Govt imposes levy of 10% basic customs duty on mobile phones

A woman presents a E&L waterproof mobile phone during Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, February 28, 2017. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard - RTS10TAU

Moneycontrol News

The government on Saturday imposed a 10 percent basic customs duty on mobile phones and parts such as chargers, headsets, battery and USB cable, as part of a broader strategy to encourage phone makers to produce locally rather than importing shipments of handsets.

The 10 percent customs duty will be also be applicable on mobile phone parts such as microphones, receivers, key pads and certain other specified electronic goods, an official statement said.

However, the present exemption from basic customs duty on specified parts of mobiles--printed circuit board assembly (PCBA), camera module, connectors display assembly, touch panel, cover glass assembly, vibrator motor and ringer will continue.

Also, import of inputs and raw material for manufacture of parts of specified electronics goods including mobile phones will also continue to be exempt from basic customs duty, a clear signal that the government wants to incentivise local manufacturing of mobile phones and electronic items.

Several mobile phone makers such as Micromax, Karbonn, and Xiaomi have set up production facilities in India, creating dedicating supply lines for one of the fastest growing smartphone markets in the world.

The government is keen to encourage more companies to set up manufacturing plants in India as part of the `Make in India’ initiative, a signature policy measure aimed to turn the country into a global investment hot spot.