Trade Fair Subsidy for UP Exporters: Get 75% of Stall Rent and Air Travel Back

Verified as on 6 October 2026 against Government Order No. 811/18-4-2025 dated 6 November 2025. Written by Pratham Agarwal, Founder, Rasp International.

UP trade fair subsidy: the short answer

Under Government Order No. 811/18-4-2025 dated 6 November 2025, the Quick Export Development Incentive Scheme (often called the UP Marketing Development Assistance or MDA scheme), a Micro, Small or Medium Enterprise (MSME) exporter of Uttar Pradesh can get back 75 percent of what it spends on stall space rent and travel for an eligible trade fair or buyer-seller meet. The amounts are:

• Fair abroad: 75 percent of space rent up to Rs 3.25 lakh, plus 75 percent of economy air travel for one person up to Rs 1.25 lakh. The travel amount cannot be more than what the exporter itself spent on space rent.
• International level fair held in India: 75 percent of space rent up to Rs 75,000, plus 75 percent of economy bus, rail or air travel for one person up to Rs 30,000.
• International virtual fair or virtual buyer-seller meet: 75 percent of the total spent, up to Rs 25,000 per fair.

All Government Order 811 claims of one unit together are capped at Rs 25 lakh per financial year. The claim must be filed online within 120 days of the day the fair ends. Payment is subject to approval and budget.

The rule that decides everything: the fair must be organised or recognised by one of the bodies the order names, and your Export Promotion Bureau and UP Export Promotion Council registrations must already exist when you take part. Check both before you pay for the stall.

Key facts table: UP trade fair subsidy

What Government Order 811 is for

The order says its aim is to increase the competitiveness of the state’s exporters, build their marketing ability and make them aware of the main global markets and the demand in them. To do this it brings the marketing support for exporters at international level up to date and replaces all earlier orders on the subject.

For many Uttar Pradesh units a trade fair is still where the buyer relationship starts. A Moradabad brassware maker, an Agra footwear unit, a Bhadohi carpet exporter or a Kanpur saddlery firm meets distributors and importers face to face, shows finish and quality in hand and takes trial orders. The stall and the trip are also the biggest marketing bill such a unit pays in a year. Government Order 811 repays most of the stall and travel cost, within the caps, after the fair.

Government Order 811 has nine categories in all. This page covers the three that pay an exporter for taking part in fairs. Our guide to the UP MDA scheme covers all nine, including websites, samples and certification.

Who can claim the trade fair subsidy

Paragraph 2 and paragraph 10 of Government Order 811 set the conditions for an exporter:

Stall builders, event firms and associations that work with Uttar Pradesh exhibitors can read how a referral works on our partner page.

1. It is an MSME of Uttar Pradesh. The order uses the definition in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006, as amended from time to time. Keep your Udyam registration current.
2. It is registered with both state bodies at the time of the work. The unit must be registered with the Export Promotion Bureau UP and the UP Export Promotion Council. For a fair, the safe reading is that both registrations must exist before you book and pay for the stall.
3. The fair is an eligible fair. Paragraph 3 lists who must organise or recognise it. See the next section.
4. It has not taken a similar benefit. Paragraph 8 allows the assistance only if the unit has not taken a full or partial benefit of a similar nature, for the same purpose, under any central or state scheme.

Paragraph 2 also makes export promotion councils set up by central or state ministries, and exporter and industry organisations approved by the state level committee, eligible. They use the categories that pay organisers of fairs, not the categories on this page.

Which fairs qualify

For a fair abroad and for an international level fair held in India, the order gives the same test. The assistance is available only for fairs and buyer-seller meets that are either:

• organised by export promotion councils set up under the central or a state government, or
• recommended or notified by the central government, a state government, an apex trade body, a commodity board or an Indian embassy or consulate.

For an international virtual fair or virtual buyer-seller meet, the organiser must be an export promotion council, a commodity board or an exporters’ organisation set up under the central or a state government.

The order does not publish a list of approved fairs. A fair run by a private exhibition company can still qualify if one of the named bodies has recommended or notified it, but you need proof of that. Before paying for the stall, ask the organiser or your export promotion council for the letter, circular or notice that shows the fair’s status, and keep it with your claim.

How much you get for each kind of fair

Two limits apply on top of these caps. Travel is paid for one person only in both 1(b) and 3(b). And under paragraph 4, the total of all Government Order 811 assistance to one unit in a financial year cannot go above Rs 25 lakh.

The travel limit for fairs abroad

Category 1(b) says the travel assistance can in no case be more than the amount the exporter spent as its share of space rent. In practice, the travel payment for a fair abroad is the lowest of three figures: 75 percent of the economy air fare, Rs 1.25 lakh, and what you spent on space rent.

This matters when you take a stall in a pavilion where your share of the rent is low. If your space rent was Rs 1,00,000 and your air fare was Rs 1,50,000, 75 percent of the fare is Rs 1,12,500, but the travel payment stops at Rs 1,00,000. If you paid no space rent at all, there is no travel payment for that fair. The order does not repeat this limit for fairs in India.

Worked examples in rupees

The figures below are round numbers chosen to show the working. They are not the prices of any particular fair.

The most one unit can get for a single fair abroad is Rs 4.5 lakh, and for a single international fair in India Rs 1.05 lakh. Case A shows that a unit spending Rs 6.8 lakh on one fair abroad still pays about Rs 2.3 lakh itself, so the subsidy cuts the cost heavily but does not remove it.

Several fairs in one year

The order does not limit the number of fairs. Each fair has its own caps and its own 120 day window. What limits a busy year is the Rs 25 lakh total across all nine Government Order 811 categories. A unit that takes four fairs abroad at the maximum (Rs 18 lakh) and also claims Rs 1 lakh for its website and Rs 2 lakh for samples has used Rs 21 lakh, leaving Rs 4 lakh for the rest of the year. Keep a running total and claim the earliest costs first, because the order also works first come, first served.

The 120 day claim window

Paragraph 5(1) says the claim must be filed online within a maximum of 120 days of the date the work is done. For the fair categories, the 120 days are counted from the date the fair ends. Not the booking date, not the payment date and not the date you return home.

Enter the last day of your fair in the free UP export subsidy deadline calculator to read the last date to claim as we count it.

This table counts the day after the fair ends as day 1. The order does not set the counting method, so treat day 120 as the outer limit and file earlier. A realistic target is to file within 45 to 60 days of the fair, once the organiser’s participation proof and your travel papers are in hand.

How a Government Order 811 claim moves after you file

Government Order 811 uses the district route. Paragraph 5 sets these steps:

1. Online filing. You file the claim within 120 days of the fair’s last day and upload copies of all the required records with it.
2. 15 days to correct yourself. For 15 days from the application date you can correct mistakes in the form yourself.
3. District portal. After those 15 days the claim appears on the portal of the District Industries Promotion and Entrepreneurship Development Centre.
4. District check, 21 days. Within 21 days the Deputy Commissioner Industry examines complete claims and forwards them to the Export Promotion Bureau, Lucknow, with a recommendation.
5. 15 days to fix gaps. If the claim is incomplete, the gaps are recorded on the portal. You must upload the related records within 15 days, or the claim is cancelled automatically. Once you complete it, the district examines it again within 21 days.
6. No hold-up at the district. If the district neither forwards nor reverts the claim within 21 days, it goes to the Bureau automatically, and the Bureau fixes responsibility on the officer.
7. Claims outside the scheme. A claim that does not fit the eligibility categories is forwarded to the Bureau with a recommendation to reject it, giving the reasons.
8. Bureau and committee. The Bureau takes a recommended claim online within 15 days and places it on the agenda of the Authorised Committee.

Step 5 is where good claims are lost. Name one person to check the portal and the claim’s email address twice a week until the claim reaches the committee.

Who decides your claim: the Authorised Committee

Paragraph 6 gives the Authorised Committee the power to decide the online filing process, the records a unit must provide and any changes to them, and to approve claims. Its members are:

Under paragraph 12 the committee also has the power to interpret the order and clarify its provisions.

Papers to keep for a trade fair claim

Government Order 811 does not print a document list or a claim form, and paragraph 6 leaves the records to the Authorised Committee. Until the portal shows its own list, these are the papers we prepare for each fair:

Registrations

• Udyam registration certificate and IEC.
• Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC registration certificates, with dates earlier than the stall booking.
• Bank account details for the Direct Benefit Transfer, usually with a cancelled cheque.

The fair and the stall

• Proof that the fair qualifies: the organiser’s status, or the letter, circular or notice by which a named body recommended or notified it.
• Stall allotment letter from the organiser.
• Space rent invoice in the unit’s name.
• Proof of payment from the unit’s own bank account, with the bank’s remittance advice for a payment in foreign currency.
• Participation proof, such as the organiser’s certificate, the exhibitor list entry and dated photographs of the stall with your name board.

Travel

• Economy class ticket and invoice in the traveller’s name.
• Boarding passes for each flight, or rail or bus tickets for a fair in India.
• For a fair abroad, passport pages with the travel stamps or other proof of the journey.
• Proof that the traveller is the proprietor, a partner, a director or a person authorised by the unit, such as an authority letter.

Keep the travel papers of one person only. The order pays travel for one person per fair.

Where trade fair claims go wrong

1. Registration after the fair. Booking and paying for a stall before the Bureau and UPEPC registrations exist.
2. A fair that does not qualify. Taking a stall at a privately run fair with no proof that a named body recommended or notified it.
3. Late filing. Waiting for year-end accounts or a busy season to pass. Day 120 runs from the fair’s last day.
4. Two travellers claimed. The order pays travel for one person per fair.
5. Business class fares. The order pays economy class travel only. If a higher class was flown, expect the claim to be limited or refused.
6. Travel above space rent. For a fair abroad, forgetting that travel assistance cannot exceed your own space rent spending.
7. Stall building costs claimed as rent. The order pays space rent. Bills from a separate stall builder for fit-out, lighting or furniture may not be accepted as space rent.
8. Payment from a personal account. Paying the organiser from a partner’s personal account, which makes it harder to show that the unit bore the cost.
9. The same bill under two schemes. Claiming space rent under Government Order 811 that a central scheme has already supported.
10. Missing the 15 day reply. Not noticing that the district reverted the claim, so it is cancelled automatically.

Government Order 811 and central support for fairs

Central government schemes also support Indian exporters at fairs. The best known is the Market Access Initiative of the Department of Commerce, which usually reaches exporters through export promotion councils and their India pavilions. The Ministry of MSME also runs international cooperation support for MSMEs. Their rates, caps and rules are set in their own guidelines and change from time to time, so check the current version with your council before you plan.

The rule that links them to Government Order 811 is paragraph 8. The same expense cannot be supported twice. If a council pavilion under a central scheme already reduced your stall rent, you claim under the order only on what you actually paid, and only if that cost has not been supported elsewhere for the same purpose. Different fairs can be supported by different schemes in the same year.

Payment priority and the budget

Paragraph 7 says claims are approved first come, first served. Payment depends on the budget available and goes by Direct Benefit Transfer straight to the beneficiary’s bank account. Claims received in a financial year are paid only within that year’s budget. Whether unpaid claims can be carried to the next year is for the Authorised Committee to decide.

Paragraph 9 adds a priority. Units that take part in national and international level fairs and events sponsored by the state, or held through the Export Promotion Bureau or the UP Export Promotion Council, get priority when claims are paid.

The order does not give a payment date, so nobody can promise one.

Recovery and blacklisting for false claims

Under paragraph 11, if at any stage the unit is found to have misused the assistance, or to have knowingly given or hidden false facts, the whole amount is recovered from the unit like revenue dues. The unit is also blacklisted and declared ineligible for any government financial assistance in future.

A preparation plan for each fair

1. Before booking. Check Udyam, IEC, Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC registrations. Get proof that the fair qualifies.
2. Booking. Book the stall in the unit’s name and pay from the unit’s bank account. Decide which one person will travel and book economy class.
3. At the fair. Collect the participation proof, the exhibitor list entry and dated stall photographs. Keep every boarding pass.
4. First month after. Collect invoices, bank proofs and the remittance advice. Work out the claim against each cap.
5. By day 60. File the claim online. Do not wait for day 120.
6. After filing. Check the portal through the 15 day correction period and every week after that, and reply to any query within 15 days.

What Is Not Yet Notified, Checked on 16 October 2026

These points are not settled by the text of Government Order 811. We are asking the Export Promotion Bureau and will update this page when we have a written answer.

• Whether “space rent” covers a built-up stall package billed by the organiser, and stall building bills from a separate contractor.
• GST on stall rent and fares paid in India: the order does not say whether the 75 percent is worked out before or after GST. In the claims we file, it is worked out on the amount before GST.
• Which document the Bureau accepts as proof that a body recommended or notified a fair.
• Whether fairs that ended before 6 November 2025 can be claimed.
• How the 120 days are counted, and the web address of the claim portal, which the order does not print.

Choosing between central and state support for certification costs? Read TRACE or UP MDA certification support.

Frequently asked questions

How much can a UP exporter claim for a trade fair abroad?

75 percent of space rent up to Rs 3.25 lakh, and 75 percent of economy air fare for one person up to Rs 1.25 lakh. The travel amount cannot be more than what the unit spent on space rent. The most for one fair abroad is Rs 4.5 lakh.

How much can I claim for an international fair held in India?

75 percent of space rent up to Rs 75,000, and 75 percent of economy bus, rail or air fare for one person up to Rs 30,000. The most for one international level fair in India is Rs 1.05 lakh. The fair must be organised or recognised by one of the bodies the order names.

Which trade fairs qualify for the UP subsidy?

Fairs organised by export promotion councils under the central or a state government, or recommended or notified by the central government, a state government, an apex trade body, a commodity board or an Indian embassy. The order has no list of fairs, so get written proof of the fair’s status before paying.

When is the deadline to file a trade fair claim?

Within 120 days of the day the fair ends. For a fair ending on 18 March 2027, day 120 falls on 16 July 2027 as we count it. The order does not set the counting method, so file well before day 120.

Can two partners or directors claim travel for the same fair?

No. Both for fairs abroad and for fairs in India, the order pays travel for one person only: the proprietor, a partner, a director or an authorised person. If two people travel, only one person’s economy fare can be claimed.

Does the subsidy cover stall decoration and fit-out?

The order pays space rent. It does not mention stall building, lighting, furniture or decoration. A built-up stall billed by the organiser may be treated as space rent, but a separate fit-out contractor’s bill may not. We have listed this under Not yet confirmed.

Can I claim travel if my stall was free?

For a fair abroad, no. The order says the travel assistance cannot be more than the exporter’s own spending on space rent. If you paid no space rent, the travel payment for that fair is nil.

Can I claim Government Order 811 and a central scheme for the same fair?

Not for the same expense. Paragraph 8 allows Government Order 811 assistance only if the unit has not taken a similar full or partial benefit under any central or state scheme. You can use different schemes for different fairs, or for costs that no other scheme supported.

Do I need Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC registration before the fair?

Yes. The unit must be registered with both the Export Promotion Bureau UP and the UP Export Promotion Council at the time of the work. Register before you book and pay for the stall, because a registration made after the fair does not help.

How many fairs can I claim in a year?

The order sets no number. Each fair has its own caps and its own 120 day window. The limit is the total of Rs 25 lakh per unit per financial year across all nine Government Order 811 categories, including websites, samples and certification.

What happens if the district raises a query on my claim?

The gaps are recorded on the portal and you must upload the related records within 15 days, or the claim is cancelled automatically. Once you complete it, the Deputy Commissioner Industry examines it again within 21 days and forwards it to the Export Promotion Bureau.

When will the money reach my account?

Government Order 811 does not give a date. The Authorised Committee approves claims first come, first served. Payment goes by Direct Benefit Transfer within the year’s budget. Units that took part in state sponsored fairs through the Bureau or UPEPC get priority.

For a dated plan from booking to claim, read our trade fair checklist for UP exporters. Service exporters claim under a separate order, explained in our guide to fair support for UP service exporters. Organisers and associations can invite our free export help desk to their fair.

How Rasp International helps with trade fair claims

Rasp International is an ISO 9001:2015 certified EXIM and DGFT consultancy that has served 500+ exporters since 2019. For trade fair claims we check your registrations before you book, help you get proof that the fair qualifies, plan the stall and travel bookings so they fit the caps, collect the papers during and after the fair, file the claim early in its 120 day window and follow up on district queries.

We handle it end to end. When you engage us, we prepare the papers, file the application or claim for you in your unit’s name, answer queries and follow it through to a decision. If you prefer to file yourself, we guide your team instead.

The order leaves approval and payment to the Authorised Committee, so we do not promise either. We make sure the claim is complete, consistent and on time.

Took part in a fair in the last 120 days, or planning one? Message Rasp International on WhatsApp and we will check what you can still claim.

Sources

• Government Order No. 811/18-4-2025 dated 6 November 2025, Quick Export Development Incentive Scheme, marketing support programme for exporters at international level, paragraphs 1 to 13 and the table of nine categories in paragraph 3.
• Government Order No. 684/18-4-2025/18-4099/31/2025 dated 3 September 2025, UP Export Promotion Policy 2025-30.
• The orders are in Hindi. Official copies: upepc.org.

This is general guidance. Rules change. Verify against the current order or the current portal screen before you file or pay.

Related: UP export subsidy schemes | UP MDA scheme, all nine categories | Export Promotion Bureau and UPEPC registration | Air freight subsidy for UP exporters