Last updated: August 5th, 2021 10:48 AM

Extension of Date for Mandatory Electronic Filing of Non-Preferential Certificate of Origin (CoO)

The Director-General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has notified the Extension of Date for Mandatory electronic filing of Non-Preferential Certificate of Origin (CoO) through the Common Digital Platform vide a Trade Notice No. 10/2021-2022 dated 19.07.2021. With this notification, DGFT informed that the electronic platform for Certificate of Origin (CoO) which was made live for issuing preferential certificates under different FTAs has now been expanded to facilitate electronic application for Non-Preferential Certificates of Origin as well.

Synopsis of DGFT Trade Notice

The synopsis of the DGFT Trade Notice about the Electronic filing of Non – Preferential Certificate of Origin (CoO NP) is as follows:

• DGFT informed that the date for Mandatory electronic filing of Non-Preferential Certificate of Origin (CoO) through the Common Digital Platform is extended to 1st October 2021
• This option of submission and issuance of CoO (Non-Preferential) by the issuing agencies through the paper-based systems may continue further up to 30th September 2021.
• All Agencies as notified under Appendix-2E are required to ensure the onboarding exercise is completed latest by 30th September 2021. The concerned agencies may reach out over email to ddg2egov-dgft@]gov.in for any guidance or clarifications in regard to the on-boarding process

Non-preferential Certificate of Origin

Non – Preferential Certificate of Origin (CoO NP) states that the goods being exported are not provided any preferential tariff treatment and the due duties must be levied upon the goods that are being moved.

Important Announcement for Exporter

The given Non – Preferential Certificate of Origin applications for exports need to be submitted through the e-COO platform to the designated issuing agencies. No manual application for such a CoO should be submitted to an issuing agency after 1st October 2021. Any manual applications submitted before the prescribed date may however be processed by the issuing agencies.

Manual Submission of GSP CoO applications

• Applications for Non – Preferential Certificate of Origin need to be submitted through the e-CoO platform with effect from 15th April 2021. However, there shall be a transition period for CoO (NP) issuing agencies to on-board this common digital platform.
• Submitting CoO (NP) applications on this online platform shall not be mandatory for the exporters in the immediate.
• The existing procedure of submitting paper CoO applications directly to the designated issuing agency shall also be in operation in parallel.
• Submission and issuance of CoO (NP) by the issuing agencies through their paper-based system may continue up to 1st October 2021 or until further orders.

Note: However, on the request of certain Chambers/Associations the existing system of submitting and processing non-preferential CoO applications in manual/paper mode is being allowed for the time being and the online system is not being made mandatory.

Common Digital Platform for CoO

The common digital platform is single-point access for Non-Preferential Certificate of Origin (CoO NP) for all Free Trade Agreements for all agencies and all products. This CoO e-platform is designed to facilitate exporters through a secure, electronic, paperless Certificate of the Origin issuance process. All designated Certificate of Origin issuing agencies are required to work through this portal.

The objective of the CoO Platform

The objective of the CoO Platform is to provide an electronic, contact-less single window for the CoO related processes.

Features of online Non-Preferential Certificate of Origin applications

For Online Non-Preferential Certificate of Origin applications, the e-CoO system will generate a set of three CoO leaves i.e. electronic, original, and duplicate.

• The electronic copy shall bear the image signature of the officer and the stamp of the issuing agency.
• The other copies shall not bear the image sign and seal of the issuing agency.
• Wherever required, the exporter may choose to get the prints of these remaining copies duly signed in wet-ink by the issuing officer along with the stamp of the issuing office.

As part of this online CoO (NP) application process, the exporters can also choose to avail the option of requesting attestation of the supporting documents submitted with the application. These wet ink signed copies of the CoO (NP) and the attested documents may be collected by the applicant exporter by post or in person, for suitable submission to the concerned authorities in the importing country. The authenticity of the online CoO (NP) issued shall be verified through the QR code displayed on the certificate. Additionally, verification may also be done by keying the certificate number at the verification link on the e-CoO platform Click here to know more about the Documents Required, Fee, Exporter Registration Procedure to Apply for Non – Preferential Certificate of Origin (CoO NP) The DGFT’s notification about the Extension of Date for Mandatory electronic filing of Non-Preferential Certificate of Origin (CoO) is as follows: [pdf-embedder url="https://www.indiafilings.com/learn/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Trade-Notice-10-Extension-of-Timelines-for-NP-CoOs.pdf" title="Trade Notice 10 -Extension of Timelines for NP CoOs"]