The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, has issued Trade Notice No. 34/2026-27 dated April 01, 2026, announces the extension of its special drive aimed at expediting the issuance of Export Obligation Discharge Certificates (EODCs) under the Advance Authorisation (AA) and Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) Schemes. The extended drive will now continue from April 1, 2026 to May 31, 2026.
The initiative follows the successful implementation of a special drive conducted during March 1–31, 2026, which facilitated the disposal of a substantial number of pending cases. During this period, DGFT Regional Authorities issued a total of 11,791 EODCs, including 7,518 under the Advance Authorisation scheme and 4,273 under the EPCG scheme. This effort significantly reduced the backlog of pending EODC applications.
Building on these gains, the extended drive will place focused attention on the clearance of older pending applications, cases with deficiencies pending for extended durations, and applications delayed due to non-submission of complete documents or required clarifications by authorisation holders.
Trade and industry stakeholders are encouraged to actively participate in this extended drive by reviewing the status of their pending applications, promptly submitting required documents or clarifications, and responding to deficiency communications within prescribed timelines. Exporters are also advised to engage with concerned Regional Authorities during facilitation interactions such as Jan Sunwai sessions for quicker resolution of longstanding cases.
The DGFT has indicated that the continuation of this drive is expected to enable time-bound closure of pending AA and EPCG authorisations, thereby easing compliance burdens for exporters. It will also support consequential actions at Customs, including redemption of bonds and release of bank guarantees, wherever applicable.
Regional Authorities have been advised to adopt an age-wise pendency clearance strategy, ensuring prioritisation of older cases for disposal during the extended period.
Any challenges faced in the implementation of this Trade Notice may be brought to the attention of the respective Regional Authorities or DGFT Headquarters for resolution.
The Trade Notice can be accessed at: https://a2ztaxcorp.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Trade-Notice.pdf
