Cross Border E-commerce Export Setup: Compliance, Logistics and Subsidies Guide

Verified as on 4 October 2026 against DGFT Notification No. 36/2026-27, CBIC Notification No. 60/2024-Customs (N.T.), DGFT Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26, the FEMA export regulations in force from 1 October 2026 and UP Government Orders 838 and 874. Written by Pratham Agarwal, Founder, Rasp International.

Cross border e-commerce export setup: the short answer

To sell abroad online from India you need an Importer Exporter Code (IEC), a GST registration with a route for zero rated exports, an Authorised Dealer (AD) code registered with customs at the port your parcels leave from, a dispatch route through a courier or India Post, and a payment route that lets your bank match every rupee received to a shipping bill. Since 15 September 2026 an RCMC is not needed for a consignment with an FOB value up to Rs 3,00,000. Courier exports can claim Duty Drawback, RoDTEP and RoSCTL, and qualifying MSME e-commerce exporters can use the credit support under DGFT Trade Notice 31/2025-26.

The rule that decides everything: every parcel must leave on a commercial export declaration in your own IEC, and every payment must come back through your bank in a way that can be matched to that declaration.

Key facts table: cross border e-commerce exports from India

What cross border e-commerce export setup means

A traditional exporter ships a container to one buyer against one invoice and one shipping bill. A cross border e-commerce seller ships dozens or hundreds of small parcels a month to individual customers or small businesses, often through a marketplace such as Amazon Global Selling, Etsy or eBay, or through its own online store. The goods are the same kind of goods. What changes is the volume of paperwork and the number of small payments that must be matched.

So the setup is less about logistics and more about records. Four systems have to agree about every parcel:

• Customs, through the courier or postal export declaration in your IEC.
• GST, through your export invoice and your zero rated return.
• Your bank, which must match foreign money received to the shipping bill in the export monitoring system.
• Incentive systems, where Drawback, RoDTEP or state subsidies depend on the first three being right.

Get those four aligned at the start and the business can scale. Leave them loose and the gaps grow with every parcel.

The two small parcel routes: courier and post

E-commerce parcels usually leave India through one of two routes. Larger B2B consignments can also go as normal air or sea cargo on a regular shipping bill, but most online sellers use courier or post.

The courier route

Courier exports run under the Courier Imports and Exports (Electronic Declaration and Processing) Regulations, 2010, through authorised couriers and logistics aggregators at International Courier Terminals. The courier files the export declaration electronically on your behalf, using the invoice and product data you give it. Commercial exports move on a Courier Shipping Bill V (CSB V). Make sure your courier or aggregator account is set up for commercial exports in your own IEC, and not for samples or gifts.

Two changes in the last two years make this route much stronger for sellers:

• CBIC Notification No. 60/2024-Customs (N.T.) dated 12 September 2024 amended the courier regulations so that Duty Drawback, RoDTEP and RoSCTL can be claimed on courier exports. Because the courier clearance system could not process these payments, CBIC moved their processing to ICES at the International Courier Terminals.
• The FTP 2023 paragraph 9.05 amendment of March 2026 removed the Rs 10 lakh per consignment value limit on courier exports with effect from 1 April 2026.

The postal route through a Dak Ghar Niryat Kendra

India Post runs Dak Ghar Niryat Kendras (DNK) at post offices across the country so that small exporters can book export parcels close to home. You register on India Post’s DNK portal, enter product, HS code, value and buyer details, generate the postal export declaration and hand the parcel in at the DNK. Customs clearance happens electronically and the parcel moves to a Foreign Post Office for dispatch.

For Uttar Pradesh sellers the postal route has an extra advantage: GO 838 pays back 75 percent of net postage through a DNK, up to Rs 1 lakh a year. It is explained further below.

Courier and postal routes compared

Many sellers use both: courier for premium or urgent orders and post for light, price sensitive parcels.

Who can sell abroad this way

• Any business with an IEC. Proprietorships, partnerships, LLPs and companies can all export. The IEC must carry the right PAN, address and bank details, and must be updated on the DGFT portal every year between April and June.
• A GST registered business. Exports are zero rated supplies. You can export without paying IGST under a Letter of Undertaking (LUT) filed on the GST portal in Form RFD-11, or pay IGST and claim a refund. Most e-commerce sellers use the LUT route because it avoids blocking cash in refunds.
• A business whose bank AD code is registered with customs at the courier terminal or Foreign Post Office from which the parcels leave. Without it, the export cannot be linked to your bank.
• Uttar Pradesh MSMEs that want the state schemes must also be registered with the Export Promotion Bureau, Uttar Pradesh and the Uttar Pradesh Export Promotion Council at the time of the work.

What does not work

• Sending commercial orders as gifts or samples. That breaks the link to GST, the bank and incentives.
• Shipping in a personal name without an IEC.
• Restricted, prohibited or SCOMET items without the licence the export policy requires.
• Splitting one large order into several small consignments to stay under the Rs 3,00,000 RCMC threshold. The exemption is meant for genuinely small consignments, and artificial splitting invites questions from customs.

The RCMC exemption for consignments up to Rs 3 lakh

DGFT Notification No. 36/2026-27 dated 15 September 2026 inserted sub-paragraph (c) into paragraph 2.57 of the Foreign Trade Policy 2023. It says that, notwithstanding sub-paragraphs (a) and (b), the requirement of a Registration cum Membership Certificate or a Certificate of Registration shall not apply to an export consignment where the FOB value of the consignment does not exceed Rs 3,00,000.

The note on the effect of the notification explains the purpose: to promote small value exports, especially exports through postal, courier and other emerging channels. Consignments above Rs 3,00,000 still need a valid RCMC or Certificate of Registration wherever the policy otherwise requires it.

Two points matter for e-commerce sellers:

• It is per consignment. A seller shipping 200 parcels of Rs 15,000 each in a month is shipping 200 small consignments, each under the threshold.
• It does not replace UP registrations. The state schemes need Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC registration, which is a different thing from an RCMC.

Our blog post on the RCMC exemption up to Rs 3 lakh covers the notification in more detail.

Export incentives on courier and postal shipments

Before September 2024, courier exports could not claim the main export incentives. CBIC Notification No. 60/2024-Customs (N.T.) dated 12 September 2024 changed that. It amended the courier regulations to provide for Duty Drawback, RoDTEP and RoSCTL, linked courier export declarations to the electronic integrated declaration filed on ICES and shifted processing of these benefits to ICES at International Courier Terminals.

• Duty Drawback refunds customs and central excise duties on inputs used in the exported goods, usually at All Industry Rates.
• RoDTEP remits embedded duties, taxes and levies on exported products that are not refunded through any other route, at notified rates, as transferable e-scrips.
• RoSCTL does the same for apparel and made ups covered by the scheme.

Making the claim work in practice

Incentives on courier exports depend on the declaration the courier files. When you book the shipment, give the courier the correct 8 digit HS code and tell it in writing that you are claiming Drawback and RoDTEP or RoSCTL. Ask how its system captures the claim, because once the declaration is processed it is hard to change. Check after each month that the claims appear against your IEC on ICEGATE.

For the postal route, a CBIC amendment reported as effective from 15 January 2026 brought Drawback, RoDTEP and RoSCTL on postal exports into an automated process linked to ICEGATE. Confirm the current form and claim steps with your DNK before you rely on it for pricing.

Credit support for e-commerce exporters: Trade Notice 31/2025-26

E-commerce sellers often run short of working capital, because stock is bought up front while marketplaces release payouts later. DGFT Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26 dated 6 March 2026 issued the guidelines for Credit Assistance for E-Commerce Exporters under the Export Promotion Mission (EPM) Niryat Protsahan. Banks give working capital as cash credit, overdraft or other working capital facilities. The government supports them with credit guarantee cover and interest subvention.

Credit facility table

The figures above are as published by the Government in its note on the Export Promotion Mission measures. Reported eligibility conditions include a track record of at least six months of exports through postal or courier channels, inventory held in overseas warehouses for e-commerce fulfilment or stock held in warehouses under the e-commerce export hub facility. Read the trade notice and your bank’s product terms before you apply, because the bank decides the limit.

Six months of clean postal or courier export records, with every shipment matched to money received, is the strongest file you can take to a bank. That is another reason to set up the paperwork correctly from the first parcel.

Uttar Pradesh support for e-commerce exporters

Uttar Pradesh has two orders under the UP Export Promotion Policy 2025-30 that directly help online sellers. Both are for MSME units of Uttar Pradesh registered with the Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC at the time of the work.

GO 874: e-commerce onboarding assistance

• Amount: 75 percent of the expense on first year onboarding on an international e-commerce platform, as a one time reimbursement, up to Rs 3,00,000 per exporter unit.
• First year only, one platform only. Renewal and recurring fees after the first year are not covered.
• At least one export consignment must have been sent through the platform during the onboarding year.
• The platform must enable international business transactions and international payments under the rules, and must be notified from time to time by the scheme’s Authorised Committee.
• Timing: the exporter must stay active on the platform for one year from onboarding, and must file the claim on the Export Promotion Bureau portal within 90 days after that year ends.
• What counts: the claim form lists one time account registration or subscription fees, one time platform or seller fees and any other eligible onboarding fee charged by the platform, all shown exclusive of taxes, with a CA certificate.

GO 838: Dak Ghar Niryat Kendra postage support

• Amount: 75 percent of postage on consignments sent through a Dak Ghar Niryat Kendra, up to Rs 1,00,000 per exporter per year, on net postage excluding central and state GST.
• Claims: quarterly, filed on the Export Promotion Bureau portal within 45 days of the end of the quarter.
• Proof: the claim form asks for your India Post contractual customer registration number. A verification by the DNK, signed by the postmaster and countersigned by a gazetted postmaster, Inspector of Posts or Assistant Superintendent, confirms the shipments and the total postage.

Register with the Bureau and UPEPC first

GO 838 and GO 874 each make Bureau and UPEPC registration at the time of the work a condition. The GO 874 claim form has separate lines for the UPEPB and UPEPC membership numbers, and the GO 838 form has a registration block for EPBUP, UPEPC and Udyam. Register before you pay the onboarding fee or book the first DNK parcel. Our guide to Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC registration explains the clause in every UP order.

Getting paid: banks, remittances and realisation

Every export creates an open entry against your IEC in the RBI’s export monitoring system until your bank matches money received to it. For e-commerce this matching is the hardest part, because one marketplace payout can cover dozens of orders.

The realisation period from 1 October 2026

The Foreign Exchange Management (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026, notified on 13 January 2026, apply from 1 October 2026. For goods, export proceeds must be realised within 15 months from the date of shipment. Where the export is invoiced or settled in Indian rupees, the period is 18 months. Banks can grant extensions under their own policy. Exports made before 1 October 2026 follow the rules in force when they were shipped, so check those with your bank.

Making remittances traceable

• Use a payment route your bank accepts for export realisation, whether a marketplace payout, a payment aggregator for cross border payments or a direct transfer.
• Get an inward remittance advice or certificate for each payout and keep the order level report that shows which parcels it covers.
• Give your bank the shipping bill numbers each payout relates to, so it can close the entries.
• If a third party collects money on your behalf, confirm in writing with your bank that it will accept those remittances against your shipping bills before you start.

Unmatched entries do not vanish. Banks follow them up, and persistent gaps can lead to restrictions on new exports. Matching every month is far easier than matching a year’s backlog.

Documents to keep for every e-commerce export

A step by step setup roadmap

Stage 1: legal and tax foundation

• Set up the business entity and a current account in its name.
• Get the IEC on the DGFT portal and diarise the April to June annual update.
• Register for GST and file the LUT for the financial year if you will export without paying IGST.
• For Uttar Pradesh units, get Udyam registration and register with the Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC.

Stage 2: bank and customs link

• Get the AD code letter from your bank.
• Register on ICEGATE and register the AD code at the ports your parcels will use, both courier terminals and Foreign Post Offices.
• Ask your bank how it will match marketplace and aggregator payouts to your shipping bills.

Stage 3: selling channels and payments

• Open seller accounts on your chosen marketplaces or set up your own store.
• Choose payment routes your bank accepts for export realisation.
• Price for fees, freight, returns and destination taxes from day one.
• For UP units, keep the first year onboarding invoices of one international platform for GO 874.

Stage 4: logistics

• Open a courier or aggregator account for commercial exports in your IEC.
• Register on the India Post DNK portal and, if you will use GO 838, apply for a contractual customer account.
• Build invoice templates with HS codes, values and the LUT reference.

Stage 5: monthly close

• Match each payout to its shipping bills with your bank.
• Check Drawback, RoDTEP and RoSCTL against your IEC on ICEGATE.
• For UP units, file GO 838 within 45 days of each quarter end and GO 874 within 90 days after the first year on the platform.

Marketplace or your own store

The export rules are the same either way, but the paperwork you get back differs, and that affects GST, bank matching and UP claims.

Many sellers start on one marketplace to learn demand and later add their own store for repeat buyers. If you are in Uttar Pradesh, choose the first marketplace with GO 874 in mind, because the support covers only the first year on one platform.

A worked first year for a UP seller

A Moradabad brassware maker registers with the Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC in March 2026, then joins one international marketplace on 1 April 2026. The figures below are an illustration, not a client, and assume financial year quarters.

Two things stand out. GO 874 money comes only after the full first year, so it does not help cash flow in the launch months. And the GO 838 cap of Rs 1 lakh a year is reached quickly by an active seller, so plan postage support as a modest saving rather than a large one. In both cases the claim depends on the registrations being in place before the spending started.

Where e-commerce export setups fail

Returns, destination taxes and product rules

A compliant export setup gets your goods out of India correctly. It does not settle what happens at the other end.

• Returns. A returned parcel comes back as an import. Duty relief on re-import of goods earlier exported depends on the customs exemption conditions, including proof that the goods are the same ones exported. Keep the original export declaration and invoice for every order until the return window closes.
• Destination duties and taxes. The buyer’s country may charge customs duty and VAT or sales tax. Decide whether you price delivered duty paid or let the buyer pay, and say so clearly on the listing.
• Product rules abroad. Clearing Indian customs does not make goods compliant in the destination. Toys, cosmetics, food, electronics and textiles often have labelling, safety or registration rules in the buyer’s market.

What this setup will not do

• It will not remove destination duties or taxes.
• It will not make a product compliant with foreign standards.
• It will not promise state or central payments. UP claims are decided by the Bureau’s committees within budget, and incentive claims are processed by customs on the declarations filed.

Not yet confirmed

• The exact CBIC notification and current postal bill of export forms for Drawback, RoDTEP and RoSCTL on postal exports, reported as effective from 15 January 2026.
• The full eligibility text of Trade Notice 31/2025-26, including any rule for new MSMEs.
• Which international platforms the GO 874 Authorised Committee has notified.
• Whether “quarter” in GO 838 means the financial year quarter.
• The current postal value limits per consignment.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an RCMC to export through e-commerce?

Not for a consignment with an FOB value up to Rs 3,00,000. DGFT Notification No. 36/2026-27 dated 15 September 2026 removed the RCMC requirement for such consignments. Above that value, an RCMC is still needed wherever the policy requires it.

Is the Rs 3 lakh RCMC exemption per year or per consignment?

Per consignment. Paragraph 2.57(c) of the Foreign Trade Policy 2023 speaks of an export consignment whose FOB value does not exceed Rs 3,00,000.

Is there still a Rs 10 lakh limit on courier exports?

No. The per consignment value limit on courier exports was removed with effect from 1 April 2026 through an amendment to paragraph 9.05 of the Foreign Trade Policy 2023.

Can I claim RoDTEP and Drawback on courier exports?

Yes. CBIC Notification No. 60/2024-Customs (N.T.) dated 12 September 2024 provides for Duty Drawback, RoDTEP and RoSCTL on courier exports. Make sure the courier captures your claim when it files the declaration.

Can I claim export incentives on postal exports?

An automated process for Drawback, RoDTEP and RoSCTL on postal exports is reported as live from 15 January 2026. Confirm the current form and steps with your Dak Ghar Niryat Kendra before relying on it.

Who files the export declaration on a courier shipment?

The authorised courier files it electronically, using the invoice and product data you provide. You remain responsible for the accuracy of that data.

Is a GST LUT compulsory for e-commerce exports?

No, but it is usually the better route. You can export without paying IGST under an LUT filed in Form RFD-11, or pay IGST and claim a refund. Exporting without an LUT and without paying IGST can lead to a GST demand.

How long do I have to receive payment for an export?

For goods shipped from 1 October 2026, 15 months from the date of shipment, or 18 months where the export is invoiced or settled in rupees, under the Foreign Exchange Management (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026.

What credit is available for e-commerce exporters?

Under DGFT Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26, banks can give working capital backed by a credit guarantee of up to 90 percent with a Rs 50 lakh cap for direct e-commerce exports, or up to 75 percent with a Rs 5 crore cap for overseas inventory models, with 2.75 percent interest subvention.

How much does UP pay back for marketplace onboarding?

Under GO 874, 75 percent of first year onboarding fees on one international platform, excluding taxes, up to Rs 3 lakh. You must stay active for a year and claim within 90 days after that year.

How much does UP pay back on India Post postage?

Under GO 838, 75 percent of net postage through a Dak Ghar Niryat Kendra, excluding GST, up to Rs 1 lakh a year, claimed every quarter within 45 days of the quarter end.

Do I need Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC registration for UP schemes?

Yes. GO 838 and GO 874 both require the MSME unit to be registered with both at the time of the work. Register before you pay the fee or book the parcels you plan to claim.

Can I split a big order to stay under Rs 3 lakh?

You should not split a genuine single order artificially to avoid the RCMC rule. The exemption is meant for small consignments, and artificial splitting can attract questions from customs.

Why does my bank keep asking about open shipping bills?

Each export stays open in the RBI’s monitoring system until your bank matches money received to it. Give your bank the shipping bill numbers for each payout so it can close them.

Does a compliant export setup cover destination taxes?

No. Customs duty, VAT or sales tax in the buyer’s country is separate. Decide your delivered duty paid or unpaid approach and show it clearly to buyers.

How Rasp International helps e-commerce exporters

Rasp International is an ISO 9001:2015 certified EXIM and DGFT consultancy based in Agra, with a family legacy in international trade since 2005 and more than 500 exporters served. For online sellers we set up the IEC, GST and LUT, AD code registrations at courier terminals and Foreign Post Offices, the courier and DNK accounts in your IEC and a monthly routine for matching payouts and checking incentives. For Uttar Pradesh units we add Bureau and UPEPC registration and the GO 874 and GO 838 claims.

Approvals and payments under government schemes rest with the authorities, so we do not promise them. We make sure your setup is clean from the first parcel.

Starting or fixing an e-commerce export setup? Message Rasp International on WhatsApp for a setup review.

Sources

• DGFT Notification No. 36/2026-27 dated 15 September 2026, de minimis exemption from RCMC requirements for low value exports, inserting paragraph 2.57(c) in the Foreign Trade Policy 2023.
• Foreign Trade Policy 2023, paragraph 9.05 as amended in March 2026, removing the value limit on courier exports from 1 April 2026.
• CBIC Notification No. 60/2024-Customs (N.T.) dated 12 September 2024, amending the Courier Imports and Exports (Electronic Declaration and Processing) Regulations, 2010.
• DGFT Trade Notice No. 31/2025-26 dated 6 March 2026, guidelines for Credit Assistance for E-Commerce Exporters under EPM Niryat Protsahan, and the Government’s note on the Export Promotion Mission measures.
• Foreign Exchange Management (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026, notified 13 January 2026, effective 1 October 2026.
• Government of Uttar Pradesh, Government Order No. 874/18-4-2025 dated 3 December 2025, e-commerce onboarding assistance scheme.
• Government of Uttar Pradesh, Government Order No. 838/18-4-2025 dated 10 November 2025, Dak Ghar Niryat Kendra support scheme.

This is general guidance. Rules change. Verify against the current notification, your bank and the current portal screen before you file or pay.

Related: E-commerce export setup service | RCMC exemption up to Rs 3 lakh | Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC registration | UP export subsidy schemes 2025-30