India-made goods at duty-free shops to cost less

NEW DELHI: Travellers picking up 'Made in India' goods from airport duty-free shops before they fly out would soon find them a tad cheaper.

In line with international practice, India has exempted from excise duty goods manufactured in the country and sold at airport shops for foreign travellers and Indians going abroad. This would make the products cheaper by 7%-9%.

"...to ensure parity with the imported goods and to promote brand INDIA...it has been decided to permit excise duty-free sale of indigenous goods to passengers or members of crew arriving from abroad within the overall permissible baggage allowance," a finance ministry statement said.

Specific procedure will be laid out for removal of the goods from the factory without payment of duty to godowns or retail outlets of duty-free shops.

Indigenous goods are also being sold in the arrival halls, but they are not duty free.

Passengers going out of India are permitted to purchase duty-free imported goods from shops located in the departure halls of international airports. However, excise duty-free indigenous goods are not available for sale. International goods, however, are sold free of customs duty.