What this guide covers

1. India as a trade powerhouse
2. Import vs export
3. How to start, step by step
4. Documents you need
5. HS codes explained
6. Incoterms 2020
7. Getting paid safely
8. Export incentive schemes
9. The export process end to end
10. Spotting fraudulent buyers
11. Best products to export
12. Why a sourcing partner helps

Getting into import and export from India looks simple from the outside: buy here, sell there, keep the spread. In practice, the money is made — or lost — in the details most beginners skip. A wrong HS code delays a shipment. The wrong Incoterm quietly hands your buyer a cost you thought was theirs. A charming inquiry from a "buyer" who wants product shipped before payment turns out to be a fraud you funded yourself.

This guide walks through the full path a real exporter takes — registrations, documents, pricing terms, payment security, government schemes, and the judgment calls in between. It's written for founders and small teams building an export business from India in 2026, not for a textbook exam.

01Why India is a global trade powerhouse in 2026

The scale is worth understanding before you build on top of it. India's combined merchandise and services exports reached roughly USD 860 billion in FY 2025–26, up about 4.2% year on year, while total imports rose faster to around USD 979 billion. Services now carry a large share of the growth — software, consulting and business services crossed USD 418 billion — while merchandise exports held near USD 442 billion.

What matters for a new exporter is the shape of this trade, not just the size. India's export basket is diversifying away from a handful of commodities toward value-added manufacturing: engineering goods, electronics, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, processed food, textiles, and consumer products including personal care and hygiene. Demand is spreading across Africa, the Gulf, the CIS region and Southeast Asia — markets where an agile Indian supplier can win on price, quality and responsiveness against slower incumbents.

02Import vs export: the two sides of trade

Exporting means selling goods or services produced in India to a buyer in another country. Importing means bringing goods into India from an overseas supplier. Most serious trade businesses eventually do both — you might export finished sanitary napkins while importing a specialty raw material like an acquisition distribution layer (ADL) or superabsorbent polymer.

The registrations, codes and customs machinery are broadly the same in both directions. The difference is in the risk you carry and where. As an exporter, your biggest risk is getting paid. As an importer, it's getting what you paid for, on time and to spec. The rest of this guide leans toward the export side, because that's where most India-based founders start and where the fraud losses are largest.

03How to start an export business in India, step by step

Here is the setup sequence, in the order that actually works. You can complete most of it in two to three weeks.

1. Register your business entity

   Trade under a formal entity — a private limited company, LLP, or at minimum a registered proprietorship — not your personal name. Overseas buyers, banks and export councils treat a proper company as a baseline signal of seriousness, and it cleanly separates your trade liabilities from your personal ones. For a durable brand, a private limited company is worth the extra compliance.

2. Get your Import Export Code (IEC) from DGFT

   The IEC is the single non-negotiable licence for cross-border trade — a 10-digit code from the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT). No goods legally leave or enter India without one. You apply online with your PAN, bank details and a cancelled cheque. It's linked to your PAN, issued quickly, and needs no renewal fee — but must be updated once a year to stay active.

3. Open a current account and register your AD Code

   Open a current account with a bank authorised to deal in foreign exchange (an "AD" bank). The bank issues an AD Code, which you register at every port you ship from. Without it registered at your port, your shipping bill can't be generated — a step first-timers routinely forget until a container is stuck at the terminal.

4. Register for GST and file a Letter of Undertaking (LUT)

   Exports are zero-rated under GST — you can export without charging IGST, but only if you file a Letter of Undertaking (LUT) at the start of each financial year. File it and you ship tax-free and claim input tax credit refunds; forget it and you tie up working capital paying IGST you later reclaim.

5. Register with an Export Promotion Council (get your RCMC)

   To claim most export benefits and access council support, you need a Registration-cum-Membership Certificate (RCMC) from the council relevant to your product — FIEO for general merchandise, or a product-specific body such as CHEMEXCIL or PHARMEXCIL. The RCMC is your entry ticket to incentive schemes and trade delegations.

6. Do the product and market research that decides your margin

   Pick one product line you can source reliably and one or two markets where demand is real and competition is beatable. Validate landed cost, buyer payment norms, and destination-country certifications (many hygiene and food products need registration in the importing country). This step determines whether the business is profitable — not the paperwork above it.

04Documents required for import and export

International trade runs on documents. Get them right and shipments clear smoothly; get one wrong and your goods — and your payment — sit still. These are the core documents on almost every export.

On the import side you'll additionally deal with a Bill of Entry (the import equivalent of the shipping bill) and any product-specific import licences. Accuracy is everything: the description, quantity and value on your invoice, packing list and shipping bill must match — and match your HS code.

05Understanding HS codes — the language of global trade

Every traded product has an HS code (Harmonised System code) — an internationally standardised number telling customs, anywhere in the world, exactly what your product is. India uses an 8-digit extension called the HSN. Your HS code determines the duty your buyer pays, which trade-agreement benefits apply, and which incentive rates you can claim.

Classifying your product correctly isn't a formality. The wrong code can mean overpaid duty for your buyer, a rejected incentive claim for you, or a customs query that holds the shipment. When your product could plausibly sit under two codes, resolve it deliberately — check the customs tariff, and where the value is material, get a professional opinion before you ship rather than after.

06Incoterms 2020 — who pays for what

Incoterms are the three-letter rules defining exactly where the seller's responsibility ends and the buyer's begins — who pays freight, who carries risk at each leg, and who insures the goods. Quoting a price without an Incoterm is meaningless. The ones you'll use most:

07Payment terms — getting paid safely

This is where exporters win or lose. A profitable order that never gets paid for is a loss with extra steps. Your payment term sits on a spectrum from "safe for you" to "safe for the buyer":

• Advance payment (T/T in advance): the buyer wires funds before you ship. Safest for the seller. Standard for new relationships and smaller orders.
• Irrevocable Letter of Credit at sight: the buyer's bank guarantees payment once you present compliant documents. Strong protection for larger orders — provided the LC is irrevocable and confirmed by a reputable bank.
• Documents against Payment (D/P): the buyer pays to receive the documents that release the goods. Moderate risk.
• Documents against Acceptance (D/A) & open account: the buyer receives goods and pays later. Convenient for them, riskiest for you. Reserve for established, trusted relationships only.

Where you must extend credit, protect it. Export credit insurance (through ECGC or a private insurer) covers you against buyer default and certain political risks, and lets you offer competitive terms without betting the business on a single order.

08Export incentive & promotion schemes to know

India's export incentives have shifted from cash rewards to duty neutralisation — "export the goods, not the taxes." Layered correctly, these can add several points back to your margin. As of 2026, the ones that matter most to a new exporter:

One rule governs all of it: the same tax component cannot be counted twice, and incentives follow the money — you must realise your export proceeds within the permitted period and close your bank realisation record. A well-run operation claims every applicable scheme on every shipment and prices the benefit into its margin.

09The export process, start to finish

Once you're set up, a single export order flows like this:

1. Inquiry and quotation. A buyer inquiry comes in; you qualify it, then send a proforma invoice with a clear Incoterm and payment term.

2. Order confirmation. The buyer accepts; advance payment or the LC is put in place before you commit stock.

3. Production and inspection. Goods are manufactured or sourced, quality-checked against the agreed spec, and packed with correct labelling.

4. Customs and shipping. Your shipping bill is filed, goods clear customs at your port, and the carrier issues the Bill of Lading or Airway Bill.

5. Document dispatch. The full document set goes to the buyer or through the banking channel — against payment where an LC or D/P term applies.

6. Payment realisation and incentives. Funds arrive, you obtain your e-BRC, and you close out your RoDTEP, Drawback and other claims.

10How to spot and avoid fraudulent buyers

Every active exporter's inbox fills with inquiries. A meaningful share are fraudulent, and they're engineered to look urgent and lucrative. Filtering them isn't cynicism — it's survival. Watch for these patterns:

• Pressure to ship before payment. A "large order" that needs goods dispatched on credit to a new buyer is the classic setup. Real buyers accept secure terms.
• Vague company details. Free-email addresses, no verifiable business, a website that says nothing, or a company absent from any registry.
• Requests to pay "processing" or "registration" fees. If a buyer asks you to send money to unlock a deal, it's a scam, every time.
• Odd intermediaries and mismatched banking. Payment routed through a third country unrelated to the buyer, or a shifting story about who's actually purchasing.
• Instant agreement on price. A genuine buyer negotiates. One who accepts any price without question often isn't planning to pay it.

11Best products to export from India in 2026

India exports strongly across engineering goods, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, textiles, processed food, gems and jewellery, and electronics. But for a new exporter, the smarter question isn't "what does India export?" — it's "where can I source reliably, add trust, and win repeat orders?"

Personal care and hygiene products are a standout in that light: steady, repeat, non-cyclical demand across Africa, the Gulf and emerging markets, with room for a responsive Indian supplier to compete on quality and price. The category spans:

• Sanitary napkins
• Maternity pads
• Baby diapers
• Adult incontinence
• Washroom hygiene
• Personal care

These are products people buy again and again, month after month. That repeatability is what makes hygiene a durable export line rather than a one-off trade — and it's the category Doctoright specialises in, which is why the guidance here is written from inside the trade rather than from a distance.

12Why a sourcing partner de-risks your first export

You can run every step above yourself — thousands do. But the two failure points that sink new exporters are the same two a good sourcing partner removes: getting a reliable, spec-accurate supply, and getting paid without getting defrauded.

A managed sourcing house sits between the overseas buyer and the Indian supply base as a trust intermediary — qualifying buyers, structuring secure payment terms, ensuring product meets spec, and handling the documentation and logistics that turn a quotation into a delivered, paid-for shipment. For a buyer abroad, it means one accountable counterpart instead of a fragmented supplier base. For a first-time exporter, it's the difference between learning these lessons on paper and learning them the expensive way.

That's the role Doctoright plays in hygiene and personal care: a single, accountable partner from inquiry to delivery. You can read how the managed sourcing model works, or browse the export product range.

Frequently asked questions

This guide is general information for exporters and importers in India and is current as of FY 2025–26. Scheme rates, rules and thresholds change — verify the specifics for your product and HS code with the DGFT, your bank, and a licensed customs or trade professional before you ship. Trade figures: official DGCIS / Ministry of Commerce estimates for FY 2025–26 (total exports US$ 860.09 B).

Export hygiene & personal care from India

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