Information technology software imported into India falls under tariff item 8523 80 20. The standard rate of basic customs duty in the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 is 0%, and integrated tax is 18%. On the export side the same code earns RoDTEP at 0.7% of FOB value under Appendix 4R. Below is the whole bill worked at an assessable value of ₹10,00,000, with the base each levy is charged on.
| Level | Description |
|---|---|
| 85 | Chapter 85: Electrical machinery and equipment and parts thereof; sound recorders and reproducers |
| 8523 | Heading 8523: Discs, tapes, solid-state non-volatile storage devices |
| 8523 80 | Sub-heading 8523 80: Other |
| 8523 80 20 | Information technology software. Unit: u. Import policy: Free |
Heading 8523 holds 38 tariff items in this dataset and their standard rates run from 0% to 10%, so on this heading the eight digit line a consignment is classified under decides what it costs. This line sits at 0%.
Put your own assessable value in and the whole stack re-works on this line's own rates: basic customs duty at 0%, the Social Welfare Surcharge charged on that duty rather than on the value, and integrated tax at 18% on the value plus both. Assessable value is cost, insurance and freight plus landing charges where they apply, not the invoice value on its own.
| Rate | Levy | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | Basic customs duty, of the assessable value | ₹0 |
| 10% | Social Welfare Surcharge, of the basic customs duty | ₹0 |
| 18% | IGST, of value plus the duties above | ₹1,80,000 |
| 18% | Total duty and tax, as a share of the assessable value | ₹1,80,000 |
The same eight digit code decides what an exporter earns. Appendix 4R to the Handbook of Procedures gives tariff item 8523 80 20 a RoDTEP rate of 0.7% of FOB value, notified by Notification 32/2024-25 and in force from 10 October 2024. Appendix 4R is the schedule for exports from the Domestic Tariff Area.
An exporter under an Advance Authorisation, an Export Oriented Unit or a unit in a Special Economic Zone reads Appendix 4RE instead, which puts this line at 0.4%. Which schedule applies is a fact about the exporter, not about the goods, so this page does not choose between them.
Notification 74/2025-26 ran the scheme to 30 September 2026, which has passed, so check DGFT for a continuation notification before relying on the figure above. Rates come from Appendix 4R and Appendix 4RE as DGFT publishes them. Work the entitlement on your own FOB value and quantity.
This dataset carries no preferential rate for tariff item 8523 80 20, which may mean no trade agreement covers the line or simply that the source did not publish one for it. Check the agreement schedule for the origin you are importing from.
| Code | Description | Duty | IGST | Export rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8523 21 00 | Cards incorporating a magnetic stripe | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 29 10 | Audio cassettes | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 29 20 | Video cassettes | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 29 30 | Video magnetic tape including those in hubs and reels, rolls, pancakes and jumbo rolls | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 29 40 | ¾" and 1" video cassettes | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 29 50 | ½" video cassettes suitable to work with betacam, betacam SP/M II and VHS type VCR | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 29 60 | Other video cassettes and tapes ¾" and 1" video cassettes | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 29 70 | All kinds of Magnetic discs | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 29 80 | Cartridge tape | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 29 90 | Other | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 41 10 | Compact disc (Audio/video) | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 41 20 | Blank master discs (that is, substrate) for producing stamper for compact disc | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 41 30 | Matrices for production of records; prepared record blank | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 41 40 | Cartridge tape | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 41 50 | 1/2" Videocassette suitable to work with digital VCR | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 41 60 | DVD | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 41 90 | Other | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 49 10 | Compact disc (Audio) | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 49 20 | Compact disc (video) | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 49 30 | Stamper for CD audio, CD video and CD-ROM | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 49 40 | DVD | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 49 50 | Matrices for production of records; prepared record blank | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 49 60 | Cartridge tape | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
| 8523 49 70 | 1/2" Videocassette suitable to work with digital VCR | 10% | 18% | 0.7% |
Bring in ₹10,00,000 of information technology software and customs will ask for ₹1,80,000, which is 18% of what the consignment is assessed at. That is not one charge. It is four, and each is charged on a base that includes the ones before it.
Of the ₹1,80,000 above, exactly ₹0 can be paid with a RoDTEP or RoSCTL duty-credit scrip instead of cash, because Regulation 6(1) of the Electronic Duty Credit Ledger Regulations, 2021 confines the credit in an e-scrip to duties of customs specified in the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975. The remaining ₹1,80,000 is paid in cash.
A scrip bought below face value therefore saves that discount on ₹0, not on ₹1,80,000. How the buy side works, or read what a duty-credit scrip is end to end.
The First Schedule states the duty on this line as "10%". Integrated tax is carried under CBIC notification 045/2025. How the figures in this chapter are checked, and when they were last checked is in the meta line at the top of this page.
This is the tariff arithmetic on a published rate, not an assessment. Goods are assessed by the proper officer under section 17 of the Customs Act, 1962, and valuation, exemption notifications, anti-dumping and safeguard duties can all change what is finally payable. A wrong tariff line makes every number on this page wrong together, so this is not classification advice.
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