Electronics cos’ body seeks cut in 20% customs duty on mobiles

New Delhi: An electronics makers’ body has called upon the government to reduce the 20% basic customs duty on mobile phones, arguing that imports are no longer a threat in view of large-scale manufacturing of handsets in India and that the industry has the strength to face competition.

“We are suggesting that import duty should be capped on either 20% or Rs 4,000 of the bill value of a device, whichever is higher,” a senior industry executive told ET. “This is because in high-end phones, import duty is creating a large arbitrage and promoting the grey market of these devices.”

The executive added that the proposal of reduction of GST on mobiles from 18% to the earlier 12% is a must to curb the emerging grey market and put the mobile phones within the reach of the common man. In a presentation to the revenue department on Budget 2021, the India Cellular & Electronics Association (ICEA) also suggested the extension of the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme to laptops, tablets, PCBAs, display FAB and wearables.