India is an extremely challenging, protectionist market for U.S. exports of pork, poultry, poultry products, and dairy products.  Since 2003, India has imposed trade-restrictive sanitary certification requirements on global dairy imports, which block the majority of U.S. dairy products from access to India’s market.  The combination of these requirements, India’s unwillingness to enter into good faith negotiations on the certificate requirements, and its protectionist high tariffs on dairy imports led the National Milk Producers Federation and the U.S. Dairy Export Council to submit a petition in September 2017 requesting USTR to review the status of India’s eligibility to continue receiving benefits under the WTO’s Generalized System of Preferences (GSP).  The status of this review is currently active.  

With respect to poultry and poultry product exports, as a result of the WTO dispute settlement action, India and the United States agreed to U.S. veterinary export certificates in March of 2018, opening the Indian market for shipments of U.S. poultry and poultry products for the first time in decades.  Despite USDA posting agreed labeling guidance and mock-up labels on its regulatory web sites, and competitive U.S. poultry prices, Indian importers remain nervous about taking advantage of the new market access. 

For the most current information on India’s Prohibited Import List, please select the “Prohibited Items” and “Restricted Items” tabs under “Policies” at http://dgft.gov.in/ .

The GOI also limits or prohibits foreign investment in a wide range of sectors.  Complete prohibitions are in place in the following sectors:
• Lottery business including Government/Private lotteries, online lotteries, etc.
• Gambling and betting including casinos, etc.
• Chit funds
• Nidhi company
• Trading in Transferable Development Rights (TDRs)
• Real estate business or construction of farm houses
• Manufacturing of cigars, cheroots, cigarillos and cigarettes, and other tobacco products
• Agriculture farming
• Legal, accounting & architecture services

Foreign technology collaboration in any form including licensing for franchise, trademark, brand name, management contract is also prohibited for the lottery business and gambling and betting activities.

Some U.S. service providers face barriers in India, for example architects.  The Indian architecture market is regulated by the Council of Architecture (COA), an industry body controlled by the GOI.  The COA is responsible for regulating the education and practice of architecture in India according to the Architects Act, 1972, and the Architects Regulations, 1989.  As the COA operates in compliance with the Architects Act, 1972, the organization actively prohibits foreign architecture firms and architects who are not registered with the COA from practicing architecture in India under Chapter 3, Section 25 of the Act.  Such restrictions have resulted in foreign firms establishing partnerships with Indian architects who are registered with the COA to serve as design consultants and project planning experts while Indian firms produce the design and construction documentation and execute the projects.  Limits on foreign ownership and control vary by sector and industry.  Please refer to Investment Climate Statement and “Licensing Requirements for Professional Services” sections of this guide for more details.

In July 2017, the GoI introduced price controls on cardiac stents capping the selling price to 70 percent lower than the prevalent market rate.  The order was followed by similar pricing cap on knee implants later in the year.   The devices were price capped after including them in the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM).  Currently, 23 medical devices have been notified as drugs and are regulated under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act. Of these, cardiac stents, drug-eluting stents, condoms and intra-uterine devices—are included in the NLEM and are subject to notified price caps. The remaining medical devices are not under any form of price regulation.