Export Promotion Mission (EPM) 2026: Every Scheme, Trade Notice and Deadline

Updated 9 August 2026. This post reflects Trade Notice No. 17/2026-27 dated 7 August 2026, which transferred the interest subvention Implementing Agency from the Reserve Bank of India to Exim Bank. We have read every operative trade notice in the Export Promotion Mission chain directly.

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The short answer, before anything else

The Export Promotion Mission is a six year, Rs 25,060 crore central scheme approved by the Union Cabinet on 12 November 2025, running FY 2025-26 to FY 2030-31, with the Directorate General of Foreign Trade as the nodal implementing agency.

It has two arms. Niryat Protsahan is money: cheaper credit, guarantees, factoring. Niryat Disha is everything that is not money: certification reimbursement, logistics, warehousing, market access, branding and trade intelligence.

There are 11 interventions across the two arms. All 11 are now operational, the last one having launched on 14 July 2026.

One insight matters more than any figure here. Uptake is tiny relative to who qualifies. As of the official position reported in July 2026, only 140 exporters had registered for collateral support while 8,459 had registered for interest subvention. The binding constraint is awareness and paperwork, not eligibility.

And one rule decides whether your interest subvention claim survives at all: the UIN must exist before the money is disbursed. DGFT has stated in writing that cases where the loan has been disbursed but the UIN has not been generated will not be considered under the scheme.

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Breaking: RBI is out, Exim Bank is in

On 7 August 2026, DGFT issued Trade Notice No. 17/2026-27, moving the Implementing Agency for the entire interest subvention scheme from the Reserve Bank of India to the Export-Import Bank of India, with effect from 1 April 2026.

Read those dates again. The notice is dated 7 August. The transition took effect 1 April. Four months of claims have already run under a framework that was only formally notified this month.

The decision was taken at the 4th Steering Committee meeting on the Interest Subvention Scheme.

The one carve-out that matters if you have a pending claim: supplementary or additional claims from lending banks for the January to March 2026 quarter continue to be processed by RBI. Everything from 1 April 2026 onward goes to Exim Bank.

What this changes for you as an exporter: nothing in what you file or where you file it. You still generate the UIN on the DGFT portal and your bank still passes the 2.75% to you upfront. What changes is who reimburses your bank. If your bank is telling you a post-April claim is sitting with RBI, that is the wrong desk.

What it signals: moving delivery from the central bank to a dedicated export finance institution mid-pilot is not cosmetic. Exim Bank already administers the Emerging Export Opportunities guarantee through its Trade Assistance Programme. It is now the operational spine of Niryat Protsahan.

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Why we are writing this instead of another scheme summary

Our family has been in international trade out of Agra since 2005. Rasp International is an ISO 9001:2015 certified EXIM consultancy and we have handled liaison, DGFT licensing, customs and incentive recovery for over 500 export clients across food and agriculture, engineering, textiles, handicrafts, leather, chemicals and consumer goods.

Here is the evidence that awareness, not eligibility, is the problem.

Under the Export Promotion Mission, the collateral support intervention had only 140 exporters registered since its January 2026 rollout, with CGTMSE facilitating just 159 UINs in six months. In the same window, the interest subvention component of the same mission had 8,459 exporters registered and Exim Bank facilitated over 20,000 UINs.

Same government. Same portal. Same target audience. A sixtyfold difference.

This is not our opinion. The gap figured in discussions at the Board of Trade meeting chaired by the Commerce and Industry Minister in early July 2026, after which DGFT urged state governments to engage their State Level Bankers’ Committees and run sensitisation through District Industries Centres and MSME District Facilitation Offices.

When the government itself is telling banks and district offices that exporters do not know a scheme exists, the problem is not the scheme.

We see the identical failure mode in RoDTEP every year. Eligible product, eligible exporter, correct HS code, claim dead, because a declaration was not ticked on the shipping bill and cannot be added retrospectively.

The Export Promotion Mission has the same shape of trap in several places. This post maps every one of them.

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What is the Export Promotion Mission?

EPM was announced in Union Budget 2025-26 and approved by the Union Cabinet on 12 November 2025.

What it consolidated. EPM merges the Interest Equalisation Scheme, which lapsed on 31 December 2024, and the Market Access Initiative into a single outcome-based framework. The Union Budget tables confirm this in black and white: Interest Equalisation Scheme shows Rs 2,482 crore actual in 2024-25 then Nil from 2025-26 onward, and Market Access Initiative shows Rs 215 crore actual then Nil.

We found no primary confirmation that any scheme beyond IES and MAI has been formally folded in. Treat claims that RoDTEP or RoSCTL are already inside EPM with caution. As of August 2026 they remain separate.

Governance. Anchored by the Department of Commerce, with the Ministry of MSME, Ministry of Finance, Export Promotion Councils, Commodity Boards, financial institutions and state governments. Each intervention has its own Sub-Committee that sets ceilings and positive lists.

Three portals, and confusing them is the most common mistake.

• dgft.gov.in is where you file the Intent to Avail or Intent to Claim and generate the UIN
• Trade Connect ePlatform at trade.gov.in hosts the scheme guideline PDFs and Market Access Support applications
• Exim Bank runs the bank-facing side for the Emerging Export Opportunities guarantee and, since 1 April 2026, the interest subvention claim settlement

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Every EPM intervention on one screen

This is the table nobody else has built. Every operational intervention, its arm, what it gives you, the cap, and the launching trade notice. Verify against the operative notice before filing, because several are pilots under active revision.

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The complete trade notice chain

Every article ranking for EPM cites one or two notices. Here is the full amendment history for the interest subvention intervention alone. Seven notices in seven months on a single intervention.

Parallel notices launched the other interventions: 21/2025-26 Collateral Support, 25/2025-26 Export Factoring, 26/2025-26 TRACE, 27/2025-26 INSIGHT, 28/2025-26 FLOW, 29/2025-26 LIFT, 31/2025-26 e-Commerce Credit, 32/2025-26 Emerging Export Opportunities, 09/2026-27 TRACE revision and 12/2026-27 Global Outreach for Branding.

We have read every notice in the table above directly, from the operative DGFT PDFs. Where two notices conflict, we say which one governs rather than quietly picking one.

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Niryat Protsahan, the money arm

Interest Subvention: the twelve rules that actually decide your claim

Launched by Trade Notice No. 20/2025-26 dated 02 January 2026 and amended six times since. The headline is 2.75% per annum on pre and post shipment rupee export credit, capped at Rs 50 lakh per IEC per financial year.

The headline is the easy part. These twelve rules, drawn from Trade Notice No. 22/2025-26 dated 16 January 2026 and Trade Notice No. 33/2025-26 dated 20 March 2026, are what determine whether you actually get paid.

1. The trigger is disbursal, not sanction. TN 22 originally worded this as credit sanctioned on or after 02.01.2026. TN 33 restates it as credit disbursed on or after 2 January 2026. Anything disbursed before that date is not eligible, full stop.

2. Your rate is set on the date of disbursal. TN 22 said the rate was fixed at the date of sanction. TN 33 states that the applicable rate is the one prevailing on the date of loan disbursal. TN 33 is the later notice and it does not delete the earlier clause, so both sit in the guidelines. In practice, work to the disbursal date and confirm with your bank. Rates are reviewed every six months, in April and October.

3. No UIN, no subvention. This is the single biggest rejection cause. TN 33 states that the UIN must be generated on or before the date of disbursal, failing which subvention is not admissible for that disbursal. It goes further: cases where the loan has been disbursed but the UIN has not been generated will not be considered under the scheme. Later notices adjusted timing for FY 2025-26 and set a 15 day window for FY 2026-27, but the safe practice is unchanged. Generate the UIN before the money moves.

4. UIN and UDIN are the same thing, and your old IES number is dead. TN 33 confirms that UIN and UDIN on DGFT-generated documents refer to the same identifier. The EPM format is EPMIESxxxxxxxxxxxx. Critically, a UIN obtained under the erstwhile Interest Equalisation Scheme is not eligible to pass subvention under EPM. If you are holding an old IES UIN and assuming it carries over, it does not.

5. You can only apply for a UIN against a listed HS code. The system checks the notified Positive List at the time of application. Off-list, no UIN.

6. Positive list additions are prospective, and removals are asymmetric. No retrospective benefit when a tariff line is added. Subvention runs only on credit disbursed on or after the date of inclusion. If a line is later made ineligible, pre-shipment credit already disbursed stays eligible, but no subvention is admissible on any post-shipment credit disbursed after that point.

7. Deemed exports are out. Not admissible for deemed exports as defined under Chapter 7 of the Foreign Trade Policy 2023.

8. An NPA stops the clock. TN 33 states that subvention is not admissible from the date the loan account is classified as a Non-Performing Asset, and no benefit is extended with effect from that date.

9. Early repayment is pro-rated. If you repay the entire loan in advance, the bank reports the foreclosure and subvention applies only for the actual period the credit remained outstanding.

10. Top-ups are treated as fresh exposure. Where a facility is renewed with a top-up, only the additional amount disbursed counts as fresh credit exposure and takes the rate applicable on the date of that disbursement. The existing outstanding portion keeps the rate that applied at its original disbursement.

11. Multi-bank exporters carry the risk personally. This is the one that will burn people. Where an exporter avails credit from more than one lending institution, the responsibility to keep aggregate subvention claims within the annual ceiling rests solely with the beneficiary exporter, and any excess is recoverable. TN 33 adds that banks may obtain an undertaking from the exporter confirming cross-bank subvention does not exceed Rs 50 lakh per IEC. Your banks do not talk to each other. If two of them claim, the recovery comes to you.

12. MSME graduation buys you three years, and the annual ceiling is not pro-rated. Exporters graduating out of their MSME category during the financial year remain eligible for three years from re-classification, per Ministry of MSME Notification S.O. 4926(E) dated 18 October 2022. Separately, the FY 2025-26 annual ceiling applies in full regardless of when your facility was sanctioned.

One further point on wording that matters. TN 22 changed “credit cost element” to interest cost. Banks set their own rates at commercial discretion. Subvention applies to the interest cost actually borne by you, at the notified rate.

What about steel under interest subvention?

Steel was initially outside the positive list. Trade Notice No. 01/2026-27 dated 20 April 2026 inserted Annexure-IIA, adding 167 Chapter 72 tariff lines at HS six-digit level, covering pig iron, ferro-alloys, flat-rolled products, bars, rods, sections, wire, stainless and alloy steel.

The restriction is significant: micro and small enterprises only. The notice states plainly that medium enterprises are not eligible for interest subvention on exports covered under Annexure-IIA. Eligibility is prospective, so only credit disbursed on or after 20 April 2026 qualifies.

The UIN rules, consolidated

• Generate on the DGFT portal via an Intent to Avail, before disbursal
• Format is EPMIESxxxxxxxxxxxx. UIN and UDIN are the same number
• A UIN from the old Interest Equalisation Scheme does not work under EPM
• No portability. Change your lending bank and you must generate a fresh UIN reflecting the revised bank details. The existing UIN is not transferred
• You can only apply for a UIN against an HS code on the notified Positive List at the time of application
• Valid for one year from date of generation
• Application fee Rs 200
• IEC status is verified by the online system at intent-to-claim. Banks can also verify IEC status on the DGFT website, and Open APIs are hosted on API Setu for bank system consumption

How your bank files the claim, per the workflow inserted by TN 33: the bank registers on the online portal, logs in, enters the list of borrower UINs in the designated field, reviews the borrower details as submitted at intent-to-claim, then adds the loan-level information. Claims are IEC-wise, monthly, within 15 days of month end, online only, certified by an external auditor. Since 1 April 2026 they go to Exim Bank.

Collateral Support for Export Credit

Trade Notice No. 21/2025-26 dated 02 January 2026, administered by CGTMSE on a pilot basis.

• Credit guarantee coverage up to 85% for micro and small exporters and 65% for medium exporters, subject to notified ceilings
• Maximum guarantee limit of Rs 10 crore per exporter for FY 2025-26
• Coverage limited to export-linked working capital credit. Not domestic working capital
• Applicable to MSME exporters engaged in merchandise exports under the notified positive list of HSN six-digit tariff lines

This is the intervention with the 140-exporter uptake. If you have been refused an export loan for want of collateral, this is your route.

Support for Alternative Trade Instruments, export factoring

Trade Notice No. 25/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026. A 2.75% interest subvention on the factoring cost for eligible MSMEs with a valid IEC and Udyam registration. Recourse and non-recourse factoring, in INR or freely convertible foreign currency, through RBI or IFSCA recognised entities. Cap Rs 50 lakh per IEC per financial year, restricted to the notified positive list.

Credit Assistance for e-Commerce Exporters

Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26 dated 06 March 2026. Two instruments.

• Direct e-Commerce Credit Facility: up to Rs 50 lakh, 90% guarantee cover, 0.5% per annum guarantee fee, tenure up to 365 days
• Overseas Inventory Credit Facility: up to Rs 5 crore, 75% guarantee cover, 1.0% per annum guarantee fee
• Interest subvention: 2.75% upfront, annual ceiling Rs 15 lakh per applicant

Rates and coverage are reviewed twice a year, on 1 April and 1 October, by the Sub-Committee on Trade Finance.

Support for Emerging Export Opportunities

Trade Notice No. 32/2025-26 dated 06 March 2026, administered through Exim Bank’s Trade Assistance Programme. This scales up guarantees for Letter of Credit backed transactions in new or high-risk markets, where banks otherwise refuse to confirm LCs.

• Risk share of 10% to 90% of transaction value, based on a defined risk model
• Maximum Liability Permissible caps: 15% country-wise, 5% exporter-wise, 1% transaction-wise, 10% issuing-bank-wise

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Not sure which of these five applies to your IEC? Most exporters qualify for two or three at once and claim none of them. Talk to Rasp International | WhatsApp: +91 82180 43048

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Niryat Disha, the non-money arm

TRACE, certification and compliance reimbursement

Launched by Trade Notice No. 26/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026 and substantially revised by Trade Notice No. 09/2026-27 dated 1 July 2026. Reimbursement is now up to 95% for micro and small enterprises and 80% for medium, capped at Rs 50 lakh per IEC per financial year, with merit-based exceptions above the cap via a dedicated Sub-Committee. Disbursement is in two stages, 50% on certification and 50% on proof of linked exports. The eligible certification directory has expanded to 462 entries.

The rule that decides everything: you must file an Intent-to-Claim before certification begins. We have written TRACE up in full, including the 462-entry directory and the two-stage disbursement mechanics, in our dedicated TRACE guide. If certification cost is your problem, start there. See also our page on product certifications for exporters.

Market Access Support, MAS

• Outlay Rs 4,531 crore over six years, with Rs 500 crore earmarked for FY 2025-26, of which roughly Rs 330 crore clears legacy Market Access Initiative arrears
• Covers Buyer-Seller Meets, Reverse Buyer-Seller Meets, trade fairs, exhibitions and trade delegations
• Government bears 60% of cost, up to 80% for priority sectors including handicrafts, handlooms, leather, agriculture and sports goods
• Caps of Rs 5 crore per BSM, Rs 10 crore per Reverse BSM and Rs 5 crore per trade delegation
• At least 35% MSME participation is mandatory in every supported BSM and trade delegation
• Small exporters with prior-year turnover up to Rs 75 lakh get partial airfare support

FLOW, overseas warehousing and fulfilment

Trade Notice No. 28/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026. Four sub-interventions, each at 30% of proposal cost.

Eligible expenditure is restricted to lease or rental charges, common facility costs and operational expenses directly attributable to the approved project. Capital expenditure is explicitly excluded. Assistance runs a maximum of three years.

Individual exporters cannot apply. Eligible entities are Export Promotion Councils and Commodity Boards recognised under Appendix 2T of the FTP, logistics or warehousing or fulfilment service providers with demonstrable international operations, industry associations and recognised exporter clusters, Central and State Government organisations, and entities recommended by government or by a State or District Export Promotion Committee. Only entities incorporated in India qualify.

The MSME condition is your way in. Approved projects must ensure a minimum of 20% of annual merchandise volumes are provided to Indian MSMEs. If you are a small exporter, you do not file, you get onto an approved project.

Proposals are submitted through an online form specified in the trade notice, not the DGFT portal. Stakeholder feedback goes to epm-dgft@gov.in. Funds release in two or more instalments against milestones and utilisation certificates, and advances are refundable with interest if objectives are not met.

LIFT, freight and transport for remote districts

Trade Notice No. 29/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026. Partial reimbursement of 30% of eligible inland freight, capped at Rs 20 lakh per IEC per financial year, targeted at low-export-intensity areas including all districts of the North East, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Uttarakhand and Bihar.

INSIGHT, trade intelligence and facilitation

Trade Notice No. 27/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026. Institution-facing, under the Districts as Export Hubs programme. It funds capacity building, district facilitation cells and trade intelligence systems. It does not pay individual exporters directly.

Global Outreach for Branding, Labelling and Export Packaging

Trade Notice No. 12/2026-27 dated 14 July 2026. The eleventh and final intervention, which completes the Mission architecture. The numbers here are the largest in the whole Mission.

Eligible applicants are Central and State Government departments, Department of Commerce offices and regional offices, the Ministry of External Affairs and Indian Missions Abroad, EPCs and Commodity Boards under Appendix 2T, and other industry associations. Export clusters and District Export Hubs may apply through a nominated lead implementing entity. An individual exporter cannot file for this directly.

The Trust Mark is the part that reaches you. The Unified Brand India umbrella is anchored by a Trust Mark, a multi-tier audit-led certification that exporters must earn before carrying the Brand India identity. Three or more tiers, sized to different stages of international readiness, with a defined progression pathway. It is fee-based and subject to periodic audit and re-certification.

Here is the window. Trust Mark fees are waived for an initial period of two years, extendable, stated in the notice as a first-mover advantage to encourage MSME and emerging exporter participation. Adoption is voluntary. That waiver started on 14 July 2026.

The ten priority sectors in the initial rollout are Food Processing, Textiles and Apparel, Leather and Footwear, Handicrafts and Geographical Indication products, Wellness and AYUSH, Hospitality and Medical Tourism, Pharmaceuticals, Engineering and Automotive, Gems and Jewellery, and Cosmetics.

Named implementation partners include the National Institute of Design, the Indian Institute of Packaging, the National Institute of Fashion Technology and the India Brand Equity Foundation. Governance sits with a Brand India Committee chaired by the Director General of Foreign Trade, with the CEO of India Brand Equity Foundation as Vice-Chairperson.

One detail worth noting for handicrafts and gems exporters: the notice provides for cross-sector coupling of Tourism with Handicrafts, Geographical Indications and Gems and Jewellery, to generate pull-through demand from cultural visitors in international markets. For an Agra exporter that is not an abstraction. See our work on export branding.

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Certification, warehousing or freight bills piling up? Most of it is reimbursable. Rasp International files the intent, tags the exports and chases the disbursement. Contact Rasp International | WhatsApp: +91 82180 43048

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CGSE vs Collateral Support: the confusion nobody clears up

Almost every article online treats these as the same scheme. They are not. Mixing them up will get your file sent to the wrong desk.

CGSE was approved by Cabinet on 12 November 2025 and made operational on the Jansamarth Portal from 1 December 2025. It enables 100% guaranteed collateral free loans up to Rs 50 crore to eligible exporters, both direct and indirect, to meet short term liquidity challenges and explore new markets. Eligibility requires MSME exporters to have export turnover of at least 5% of total turnover, non-MSMEs at least 20%, and MSMEs supplying at least 30% of turnover to direct exporters. Accounts must be Standard, not SMA-2 or NPA, as on the reference date of 30 September 2025.

An open question we are not going to paper over. Every primary source we can reach states CGSE validity as until Rs 20,000 crore of guarantees are issued or 31 March 2026, whichever is earlier. We have found no notification extending it. The NCGTC product page remains live, which suggests the scheme is still operating, but the notice ticker on that page refers to a different product for micro finance institutions and says nothing about CGSE. Confirm the current position with NCGTC or your Member Lending Institution before relying on it. See also our page on trade finance and ECGC.

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Who qualifies, and who does not

The baseline for every intervention is a valid Importer Exporter Code. Most Niryat Protsahan credit interventions additionally require Udyam registration and MSME status, and your merchandise must fall on the notified HSN positive list for that specific intervention.

Who does not qualify, or should check carefully:

• Off-list HS codes. If your product is not on the positive list for that intervention, you get nothing regardless of size. This kills more claims than any other factor
• Medium enterprises on the Chapter 72 steel lines. Annexure-IIA is micro and small only
• Deemed exports. Explicitly excluded from interest subvention
• Domestic working capital. Not covered by the export-linked guarantee interventions
• Accounts that have turned NPA. Subvention stops from the date of classification
• Individual exporters applying to FLOW, INSIGHT or Global Outreach for Branding. These are institution-facing. You participate through an approved project, you do not file directly

The MSME graduation grace you must not forget. If you graduated from micro to small, or small to medium, you keep eligibility for three years from the date of upward reclassification, per Ministry of MSME Notification S.O. 4926(E) dated 18 October 2022. For EPM that can mean a recently graduated exporter still claims the higher micro and small rate. Note also that export turnover is excluded when computing MSME turnover thresholds, so exporting does not by itself push you up a category.

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How to actually apply, step by step

Sourced from the DGFT Export Promotion Mission Module V1.0 exporter help file. This is the section every other write-up skips.

Five prerequisites before you start:

1. Valid login credentials on the DGFT portal
2. An active IEC
3. An active DSC or Aadhaar e-sign of a firm member for submission
4. Your firm’s bank account active and validated in the IEC profile. Without this the UIN will not generate
5. IEC DEL status must be N

The path: log in at dgft.gov.in, then Services, then Export Promotion Mission (EPM). You will see tiles for Interest Subvention for Pre and Post Shipment Export Credit, Collateral Support for Export Credit, and an FAQ or Help Manual. Pick your scheme, then Start Fresh Application or resume a saved draft.

Seven tabs, in order:

1. Application Type. Select the scheme. A warning is printed on the screen: once you proceed you cannot change the scheme. To apply for a different one you must start a fresh application
2. Basic Details. Your ARN generates here. The system pulls IEC number, PAN, firm name, incorporation date, IEC issuance date, nature of concern and exporter type. You fill applicant name and contact. Then Address Details, where you pick a branch already added to your IEC. Then MSME details, auto-pulled from Udyam. Then Annual Turn Over for the last three financial years, both total turnover and export turnover in crore INR. Then a declaration that your ANF-1 profile is updated
3. Other Details. Number of employees, SC or ST and women applicant flags, whether you are from a North Eastern State, whether you have availed any other benefit. Then Bank Details, where only validated banks from your IEC appear and you select exactly one. Then Loan Details: amount applied for, estimated interest rate, invoice date, and whether it is pre-export or post-export credit
4. Item Details. Sector, ITC(HS) code, product description, technical characteristics, country of export. Critical constraint: one sector per application. You can add multiple ITC(HS) codes within that sector, but a second sector means a second application
5. Attachment. Export Orders or scheme attachments depending on the scheme selected. PDF or JPG only, maximum 5 attachments of 5MB each
6. Declaration. Includes an undertaking that you have not availed benefits under the Production Linked Incentive Scheme
7. Summary. Print it, check the fee, then Sign

On payment of Rs 200, a File number and a UIN generate. The UIN appears in your Acknowledgement Letter and is valid one year from generation.

To track it: My Dashboard, then Submitted Applications, select Export Promotion Mission as Type of scheme, Search, then Action, then View Approved License or Rejection Letter.

Why claims stall on the bank side. Your bank registers a Bank Official login, goes to My Dashboard then the application room, and files the claim return. An external auditor certificate is mandatory on every upload. Bulk upload is recommended above 25 cases. The bank can save a draft, route it internally for review, or submit directly.

The cap is enforced by the system, not by argument. The portal throws a hard error and refuses to save the draft once an IEC crosses Rs 50 lakh in a financial year. There is no appeal at the portal level.

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What the budget actually says about EPM

The Rs 25,060 crore headline is a six-year ceiling. What has actually been provisioned is a different number, and it is public in the Union Budget documents under Demand No. 10, Department of Commerce.

Two years in, Rs 4,550 crore is committed against a Rs 25,060 crore outlay. That is 18% of the money across 33% of the mission’s life. To spend the remainder, the last four years would need roughly Rs 5,127 crore a year, more than double the current run rate.

The figure cross-checks. Rs 1,440 crore was earmarked for Niryat Protsahan in the current financial year. Add roughly Rs 860 crore for Niryat Disha and you land on the Rs 2,300 crore Budget Estimate exactly.

The adjacent schemes are being squeezed at the same time. RoDTEP drops from Rs 18,232.50 crore in the Revised Estimate for 2025-26 to Rs 10,000 crore for 2026-27. RoSCTL drops from Rs 10,010.38 crore to Rs 5,000 crore. Budget documents propose converging both into EPM after appraisal and approval, which as of August 2026 has not happened.

The verdict this leads to. The pot is smaller than the headline suggests and the queue is currently short. Both of those are temporary. File while they are still true.

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Which EPM scheme is right for you

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Sector cuts: what to claim

Handicrafts. Stack TRACE for buyer-required certifications at up to 95% for micro and small, MAS for international trade fairs where handicrafts is a priority sector at up to 80% cost share, and interest subvention on packing credit. Handicrafts and GI products are also in the initial ten sectors for Brand India, and the Trust Mark fee waiver is live.

Textiles and apparel. A priority tariff-impacted sector. Interest subvention plus TRACE plus MAS. Check RoSCTL separately, which runs outside EPM.

Engineering goods. Interest subvention subject to your HS code, TRACE for CE and country certifications, and Emerging Export Opportunities for LC cover in new markets. If you are micro or small and in Chapter 72, Annexure-IIA reopened interest subvention for you in April 2026.

Marine and seafood. TRACE covers aquaculture and chain-of-custody certifications, and FLOW supports cold-chain overseas warehousing through an approved project.

Leather and footwear. A priority sector for MAS and one of the ten Brand India sectors. TRACE for restricted-substance and compliance testing, plus interest subvention on credit.

Food and agriculture. TRACE covers food safety and organic certifications, MAS treats agriculture as a priority sector, and LIFT applies if you ship from an interior district. Food Processing is first on the Brand India sector list.

Our export incentives page maps the full incentive stack across schemes.

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How we actually run an EPM file

1. IEC and Udyam audit. We confirm your codes, category and that export turnover is excluded correctly from your MSME threshold
2. HS-line positive-list check. Before anything else, we confirm your product is on the operative positive list for each intervention. This kills most doomed claims before they cost you anything
3. Intervention mapping. We map your profile to every intervention you can stack, and flag the ones where you participate through a project rather than file directly
4. Intent filing and UIN sequencing. We file the Intent to Avail and generate the UIN before disbursal, on the correct portal, in the correct window
5. Bank and lender coordination. For credit interventions we align your lending bank, CGTMSE or NCGTC and the timelines. A UIN generated late or against the wrong bank is a dead claim
6. Cross-bank ceiling control. If you borrow from more than one lender we track aggregate claims against the Rs 50 lakh ceiling, because that liability sits with you and not with your banks
7. Revision watch. These are pilots. Seven notices landed on interest subvention in seven months. We track every new trade notice so a live claim is not overtaken by a mid-year change

See also our DGFT consultancy and DGFT updates pages.

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What this Mission will not do for you

• It will not cover an off-list HS code. No amount of paperwork puts an excluded tariff line onto the positive list
• It will not fix a missing UIN. DGFT has stated that disbursed loans without a generated UIN are not considered under the scheme. There is no retrospective route
• Reimbursements are export-linked, not grants. Miss the linked-export proof under TRACE and the second instalment lapses, with the first recoverable
• The budgets are finite and several are pilots. Annual allocations can run out. Late filing risks pro-rata or nil settlement, the same risk we flag every year on RoDTEP
• Approval and disbursal can lag. The delivery machinery is still being built, as the mid-pilot transfer from RBI to Exim Bank shows. Plan cash flow accordingly

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The RoDTEP and export obligation position, since it interacts with EPM

• RoDTEP has been extended to 30 September 2026, with rates unchanged from those in force on 31 March 2026
• Rates were cut to 50% in February 2026 and restored on 23 March 2026
• The FY 2026-27 allocation is cut to Rs 10,000 crore from Rs 18,232.50 crore. File promptly. See our RoDTEP rates 2026 guide
• A trade notification effective 1 May 2026 added 142 new tariff lines and omitted 50 across Schedules 4R and 4RE
• Export Obligation periods for Advance Authorisation and EPCG expiring between 1 March and 31 May 2026 were extended to 31 August 2026, automatically, with no application and no fee. See our EPCG guide

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Frequently asked questions

What is the Export Promotion Mission?

It is a six-year, Rs 25,060 crore central scheme approved on 12 November 2025, running FY 2025-26 to FY 2030-31, that consolidates India’s export support into two arms, Niryat Protsahan and Niryat Disha, implemented by DGFT.

What is the difference between Niryat Protsahan and Niryat Disha?

Niryat Protsahan, roughly Rs 10,401 crore, provides financial enablers such as interest subvention, guarantees and factoring. Niryat Disha, roughly Rs 14,659 crore, provides non-financial enablers such as certification reimbursement, warehousing, freight support, market access, branding and trade intelligence.

How many interventions are there under EPM?

Eleven, and all eleven are operational as of August 2026. The last one, Global Outreach for Branding, Labelling and Export Packaging, launched on 14 July 2026.

Who is the implementing agency for the EPM interest subvention scheme?

Exim Bank, since 1 April 2026. Trade Notice No. 17/2026-27 dated 7 August 2026 transferred the role from the Reserve Bank of India. Legacy claims for the January to March 2026 quarter continue to be processed by RBI.

How much interest subvention do exporters get under EPM?

2.75% per annum on pre and post shipment rupee export credit, capped at Rs 50 lakh per IEC per financial year.

Can I claim interest subvention on export credit disbursed before January 2026?

No. Trade Notice No. 33/2025-26 states that subvention is admissible only on export credit, pre-shipment and post-shipment, disbursed on or after 2 January 2026.

What happens if my loan is disbursed but I have not generated the UIN?

The claim fails. Trade Notice No. 33/2025-26 states that the UIN must be generated on or before the date of disbursal, and that cases where the loan has been disbursed but the UIN has not been generated will not be considered under the scheme.

Can I use my old Interest Equalisation Scheme UIN under EPM?

No. Trade Notice No. 33/2025-26 states that a UIN obtained under the erstwhile Interest Equalisation Scheme is not eligible to pass subvention benefits under EPM interest subvention. You need a fresh EPM UIN, which carries the format EPMIESxxxxxxxxxxxx.

Is the UIN the same as the UDIN on my DGFT documents?

Yes. Trade Notice No. 33/2025-26 confirms that UIN and UDIN indicated on documents generated on the DGFT portal refer to the same unique identification number for the interest subvention benefit.

What happens if I change my lending bank mid-year?

You must generate a fresh UIN reflecting the revised bank details. Portability is not permitted and the existing UIN is not transferred to the new bank.

What happens if I repay my export loan early?

Interest subvention applies only for the actual period the credit remained outstanding. The lending institution reports the early foreclosure.

Is a top-up on an existing credit facility eligible for subvention?

Only the additional amount disbursed is treated as fresh credit exposure, at the rate applicable on the date of that disbursement. The existing outstanding portion continues at the rate that applied at its original disbursement.

Is steel covered under the EPM interest subvention?

Partly. Trade Notice No. 01/2026-27 dated 20 April 2026 added 167 Chapter 72 tariff lines through Annexure-IIA, but only for micro and small enterprises. Medium enterprises remain excluded on those lines, and the benefit applies only to credit disbursed on or after 20 April 2026.

What happens if my HS code is added to the positive list later?

No retrospective benefit. Subvention is available only on eligible export credit disbursed on or after the date the tariff line was included.

What happens if my HS code is removed from the positive list?

Pre-shipment credit already disbursed before the line became ineligible continues to be eligible for subvention. No subvention is admissible on any post-shipment export credit disbursed after that point.

What happens if I take export credit from two different banks?

The responsibility for keeping your aggregate subvention claims within the Rs 50 lakh annual ceiling rests solely with you, not with the banks. Any excess claimed is recoverable from you, and banks may require an undertaking confirming your cross-bank claims stay within the limit.

Is interest subvention available on deemed exports?

No. Trade Notice No. 22/2025-26 explicitly excludes deemed exports as defined under Chapter 7 of the Foreign Trade Policy 2023.

What if my export credit account becomes an NPA?

Interest subvention is not admissible from the date the loan account is classified as a Non-Performing Asset, and no subvention benefit is extended with effect from that date.

How much does it cost to apply for EPM on the DGFT portal?

Rs 200. The File number and UIN generate on successful payment, and the UIN is valid for one year from the date of generation.

Can I apply for multiple sectors in one EPM application?

No. One sector per application. You can add multiple ITC(HS) codes within that sector, but a second sector requires a fresh application.

Can I change the scheme after starting an EPM application?

No. Once you select an Application Type and proceed, the scheme is locked. To apply for a different scheme you must start a fresh application.

What is the difference between CGSE and Collateral Support under EPM?

CGSE is a separate Rs 20,000 crore scheme run by NCGTC with 100% lender guarantee and a Rs 50 crore per borrower cap, applied for through the Jansamarth Portal. Collateral Support is an EPM intervention run by CGTMSE with 85% and 65% cover and a Rs 10 crore per exporter cap, applied for through the DGFT portal.

Has the Credit Guarantee Scheme for Exporters been extended beyond March 2026?

All primary sources state validity until Rs 20,000 crore is issued or 31 March 2026, whichever is earlier. We have found no notification extending it. Confirm the current status with NCGTC or your lending bank before relying on it.

What is TRACE under the Export Promotion Mission?

Trade Regulations, Accreditation and Compliance Enablement, which reimburses testing, inspection and certification costs, up to 95% for micro and small exporters and 80% for medium, capped at Rs 50 lakh per IEC per financial year. You must file an Intent-to-Claim before certification begins.

What is MAS under the Export Promotion Mission?

Market Access Support, a Rs 4,531 crore intervention funding trade fairs, buyer-seller meets and delegations, with a 60% government cost share rising to 80% for priority sectors, and mandatory 35% MSME participation.

What is the FLOW scheme?

Facilitating Logistics, Overseas Warehousing and Fulfilment, which funds 30% of overseas warehousing and fulfilment project cost, up to Rs 10 crore a year for warehousing, for up to three years. Capital expenditure is excluded.

Who can apply for the FLOW scheme?

Not individual exporters. Eligible entities are EPCs, Commodity Boards, logistics and warehousing service providers with international operations, industry associations, exporter clusters and Government organisations. Approved projects must route at least 20% of annual merchandise volumes to Indian MSMEs.

What is the LIFT scheme?

An intervention that reimburses 30% of eligible inland freight, capped at Rs 20 lakh per IEC per financial year, targeted at exporters in low-export-intensity districts including the North East, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Uttarakhand and Bihar.

What is INSIGHT under EPM?

An institution-facing intervention for trade intelligence, capacity building and district facilitation under the Districts as Export Hubs programme. It does not pay individual exporters directly.

What is the Trust Mark under Brand India?

A multi-tier, audit-led certification that exporters must earn before carrying the Unified Brand India identity, introduced by Trade Notice No. 12/2026-27. It is fee-based, but fees are waived for an initial period of two years from July 2026.

How much has actually been allocated to EPM in the budget?

Rs 2,250 crore in 2025-26 and Rs 2,300 crore for 2026-27, against a six-year headline outlay of Rs 25,060 crore. Two years in, roughly 18% of the total is committed.

Why is EPM uptake so low?

Only 140 exporters registered for collateral support against 8,459 for interest subvention in the same window. The reasons cited are lack of awareness and cumbersome paperwork, not eligibility.

Do I need an IEC to apply for EPM benefits?

Yes. A valid Importer Exporter Code is the baseline for every intervention, and most Niryat Protsahan credit interventions also require Udyam registration.

Is RoDTEP part of the Export Promotion Mission?

No. RoDTEP remains a separate scheme, extended to 30 September 2026. Budget documents propose converging RoDTEP and RoSCTL into EPM after appraisal and approval, but that had not happened as of August 2026.

Can I claim more than one EPM intervention at once?

Yes. Most exporters can stack several, for example interest subvention plus TRACE plus MAS, subject to each intervention’s own cap, positive list and the rule against claiming the same expenditure twice.

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What you should do this week

1. Check whether your bank is claiming from the right desk. For any disbursal on or after 1 April 2026, reimbursement goes to Exim Bank, not RBI
2. Pull your IEC and Udyam, confirm your MSME category, and check that your bank account is validated in your IEC profile. Without that the UIN will not generate
3. Never let a disbursal happen before the UIN exists. This is the single biggest reason claims die
4. If you hold an old IES UIN, stop assuming it works. It does not carry over to EPM
5. If you export steel and you are micro or small, check your HS code against the 167 Chapter 72 lines in Annexure-IIA
6. If you bank with more than one lender, total your subvention claims yourself. The Rs 50 lakh ceiling is your liability
7. List every certification, freight and warehousing cost from the last year. Much of it is reimbursable
8. If you are in one of the ten Brand India priority sectors, the Trust Mark fee waiver runs for two years from July 2026

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About Rasp International

Rasp International is an ISO 9001:2015 certified EXIM consultancy based in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, built on a family legacy in international trade and serving exporters since 2005. We have handled over 500 export clients across handicrafts, textiles, engineering goods, leather, marine, chemicals and food.

We run EPM files end to end: eligibility verification, positive-list mapping, intervention stacking, Intent to Avail filing, UIN sequencing before disbursal, bank and lender coordination, cross-bank ceiling control and revision tracking.

Talk to us before the money is disbursed, not after.

Contact Rasp International | WhatsApp: +91 82180 43048 | Start with our export checklist

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Sources

• DGFT Trade Notice No. 20/2025-26 dated 02 January 2026, launch of Interest Subvention Support for Pre and Post Shipment Export Credit under EPM, Niryat Protsahan.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 21/2025-26 dated 02 January 2026, launch of Collateral Support for Export Credit under EPM, Niryat Protsahan. Guidelines published at content.trade.gov.in.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 22/2025-26 dated 16 January 2026, amendments to Interest Subvention guidelines. Issued from File No. 01/02/48/AM-26/EPM.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 25/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026, Support for Alternative Trade Instruments, export factoring.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 26/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026, launch of TRACE under EPM, Niryat Disha, with Annexures I to VII.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 27/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026, INSIGHT.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 28/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026, launch of Facilitating Logistics, Overseas Warehousing and Fulfilment, FLOW, with Annexures I to IV. Issued from File No. 01/02/63/AM-26/EPM.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 29/2025-26 dated 20 February 2026, LIFT.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26 dated 06 March 2026, Credit Assistance for e-Commerce Exporters.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 32/2025-26 dated 06 March 2026, Support for Emerging Export Opportunities.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 33/2025-26 dated 20 March 2026, further amendments and clarifications to Interest Subvention guidelines. Issued from File No. 01/02/48/AM-26/EPM.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 01/2026-27 dated 20 April 2026, inclusion of 167 Chapter 72 tariff lines for Micro and Small Enterprises under Interest Subvention Support, Annexure-IIA. Issued from File No. 01/02/48/AM-26/EPM.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 03/2026-27 dated 13 May 2026, UIN generation timeline relaxation.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 09/2026-27 dated 01 July 2026, revised TRACE reimbursement rates and ceilings.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 12/2026-27 dated 14 July 2026, launch of Global Outreach for Branding, Labelling and Export Packaging under EPM, Niryat Disha, with Annexures I to V. Issued from File No. 01/02/52/AM-26/EPM.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 13/2026-27 dated 14 July 2026, UIN relaxation not extended into FY 2026-27.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 17/2026-27 dated 07 August 2026, institutional transition of Implementing Agency from RBI to Exim Bank. Issued from File No. 01/02/89/AM-26/EPM-Part(3).
• All trade notices above are published on the official DGFT Trade Notice listing at dgft.gov.in, and EPM scheme guidelines are published at content.trade.gov.in.
• DGFT Export Promotion Mission (EPM) Module V1.0, Exporter User Help File, updated January 2026.
• DGFT Export Promotion Mission (EPM) Bank (IES) User Guide V1.0, updated March 2026.
• Cabinet approval of the Export Promotion Mission, outlay Rs 25,060 crore for FY 2025-26 to FY 2030-31, November 2025. PIB and PMIndia.
• Cabinet approval of the Credit Guarantee Scheme for Exporters, Rs 20,000 crore, November 2025, and operationalisation through the Jansamarth Portal from 1 December 2025. PIB and NCGTC.
• Union Budget 2026-27, Demand No. 10 Department of Commerce and Demand No. 37, Export Promotion Schemes allocations.
• Ministry of MSME Notification S.O. 4926(E) dated 18 October 2022 on MSME re-classification.
• Business Standard, “Limited takers for govt’s collateral-free export credit scheme under EPM”, 6 July 2026.

Published by Rasp International. Scheme parameters under the Export Promotion Mission are pilots and are subject to revision by DGFT through fresh trade notices. Every figure in this post is cited to a primary or reputable secondary source as at 9 August 2026. Verify against the operative trade notice before committing expenditure. Government fees and third-party certification costs are billed at actuals.