India-UK FTA: Pharma industry flags regulatory priorities ahead of July 15 rollout

The India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA), scheduled to take effect on July 15, is expected to strengthen India’s pharmaceutical and medical technology sectors by increasing exports, attracting investment, and deepening collaboration in research, manufacturing, and innovation, according to industry leaders. They, however, said the agreement’s full benefits would depend on greater regulatory harmonisation, mutual recognition of quality standards, and faster product approval pathways.

The India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA), scheduled to take effect on July 15, is expected to strengthen India’s pharmaceutical and medical technology sectors by increasing exports, attracting investment, and deepening collaboration in research, manufacturing, and innovation, according to industry leaders. They, however, said the agreement’s full benefits would depend on greater regulatory harmonisation, mutual recognition of quality standards, and faster product approval pathways.

India’s pharmaceutical exports have grown steadily in recent years, highlighting its rising global footprint. According to data from Pharmexcil, India’s pharma exports rose to $31.11 billion in FY26, up from $30.47 billion in FY25 and $27.9 billion in FY24.


While the UK accounts for nearly 3% of India’s pharma exports, industry leaders expect the India-UK FTA to increase that number. According to Pharmexcil data, India’s pharma shipments to the UK reached $902 million in FY25, up from $784.32 million in FY24, indicating a positive trajectory.

Industry officials that The Economic Times Digital spoke to said the pact would improve market access for Indian medicines, injectables, bulk drugs, and medical devices by reducing trade barriers and simplifying trade procedures. They added that it would help diversify global supply chains while strengthening India’s position as a reliable manufacturing hub for pharmaceuticals and healthcare products.

Namit Joshi, Chairman of pharma exporters’ apex body Pharmexcil, said the agreement would strengthen supply chains, improve access to affordable medicines, and create opportunities for foreign direct investment (FDI), contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) partnerships, bulk drug trade, joint research and technology exchange.

“India-UK pharma collaboration is already on a strong footing, and the agreement further reinforces India’s position as a trusted global healthcare partner,” Joshi said.

However, as the two countries finalise the remaining details of the agreement, which still requires UK Parliament approval, he emphasised the importance of establishing clearer rules for matching regulations, recognising quality standards, and expediting approval processes to maximise the agreement’s benefits for the pharmaceutical sector.

Manish Jain, Director, Naprod Life Sciences, said the FTA would enhance the competitiveness of Indian-made medicines, injectables, and medical devices in the UK market while supporting exports of complex formulations and specialty products. “By removing tariffs and simplifying trade procedures, the FTA enhances the competitiveness of Indian-made medicines, injectables, and medical devices in the UK market,” Jain said.

Echoing similar views, Chandra Ganjoo, Group Chief Executive Officer, Trivitron Healthcare, said the agreement would expand market access for Indian medtech companies by reducing tariff and non-tariff barriers while creating new opportunities for research partnerships, digital health, diagnostics, and advanced medical technologies.

The agreement, in her view, establishes a solid institutional framework for long-term partnerships across research and development, product design, digital health ecosystems, advanced diagnostics, and cutting-edge medical hardware. “Joining these collaborative capabilities helps cross-border partners accelerate the delivery of affordable, high-quality healthcare solutions to both regions,” she said, stressing that transparent implementation guidelines on regulatory alignment, conformity assessments, and quality standards should now enable companies to make long-term investment decisions and accelerate technology development.

Nikkhil K Masurkar, CEO of Entod Pharmaceuticals, believes the agreement’s biggest opportunity extends beyond lower trade barriers to deeper collaboration in research, innovation, manufacturing, and investment between the two countries. “The real opportunity lies in closer collaboration in research, innovation, manufacturing, and investment,” Masurkar said.

He said greater clarity on regulatory cooperation, streamlined approval pathways for innovative medicines, and stronger collaboration in pharmaceutical R&D and intellectual property would help ensure the agreement delivers long-term value alongside higher trade.

Haresh Calcuttawala, CEO and Co-founder of autonomous trade compliance platform Trezix, said the agreement's success would ultimately depend on how implementation issues are addressed. He said the absence of a mutual recognition agreement between the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and India's Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) could lead to duplicate audits of Indian manufacturing plants and delay their UK market-entry timelines, diluting the FTA's tariff gains. He also called for greater clarity on intellectual property (IP) and data exclusivity norms. "Undefined data protection periods create uncertainty for CDMO and innovative formulation investments, where long development cycles demand predictable exclusivity windows," he said, adding that faster approval pathways for complex generics and specialty injectables would help the sector fully capitalise on the FTA's benefits.