Industry body PHDCCI seeks tariff tweaks for steel, paper, gold, medtech in Budget wishlist

Rationalisation would help steelmakers manage input costs more effectively

The PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) has urged government to rationalise customs duties across key manufacturing sectors - steel, paper, gold, and medical devices - to lower input costs and enhance global competitiveness.

The industry body’s delegation met Revenue Secretary Arvind Shrivastava on October 29 to present the industry body’s pre-budget proposals and discuss tax and tariff-related issues impacting businesses. The recommendations reflect a broad push for easing tax compliance and improving cost efficiency through both tariff-related as well as GST reforms.

Ramping up Steel Output

PHDCCI has proposed multiple adjustments to the duty structures covering inputs like ferro-alloys, nickel scrap and various steel intermediates, to align tariff rates with raw material and reduce the cost burden on domestic producers.

PHDCCI said in its submission that the current import duty framework creates “inverted duty situations” in some product categories, discouraging downstream manufacturing and export competitiveness. Rationalisation would help steelmakers manage input costs more effectively and support the government’s vision of expanding value-added exports, the chamber said.

Paper Industry Seeks Relief

The paper industry has sought duty reduction on pulp, recovered paper and imported wood logs, and cited shortage of key raw materials due to limited forest access and environmental restrictions. Lowering customs duties, it argued, would “reduce cost pressures on domestic manufacturers and improve capacity utilisation”.

Duty Regime on Gold

The PHDCCI also called for a review of the customs duty regime on gold-bearing materials, and said that the import tariff on gold ores and intermediates have led to cost inefficiencies in refining, as well as given rise to unofficial channels of trade. “Duty rationalisation would help formalise trade and improve refining margins,” the chamber’s note said.

Sops for MedTech

In healthcare manufacturing, the chamber recommended lowering customs duties on medical devices and their components, which would reduce costs for hospitals and support domestic production of diagnostic and surgical equipment.

More GST-centric Reforms

Along with tweaks to sectoral tariffs, the PHDCCI presented detailed recommendations to simplify the Goods and Services Tax (GST) framework and reduce litigation for taxpayers.

The industry body proposed an amendment to the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act to introduce a refund mechanism for taxes paid prior to retrospective exemptions. PHDCCI said unlike provisions under the Central Excise and Customs Acts, the CGST Act “does not provide a mechanism for refunding taxes already paid,” creating “an uneven playing field for compliant taxpayers”.

The chamber recommended deletion of the condition requiring reversal of Input Tax Credit (ITC) by the recipient for post-supply discounts, stating that the clause “places an undue burden on suppliers, as they have no legal authority to enforce ITC reversal”.

The PHDCCI also proposed refinements to prevent denial of ITC to genuine recipients due to supplier non-compliance.