The incentive regime for exports in India is undergoing a formal review. The DMEO of the NITI Aayog has initiated an evaluation of two of the largest schemes for export promotion in India, RoDTEP and RoSCTL, which expire on 31 December 2026, having been extended by their minimum duration thus far. The NITI Aayog’s review of the export support schemes in accordance with international trade rules is being conducted at a time when exporters have to deal with tariff shocks in foreign markets, as well as a new series of free trade agreements in domestic markets.
What is confirmed and what is being reported?
The Government has launched a formal evaluation process, not a roll-back. DMEO issued a Request for Proposal on 24 September 2026 (File No. I-19014/10/2026-DMEO, GeM bid GEM/2026/B/8079413) for engaging a Technical Consultant for evaluating RoSCTL and RoDTEP schemes. The deadline for the submission of the proposal has been decided as 28 October 2026, while the appointment of the Consultant was to be done by entering into a Contract Agreement for a period of 180 days and payment would be made in three phases Inception Phase, Midway Phase and Draft and Final Report Phase. Evaluation refers to the process of appraisal done in order to make an appraisal to reach a particular conclusion in future times. However, the process of decision-making itself is excluded from the purview of the process.
These two schemes have run up until 31 December 2026. The extension of the RoDTEP Scheme has been done under DGFT Notification No. 41/2026-27 dated 30 September 2026, Rates and Values as per Appendices 4R & 4RE (units in DTA and AA holders) and 4RA & 4REE (units in AA/SEZ/EOU). The RoSCTL Scheme has also been extended up to 31 December 2026 from 1 October 2026, under Ministry of Textiles Notification of the same date.
However, there is no information provided regarding anything after 1 January 2027.
Both these schemes will continue until 31st December 2026. Extension in the scheme for RoDTEP has been made upto 31st December 2026 under DGFT Notification No. 41/2026-27 dated 30th September 2026, rates & values as per Appendix 4R & 4RE (in units of DTA and AA holder) and Appendix 4RA & 4REE (in units of AA/SEZ/EOU). In the same way, the scheme for RoSCTL has also been extended until 31st December 2026 w.e.f 1st October 2026.
None of these two schemes provide any details about 1 January 2027 onwards.
No roll-back, replacement or revision has been announced yet. Media reports (Economic Times, Mint, Hindu BusinessLine) cite an official statement that "based on the evaluation, a decision would be taken to tweak the schemes or replace them with a new one." Mint cites formation of two internal committees for reviewing these schemes - RoDTEP under DGFT and RoSCTL under a Textiles additional secretary, based on a recommendation of Expenditure Finance Committee with the ministries reportedly looking for a combined ~₹2 trillion over five years. The panel composition, the budget estimates and the estimated payments in FY 2025-26 (RoDTEP - about ₹18,233 crore and RoSCTL - about ₹10,100 crore, according to Mint) are reported figures without any Government verification.
What RoDTEP and RoSCTL really are?
Since the review shall consider the schemes’ objective and benefit structure, exporters need to be clear on their nature.
The scheme RoDTEP (Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products) refers to the reimbursement of the embedded taxes, levies and duties imposed on exported products, and also cumulative indirect taxes imposed at the earlier stages of production like electricity duties, mandi tax and transport/ fuel levies, which have no other source of reimbursement. This facility includes an ad valorem percentage as notified on the FOB value with a limit of per unit rates in the form of transferable duty credit in the form of e-scrip used for Basic Customs Duty, deposited in CBIC electronic account, transferable in totality and also valid for one year since its creation. The scheme RoDTEP was operational since 1 January 2021, and the scheme is managed through the Department of Commerce through DGFT policy and Customs implementation, and can be claimed in conjunction with Duty drawback.
The Scheme RoSCTL (Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies) will include the refund of un-rebated embedded state and central taxes on apparels and garments (Chapters 61 and 62), and made-ups (Chapter 63 except for some exceptions), which were not covered under RoDTEP. In operation since 7 March 2019 in succession to ROSL, the scheme is managed by the Ministry of Textiles, and also issues the benefit through e-scrips. It operates on the “B”/”D” declaration basis as per its tariff schedule, and is a labor intensive and MSME dominated scheme; as per official press releases, more than 15,400 exporters have benefitted from the scheme in 2025-26.
There is one critical factor running through both schemes: Both are designed as and positioned as WTO-compatible remission of embedded taxes, that is, zero-rating of exports, rather than any export-contingent subsidy. This is against the backdrop of the India–Export Related Measures case (DS541) before the WTO, wherein the panel and the Appellate Body have found India’s MEIS-style export-contingent subsidy programs to be prohibited under Article 3.1(a) of the SCM Agreement since India had graduated from Annex VII(b). RoDTEP was designed as the successor on the remission principle. Equally, do not overstate: No WTO decision has yet upheld the compatibility of RoDTEP.
Why the review and why now?
The reason offered in the RFP, as cited by official sources, is an altered external environment – demand variability in global markets, cost considerations, the changing dynamics of global trade, sustainability considerations, reshaping of the supply chain, digitization of trade operations and the FTA wave. The review is anticipated to compare India’s process with the practices prevailing internationally in zero rating, along with impacts on investment, employment, cost of production, export prices and capacity utilization, even going into what impact withdrawing the scheme would have. Fiscal domestic pressure also comes in – as Commerce apparently sought ₹23,000 crore of RoDTEP for 2026-27, against a Budget provision of ₹10,000 crore.
Exporters have seen rates being volatile already this year. The rates of RoDTEP have been revised by DGFT Notification 60/2025-26 dated 23 February 2026 (Corrigendum also issued); partly reverted by Notification 66/2025-26 dated 23 March 2026; and revised in line with amendments made to the Customs Tariff Act from 1 May 2026. Rates and caps could be altered anytime through Notifications.
Scenarios not announcements
There has been no announcement of any outcome for after 31 December 2026, so plan based on scenarios, clearly marked as such:
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Extension/renewal: schemes that continue beyond 31 December 2026, probably linked to the 2027-28 Budget discussion, where media reporting indicates the panel’s recommendations will be considered. Continuation, possibly at different rates.
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Recalibration/better targeting: rates, caps, or eligibility modified. This is what the EFC recommendation is about. Note the sensitivity of margins to the rate and cap modifications.
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Redesign/replace: a new scheme, in keeping with the cited "tweak or replace" formulation. The risks in this case are new conditions and new claiming mechanisms.
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The above three are speculation. Not speculation: in the absence of extension, the benefit ends on 31 December 2026.
What exporters need to do going forward?
1. Treat remission as expiring in forward pricing. In case of quotation or contractual prices beyond 31 December 2026, do not assume RoDTEP/RoSCTL remission in net realisation, unless the contract has a price adjustment provision; explicitly mention the dependency.
2. Conduct sensitivity analysis. Calculate net margin under full remission, no remission and partial phasing out. At even a 2–4% FOB remission, absence of which will significantly impact competitiveness, even more so in case of competition with FTA preferential advantage. Note the effect of the scrip delay: remission is received after scroll issuance and issuance of e-scrip; remission scrips expire after one year from issuance.
3. Ensure claim hygienic management and record keeping. Claims require proper selection of the appropriate scheme and application of right suffix in shipping bill; any error may lead to claim denial or claim recovery with interest and penalty. Maintain all necessary records, including application rate, remission limit, FOB basis, shipping bill, trail of e-scrip issuance and Annual RoDTEP return filing if required. With ongoing evaluation, these could be used as verification data. All pre-31 December 2026 export remains claimable under the scheme provisions; hence calendar and scrip validity deadlines apply.
4. Monitor the decision timeline. Check DMEO award and report (dmeo.gov.in, GeM), DGFT/Textiles notification validity beyond 31 December, PIB news about redesign and Budget 2027-28 allocation lines.
Action to be taken by JV investors?
The continuity of the incentives is an issue for due diligence and not a footnote. Incentives should never be capitalized beyond December 31, 2026 in your financial model, unless you have assumed something risk-adjusted and time-limited in doing so. At the entity level, confirm HS line coverage and its rate, per unit cap and if the structure (DTA, SEZ/EOU/AA) falls under either Appendix 4R or 4RE. Consider structuring some protection through incentive continuity assurances and the like and recovery risks if the remission claimed is revoked.
Contingency checklist
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Mark all open quotes/contracts with shipments past 31 December 2026 for remission dependency
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Include price adjustment clauses or incentives exclusion clause in new contracts
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Conduct three cases of sensitivity analysis in current export products
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Check the validity of Appendix 4R/4RE rates and caps on your HS lines before quotation
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Check scheme choice and RoSCTL codes in every shipping bills
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Schedule deadlines for claim filing and validity period of one year for existing e-scrips
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Submit and store ARR and claim computation files
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For Joint Ventures: re-run models considering time-bound incentives; include continuity and recovery risk clauses
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Liaise for DGFT/MoT announcements, DMEO award and Budget 2027-28
Conclusion
The NITI Aayog assessment is a dynamic process with an inflexible deadline looming ahead. The period until 31 December 2026 will see unmodified implementation of the schemes but beyond then, no certainty at all. The prudent approach would be to cost on the basis that the benefit could cease, maintain claims and documentation faultlessly to ensure that the benefits earned are sustained irrespective of subsequent developments and be prepared to revise assumptions with the first confirmation via notification or Budget allocation.