Government Incentives for Star Export Houses

By acquiring the Star Export House certificate, you are eligible to obtain countless benefits in the country’s export sector. Let us take a look at the top advantages of getting this certificate:

• You will get customs clearance and authorisation for export and import on a self-declaration basis. 
• You will get priority fixing of SION norms under sixty days by the norm committees situated in Delhi. 
• You can enjoy exemptions from furnishing bank guarantees under the Foreign Trade Policy. 
• You will get priority treatment for handling consignments by relevant agencies. 
• As per the Department of Revenue guidelines, you can establish an export warehouse if you have an export house with two or more stars. 
• Manufacturer exporters with more than three stars status holders can self-certify that their items are originating from India intending to qualify for priority treatment under many preferential trading agreements.  
• Being a status holder allows you to export freely exportable products, except gems and jewellery, without charges for export promotion. This is capped at either INR 1 crore or 2% of your average annual export realization over the past 3 licensing years, whichever is lower. 
• You can also enjoy an exemption from mandatory document negotiations through banks. However, you will receive remittances and receipts through banking channels.  

You can become a status holder only if you achieve the threshold export performance as mentioned in the FTP 2023. The following are the details about the threshold performance and categories:

If you are an exporter in India, you can easily apply for the export house certificate. However, you must meet the following eligibility criteria to get this certificate:

• You must need IEC if you are exporting products, services, or technology. 
• You must meet the export performance threshold for the respective financial year and three preceding financial years. Export performance for the existing and previous two years will be considered for the gems and jewellery industry.
• As per the FTP, the export performance will be calculated based on FOB export earnings in freely convertible currencies or INR.
• CBIC has notified an exchange rate for converting the FOB value in INR to USD for deemed export. 
• If you want to qualify, you need an export performance for all 3 preceding financial years. To export jewellery and gems, a good export record from the past two financial years is mandatory. 

Nowadays, applying for the export house certificate has become a little easier and quicker due to the digital process. Let’s understand the common process:

Initially, you should visit the official DGFT portal and log in with your credentials. 

Next, you should select the service tab, then certificate management, then applicable certificate, and finally status holder certificate.  

Next, choose the “Start fresh application.” Here, you must select the sector of export. If you choose Gems and Jewelry, the IEC profile requires export performance data for only 2 years. Otherwise,  3 years of data are necessary for the same. Once chosen, opt for the “save and proceed” button.

Next, you must choose the Status of Category applied for.

On the next tab, you should fill out the attachment. 

Later, you should accept the “term and condition” by clicking on the check button and then clicking on the sign button.

Lastly, you must submit the application.

Star Export Houses, also known as export house certificates, is an Indian government initiative to empower exporters. Through this certificate, you can obtain countless benefits if you are an exporter. However, you must meet some eligibility criteria to acquire this certificate. Any exporter can get it by completing a few steps digitally.