays valid until the end of the financial year in which you file it. If your bank has not sanctioned by 31 March, file a fresh intent on the DGFT portal and give the bank the new UIN.
Do I need a consultant to apply?
No. You can file the intent on the DGFT portal and deal with your bank yourself. A consultant can check your record against the notice, match your IEC and Udyam details and assemble the bank file. Nobody can promise a sanction: the bank decides.
Your checklist for this week
- Count the months of postal or courier exports made in your own IEC.
- Check that your Udyam registration is linked to your IEC with the same name and address.
- Ask your chartered accountant for three years of turnover and two years of postal and courier export figures.
- Ask your bank whether it is registered with NCGTC as a Member Lending Institution.
Sources
- Tier 1. DGFT Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26 dated 6 March 2026, Credit Assistance for E-Commerce Exporters, with annexures: content.dgft.gov.in.
- Tier 1. DGFT Trade Notice No. 29/2026-27 dated 1 October 2026, revised Sub-Committee on Trade Finance: content.dgft.gov.in.
- Tier 1. DGFT Trade Notice No. 20/2025-26 dated 2 January 2026, Interest Subvention for Pre- and Post-Shipment Export Credit: content.dgft.gov.in.
- Tier 1. DGFT Notification No. 36/2026-27 dated 15 September 2026, RCMC exemption for low value exports: content.dgft.gov.in.
- Tier 1. DGFT trade notice list, checked on 19 October 2026, no amendment to Trade Notice 31/2025-26 found: dgft.gov.in.
This is general guidance. Rules change. Check the current notification or order, or speak to us, before you act.
Related: Cross border e-commerce export setup | No RCMC needed for exports up to Rs 3 lakh | IEC registration | Exporting by India Post from Uttar Pradesh
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