US trade report flags lack of consultation before India’s initial laptop import curb plan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump

The United States has highlighted concerns over the lack of prior stakeholder consultations by India over a plan to impose restrictions on free imports of laptops and related items, a move that was later set aside.

In August 2023, India had announced restrictions on free import of laptops, tablets, personal computers, and related items, but the plan was soon rolled back, and replaced by an 'import management system' in October 2023, mandatorily requiring IT hardware companies to register and report data related to their inbound shipments. This system has now been extended by a year till December 31, 2025.

“US exporters have expressed concerns over the lack of prior stakeholder consultations. The United States continues to monitor the situation and engage with India on these concerns,” the American trade representative office said in a report on March 31.

The initial move of a licensing regime had raised concerns among global tech giants such as Dell, Acer, Samsung, Panasonic, Apple, Lenovo, and HP, who argued it would impact their India operations.

Back in January 2024, then US Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai had urged India to ensure the end-to-end online system currently in operation and related policies on the import of laptops do not restrict trade going forward. In response, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal had then described the objectives behind implementing these policies, including those related to national security concerns.

The import management system currently in operation is seen as a step down from the government's earlier stance of imposing a licensing regime.

In this report, the Donald Trump administration also highlighted India’s high tariffs on American farm goods, couple of days before reciprocal duties kick in on April 2.

The US Trade Representative report on foreign trade barriers underscored India’s high levies structure, especially tariffs of 39 percent on agricultural products.

India maintains high applied tariffs on a wide range of goods, including vegetable oils, apples, corn, coffee, raisins and walnuts, the report said, using data from 2023.