India, Taiwan get time till October to settle ICT tariff dispute

New Delhi: India and Taiwan on Tuesday requested the dispute settlement body (DSB) of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to delay the adoption of a ruling against New Delhi's import duties on certain information and communication technology (ICT) products till October 27, as both sides are engaged in resolving the issue mutually.

The two nations said they sought time to continue engagement with each other for a resolution of this dispute, according to an official.

"The parties asked that the DSB further delay consideration of the panel report until October and the DSB agreed," added the official, who did not wish to be identified.


Prior to this, the DSB had agreed to eight previous requests from India and Taiwan to delay consideration of the reports.

The dispute was filed in 2019 when Japan, the EU and Taiwan had challenged the import duty of 7.5%-later increased to 15%-levied by India in 2017. The duty was later raised to 20% to boost local manufacturing. India has already appealed against the ruling in its similar dispute with Japan and the EU.

India and Taiwan are engaged in resolving the dispute mutually. If the talks fail, Taiwan could adopt the WTO panel filings and India could take the case to the Appellate Body of the WTO, which has not been functional for more than three years due to the US blocking the appointment of judges.

As per the WTO rules, the panel's ruling will have to be adopted by the DSB for implementation within 60 days of the release of the order.