Indirect Tax Laws · Foreign Trade Policy

Foreign Trade Policy 2023: Features and Objectives

Updated 5 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Foreign Trade Policy 2023 is India's export-import policy, effective 1 April 2023, issued under the FT(D&R) Act, 1992. It is open-ended, with no fixed end date. It rests on four pillars: incentive to remission, export promotion through collaboration, ease of doing business, and emerging areas. Answer by stating the vision, the pillars and one feature under each.

Understand Foreign Trade Policy 2023: Features and Objectives

A Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) is the Government's statement of how India will regulate and promote imports and exports. It is notified by the Central Government under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992. It works alongside the Customs Act, 1962 and the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, which actually levy duty.

FTP 2023 came into effect on 1 April 2023. The big change is its form. Earlier policies, like FTP 2015-20, ran for a fixed period, usually five years. FTP 2023 is open-ended. It has no end date and can be updated by the Government as the situation needs, which gives exporters more certainty.

The vision is to make India a bigger player in global trade and to grow exports of both goods and services, with a stated aspiration of reaching USD 2 trillion in exports by 2030. The objectives follow from this: promote exports, make trade easier and cheaper to do, bring states and districts into export promotion, and support newer areas of trade.

The policy is built on four pillars:

Incentive to Remission: the emphasis shifts from incentives towards remission of duties and taxes embedded in exports. Schemes like RoDTEP and RoSCTL are examples. This does not mean incentives were abolished.
Export Promotion through Collaboration: exporters, states, districts and Indian Missions abroad work together. Districts are developed as export hubs, and Towns of Export Excellence are recognised.
Ease of Doing Business, reduction in transaction cost and e-initiatives: simpler procedures, more online processes and lower compliance burden. A one-time amnesty for certain defaults under Advance Authorisation and EPCG is part of this.
Emerging Areas: e-commerce development, Districts as Export Hubs, and streamlining the SCOMET (special chemicals, organisms, materials, equipment and technologies) policy.

Districts as Export Hubs is part of both the collaboration theme and the Emerging Areas pillar in FTP 2023. Place it under whichever pillar the question is asking about.

For the exam, think of FTP 2023 as a shift: from an emphasis on incentives to remission of embedded duties and taxes, from top-down to collaborative, and from paperwork to digital.

Key rules to remember

Legal basis: FTP 2023 is issued under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992; The Act empowers the Central Government to formulate and announce the policy. Do not attribute it to the Customs Act.
Effective date and duration: Effective 1 April 2023; open-ended (no fixed end date); Contrast with FTP 2015-20, which had a fixed period. This is the easiest point to score.
Four pillars: Incentive to Remission | Export Promotion through Collaboration | Ease of Doing Business | Emerging Areas; Memorise in this order. Remission means refund of embedded duties and taxes, not a bonus.
Export aspiration: USD 2 trillion exports (goods and services) by 2030; State it as an aspiration or target, not as a legal obligation.
Key remission schemes: RoDTEP and RoSCTL; These are examples of the remission pillar. Details are in the related scheme topics.

How to solve Foreign Trade Policy 2023: Features and Objectives questions

Questions on FTP 2023 are mostly descriptive: list features, explain pillars, or compare with the earlier policy. Use one structure every time.

1Read the question and decide the type: features or objectives, pillars, comparison with FTP 2015-20, or a case asking which pillar or feature applies.
2Open with the basics in one line: issued under the FT(D&R) Act, 1992, effective 1 April 2023, open-ended.
3State the vision and objective in a line, including the USD 2 trillion by 2030 aspiration if relevant.
4List the four pillars by name, then give one or two points under each. Use short bullets.
5If it is a case, match the facts to the pillar. For example, a district-level export cluster points to collaboration, and a duty refund on exports points to remission.
6For a comparison, use two columns of points: duration, approach to incentives, and role of states and districts and technology.
7Close with one line of conclusion linking the policy to ease of exports and trade facilitation.

Quickest way: Four-pillar recall with RCEE

When to use it: Use when you have about five minutes for a 5 or 6 mark descriptive answer or when a case MCQ asks which pillar applies.

Write the code R-C-E-E: Remission, Collaboration, Ease of doing business, Emerging areas.
Under each letter, add one anchor: RoDTEP or RoSCTL; states, districts and Missions; digital processes and amnesty; e-commerce, district hubs and SCOMET.
Add the framing line: open-ended policy from 1 April 2023 under the FT(D&R) Act, 1992.
For MCQs, find the keyword in the case: refund of duties means remission; districts or states working together mean collaboration; online or reduced cost means ease; e-commerce or SCOMET means emerging areas.

Common mistakes in Foreign Trade Policy 2023: Features and Objectives

Saying FTP 2023 is a five-year policy like FTP 2015-20.
Students remember earlier policies as five-year documents and assume the pattern continues.
Fix: Write that FTP 2023 is open-ended with no end date and can be updated whenever needed.
Treating 'incentive to remission' as giving cash incentives to exporters.
The word 'incentive' in the pillar name misleads.
Fix: Explain that the emphasis shifts towards remission, meaning refund of duties and taxes embedded in exports, as in RoDTEP and RoSCTL. Do not say incentives were abolished.
Naming the wrong pillars, such as 'export finance' or 'tariff reform'.
Students guess from general knowledge instead of memorising the exact four.
Fix: Use RCEE: Remission, Collaboration, Ease of doing business, Emerging areas.
Stating the Customs Act, 1962 as the source of the FTP.
Both are in the same Paper 5 Part II, so the sources get mixed.
Fix: The FTP is issued under the FT(D&R) Act, 1992. The Customs Act deals with levy, clearance and duty.
Mentioning district export hubs under only one pillar when the question needs the other.
Districts as export hubs feature in both the collaboration theme and the Emerging Areas pillar, so students remember only one placement.
Fix: Know that it fits both. Under collaboration, stress states and districts working together. Under Emerging Areas, list it with e-commerce and SCOMET.
Giving figures or lists you are unsure of, such as exact number of towns of export excellence.
Students try to add detail to look thorough.
Fix: Include only points you are certain of. A correct short answer scores better than a long one with wrong figures.

Worked examples

Example 1

Case: A State Government, a district administration and Indian Missions abroad jointly plan to develop a district as an export hub for its local products. An exporter in the district also gets refund of duties embedded in its exports under a notified scheme. Identify the pillars of FTP 2023 that apply to each fact and explain briefly.

Show the solution

Fact 1: State, district and Indian Missions working together. This matches the pillar 'Export Promotion through Collaboration', where exporters, states, districts and Missions work as partners.
Fact 2: Refund of duties embedded in exports under a notified scheme. This matches the pillar 'Incentive to Remission'. Schemes like RoDTEP and RoSCTL are examples.
Add a note: Districts as Export Hubs is part of both the collaboration theme and the Emerging Areas pillar, but the joint effort of State, district and Missions in this case fits collaboration most directly.
Conclude: the case shows two of the four pillars working together, one at the institutional level and one at the exporter level.

Answer: The joint effort of State, district and Missions falls under Export Promotion through Collaboration. The refund of embedded duties falls under Incentive to Remission.

Example 2

Explain how FTP 2023 differs from FTP 2015-20 in its approach and duration. Answer in five points.

Show the solution

Point 1, duration: FTP 2015-20 was a fixed-period policy. FTP 2023 is open-ended, effective 1 April 2023, with no end date.
Point 2, flexibility: FTP 2023 can be updated by the Government as needed. A fixed-period policy is reviewed mainly when it ends or by interim changes.
Point 3, incentive approach: FTP 2023 shifts emphasis from incentives to remission of embedded duties and taxes, through schemes such as RoDTEP and RoSCTL.
Point 4, collaboration: FTP 2023 explicitly puts states, districts and Indian Missions alongside exporters as partners in promoting exports.
Point 5, ease of doing business and emerging areas: FTP 2023 stresses digital processes, lower transaction cost, and focus on e-commerce, districts as export hubs and SCOMET, along with a one-time amnesty for certain defaults under Advance Authorisation and EPCG.
Conclude with one line: FTP 2023 gives a more stable, collaborative and technology-driven framework.

Answer: FTP 2023 differs mainly in being open-ended instead of fixed-period, shifting emphasis from incentives to remission of embedded duties and taxes, treating states and districts as partners, and stressing ease of doing business and emerging areas.

Exam tips

Always open the answer with: FT(D&R) Act, 1992, effective 1 April 2023, open-ended. These are easy marks.
Write the four pillars in bold or as bullets so the examiner sees them at once.
In case-scenario MCQs, pick out the keyword in the facts and map it to a pillar. There is no negative marking, so always attempt.
For comparison questions, use at least four distinct points: duration, incentive approach, role of states and districts, and technology or ease.
Do not quote figures or counts unless you are sure. Name RoDTEP, RoSCTL, Advance Authorisation and EPCG as examples without details unless the question asks.

Practice questions from Foreign Trade Policy

Foreign Trade Policy 2023: Features and Objectives in other exams

The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.

Foreign Trade Policy 2023: Features and Objectives: frequently asked questions

What are the four pillars of Foreign Trade Policy 2023?

They are Incentive to Remission, Export Promotion through Collaboration, Ease of Doing Business with reduced transaction cost and e-initiatives, and Emerging Areas. A quick way to recall them is RCEE.

Is FTP 2023 valid for five years?

No. FTP 2023 is open-ended and has no fixed end date. It came into effect on 1 April 2023 and can be updated by the Government when needed.

What is the main difference between FTP 2015-20 and FTP 2023?

FTP 2015-20 was a fixed-period policy with a focus on incentives. FTP 2023 is open-ended and shifts emphasis towards remission of duties, collaboration with states and districts, ease of doing business and emerging areas.

Which Act empowers the Government to announce the FTP?

The Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992. The Customs Act, 1962 deals separately with levy and collection of customs duty.