Trade and customs
IEC (Importer Exporter Code)
Definition
The ten character code issued by India's DGFT that a business needs to import or export goods, linked to its PAN.
The Importer Exporter Code is issued online by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade and is quoted on customs declarations, bank remittances for trade and applications under the Foreign Trade Policy. It is based on the business's PAN and must be updated every year on the DGFT portal, even if nothing changed.
A supplier's IEC can be checked on the DGFT website, which is a useful step when verifying an Indian exporter.
Related terms
- Bill of entryThe import declaration filed with Indian customs, usually through a customs broker on ICEGATE.
- Shipping billThe export declaration filed with Indian customs before goods are loaded for export.
- ITC(HS) codeIndia's eight digit version of the HS code, used in import and export policy and customs declarations.