How to Import from India — Step by Step Guide for Buyers

India is the world''s fifth-largest economy and exports over 400 billion dollars of goods a year, from pharmaceuticals and engineering goods to textiles, spices and ceramic tiles. For a new importer the process is far more standardised than it looks. Here is the full sequence. Step 1 — Define the product precisely Write a specification before you contact anyone: material, grade, dimensions, tolerance, packing, labelling, certification required, and the HS code. The HS code determines your duty rate at home and the export incentives available to the supplier, so getting it right early prevents surprises. Ask two or three suppliers to confirm the code they use; if they disagree, check with your customs broker. Step 2 — Shortlist and verify suppliers Use a mix of B2B marketplaces, Export Promotion Council directories and trade fairs. Shortlist five, then verify each: GSTIN and IEC on record, company name matching bank details, recent export documents, and a video walkthrough of the production floor. Reject anyone who resists this. Step 3 — Get comparable quotations Ask every supplier for the same Incoterm. FOB (loaded at the Indian port) gives you control over freight and is the most common starting point. CIF is simpler if you do not yet have a freight forwarder. EXW is rarely worth it for a first order because you take on Indian inland transport and customs clearance. Make sure the quotation states unit price, MOQ, packing, lead time, payment terms and validity period. Step 4 — Sample and approve Pay for a sample. Approve it in writing with photographs, and keep a retained sample yourself. Your purchase order should reference the approved sample by date and number — this is your leverage if bulk quality drifts. Step 5 — Agree payment terms Common structures: 30% advance and 70% against scanned bill of lading; an irrevocable letter of credit at sight for orders above roughly 50,000 dollars; or documents against payment through banks. Never send 100% in advance on a first order, and never send funds to an account whose name differs from the exporter''s legal name. Step 6 — Understand the documents Your supplier prepares: commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading or airway bill, certificate of origin (from a chamber of commerce, or a Form A / FTA certificate if a trade agreement gives you a duty benefit), and any product-specific certificates — phytosanitary for agriculture, COA for chemicals, fumigation certificate for wooden packing, CE or test reports for machinery. You prepare the import declaration at your end with your customs broker. If your country has a free trade agreement with India — UAE (CEPA), Australia (ECTA), Japan, ASEAN, and several others — insist on the correct origin certificate. The duty saving is often larger than your entire negotiating margin. Step 7 — Inspection before shipment For a first order, book a third-party pre-shipment inspection. It costs a few hundred dollars and catches quantity shortfalls, packing failures and specification drift while the goods are still in India, where the supplier can fix them. Step 8 — Freight, insurance and clearance Confirm the port of loading (Nhava Sheva, Mundra, Chennai, Kolkata, Cochin) and the transit time. Buy marine insurance covering 110% of CIF value. Give your broker the documents at least five days before arrival to avoid demurrage. Common mistakes to avoid Ordering without a written specification. Paying in full up front. Ignoring residue and compliance rules for food and agricultural products. Assuming the trading company you are speaking to owns the factory. Skipping inspection on the first shipment to save 300 dollars, then losing 15,000 on a rejected container. And leaving the HS code to be decided at the destination port. Where Today Adviser fits Rather than contacting suppliers one at a time, you can post a buy requirement with your specification and receive quotes from verified manufacturers in that category, usually within 24 hours. Every verified supplier has had their GST and export credentials checked, and our sourcing team can arrange factory audits and pre-shipment inspection if you would rather not manage it from abroad.