How RoDTEP works

The mechanics are fairly simple once you have been through it once.

1. You export goods and declare your intent to claim RoDTEP on the shipping bill itself (this step cannot be skipped or added later)

2. The government has already assigned a refund rate to your product, based on its HS code, listed in Appendix 4R (or Appendix 4RE for SEZ, EOU and Advance Authorisation exports)

3. The refund is calculated as a percentage of your FOB (Free on Board) value, sometimes capped at a fixed amount per unit

4. This refund lands as an e-scrip, a transferable electronic credit, in your ledger on ICEGATE

5. You can use this e-scrip to pay basic customs duty on your own imports, or sell it to another importer

There is no cash refund. It is a credit, and what you do with it is up to you.

RoDTEP rates and scheme validity in 2026

This is the part that has actually moved this year, so it is worth walking through carefully.

RoDTEP rates typically fall between 0.3% and 4.3% of FOB value, though the exact figure depends entirely on your product’s HS code. Textile, apparel and similar labour-intensive categories tend to sit toward the higher end of that range.

So if you are reading this any time before 30 September 2026, the rates in effect are the full, restored rates, not the reduced ones from that brief window in February and March.

A quick note here: rates are notified at the 8-digit HS code level and do get revised through DGFT notifications from time to time. Before you rely on a specific percentage for pricing or margin planning, it is worth checking your product’s current rate directly in Appendix 4R on the DGFT website rather than going off a figure you read somewhere.

Who is eligible for RoDTEP

Eligibility is broader than most exporters expect.

• All exporters of goods can claim under the RoDTEP scheme, whether you are a merchant exporter or a manufacturer exporter

• There is no turnover threshold to qualify

• Exports under the Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) route, as well as SEZ units, EOUs and Advance Authorisation holders, are covered

• A small set of sectors, including steel, pharmaceuticals, and organic and inorganic chemicals, have historically been excluded from the scheme (this list can change, so it is worth a quick check against the current Appendix 4R before you assume either way)

• Goods manufactured in bonded warehouses are generally excluded

How to claim RoDTEP: step by step

Follow the following steps to claim RoDTEP:

1. Find your HS code. This determines everything else, so get it right at the product level

2. Check your rate in Appendix 4R or 4RE on the DGFT website, along with any value cap that applies

3. Declare your RoDTEP claim on the shipping bill at the time of export. There is no route to claim it retroactively if this is missed

4. Wait for the e-scrip to generate in your electronic ledger on ICEGATE, once the shipping bill is processed

5. Use or transfer the e-scrip. Apply it against basic customs duty on your own imports, or sell it to another importer who needs one

RoDTEP and International Payments for Exporters

RoDTEP helps you recover what gets lost in embedded taxes. But there is a second, equally quiet drain on export margins: what happens when the actual payment arrives from your overseas buyer. This is really export incentives and payment compliance for Indian exporters treated as one problem instead of two separate ones, which is how most exporters end up handling it in practice anyway.

FX markups, hidden conversion spreads, and delayed transfers eat into the very margin that RoDTEP is trying to protect. This is also the stage where documentation like FIRA comes into play, since export compliance checks often look at your RoDTEP claims and your foreign inward remittance paperwork together.

This is where a platform like Infinity fits into the picture. It auto-generates FIRA for every payment received, so that documentation step is not something you have to chase separately. Infinity charges a flat 0.5% fee with no separate FX markup and no GST on top, and includes a purpose code finder to help you tag international payments correctly, backed by a dedicated account manager if you get stuck. Over 10,000 exporters, freelancers and businesses already use it to receive international payments. None of this replaces RoDTEP, but it closes the gap on the other side of the same problem: protecting what you actually keep from an export.

Common mistakes exporters make with RoDTEP

The following are a few mistakes that exporters make with RoDTEP:

• Forgetting the shipping bill declaration. This is the single most common miss, and it is unforgiving; there is no way to claim RoDTEP after the goods have shipped without it

• Using an outdated or incorrect HS code, which can mean claiming the wrong rate entirely

• Assuming rates in Appendix 4R are permanent. They are not notified and can be revised, as 2026 has shown

• Confusing RoDTEP with Duty Drawback or RoSCTL. These are separate schemes with separate rules, and you cannot claim RoDTEP and MEIS together (MEIS itself has been discontinued, but the same non-overlap logic applies to other overlapping schemes)

Frequently asked questions

What is the full form of RoDTEP?

RoDTEP stands for Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products.

What is the current RoDTEP rate in 2026?

Rates generally range between 0.3% and 4.3% of FOB export value, depending on the product’s HS code, with the exact figure listed in Appendix 4R. Full rates, as applicable on 31 March 2026, remain in force through 30 September 2026.

Is the RoDTEP scheme still active?

Yes. It has been extended till 30 September 2026, at unchanged rates.

Who is eligible for RoDTEP?

All exporters of goods, whether merchant or manufacturer, with no turnover limit. DTA, SEZ, EOU and Advance Authorisation exports are covered, subject to a few sector exclusions.

Which sectors are excluded from RoDTEP?

Steel, pharmaceuticals, and organic and inorganic chemicals have historically been excluded, though this list is subject to change and worth verifying against the current notification.

Can RoDTEP and Duty Drawback be claimed together?

RoDTEP and MEIS cannot be claimed simultaneously. Duty Drawback operates on separate rules, so check the specific overlap conditions for your product before assuming either way.

How do I claim RoDTEP on ICEGATE?

Declare your claim on the shipping bill at export, then the e-scrip generates automatically in your ICEGATE ledger once the shipping bill is processed.

Is there a turnover limit to claim RoDTEP?

No. There is no turnover criterion for claiming RoDTEP benefits.

What is the difference between Appendix 4R and Appendix 4RE?

Appendix 4R applies to exports from the Domestic Tariff Area. Appendix 4RE applies to SEZ units, EOUs and Advance Authorisation holders.

Does RoDTEP have anything to do with FIRA?

Not directly; they are separate requirements, but they tend to get checked together during export documentation review. RoDTEP and FIRA both sit in the same compliance file for most exporters: RoDTEP is your tax remission claim, while FIRA is proof of the foreign inward remittance you received for that export. Keeping both in order at the same time makes audits and bank checks considerably smoother.