Glossary287 terms · A to Z
Glossary
The trade, customs and finance terms used in The Cartel, A to Z. Each term links to the chapters that use it.
In the glossary
Terms287
Letters24
Chapters cited32
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A
18 terms- ACOS
- ACOS (advertising cost of sales) is your advertising spend divided by the revenue that advertising produced. It is the number that decides whether a marketplace listing is profitable, and the one most sellers discover late.
- ChapterChapter 18
- AD bank
- AD bank (Authorised Dealer bank) is the RBI-licensed financial institution that manages trade foreign exchange and electronically matches physical shipments against incoming and outgoing remittances.
- ChapterChapter 29
- AD Code
- Bank code registered with customs at each port; shipping bills need it
- ChaptersChapter 26Chapter 28
- Administration and liquidation
- Administration and liquidation are the two main British insolvency procedures. In administration, an appointed administrator runs a failing company to rescue it or sell its assets for its creditors. In liquidation, the company is closed and whatever it owns is sold.
- ChapterChapter 8
- Advance Authorisation is a government scheme that lets exporters import the inputs they need for export production without paying duty.
- ChaptersChapter 22Chapter 30
- AGOA
- AGOA (African Growth and Opportunity Act) is a US law giving qualifying sub-Saharan African countries duty-free access to the American market for many goods.
- ChapterChapter 9
- Air Waybill (AWB)
- Air Waybill (AWB) is the non-negotiable air transport contract and cargo receipt that transfers physical possession directly to the named consignee without conveying title.
- ChapterChapter 28
- AITIGA
- AITIGA (ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement) is the foundational goods pact between India and the ten ASEAN member states, in force since 2010.
- ChapterChapter 6
- ALADI
- ALADI (Asociación Latinoamericana de Integración) is the Latin American Integration Association, the 1980 intergovernmental treaty framework establishing preferential trade arrangements across Latin America. It explains why regional producers enjoy deep preferential tariffs while extra-regional partners, including India, navigate narrow tariff concessions.
- ChapterChapter 10
- All industry rates (AIR)
- All industry rates (AIR) is the standard published schedule of average duty drawback rates determined by the government for designated export product categories without requiring firm-level proof of duties paid.
- ChapterChapter 30
- Anti-dumping duty
- Anti-dumping duty is an extra import duty charged on a product sold into India below its normal price in the exporting country. It is imposed after an investigation, usually against a specific country and product.
- ChaptersChapter 5Chapter 22
- ANVISA
- ANVISA (Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária) is the Brazilian federal regulatory agency governing the approval, import, and distribution of pharmaceuticals, medical devices, cosmetics, and food products. Its rigorous dossier review process acts as a significant entry barrier that protects established suppliers.
- ChapterChapter 10
- APEDA
- APEDA (Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority) is the Indian government body for food and agricultural exports. It registers exporters, runs India pavilions at food fairs and offers financial help for market development.
- ChapterChapter 8
- AQL
- AQL (Acceptable Quality Limit) is the highest share of defective units a buyer will accept when inspecting a sample from a shipment. AQL 2.5 is a common standard for consumer goods.
- ChaptersChapter 5Chapter 14
- Arbitration clause
- Contract clause fixing institution, seat, language, law for disputes
- ChapterChapter 20
- ASEAN
- ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) is the regional bloc of eleven South-East Asian countries, with which India has a free trade agreement.
- ChapterChapter 2
B
15 terms- Basic customs duty
- Basic customs duty is the core import duty India charges under its customs tariff. Other charges on an import are calculated on top of it.
- ChapterChapter 5
- BCD
- BCD (basic customs duty) is the headline import duty India charges on a tariff line, calculated on the CIF value.
- ChapterChapter 17
- BICON
- BICON (Biosecurity Import Conditions) is the Australian government's free online database of import conditions. You can search it product by product to see what can enter Australia and what treatment or certificates are required.
- ChapterChapter 11
- Bill of Lading (BL)
- Bill of Lading (BL) is the foundational maritime transport document issued by a carrier or freight forwarder acknowledging receipt of cargo on board, serving simultaneously as a contract of carriage, a receipt of goods, and a document of title.
- ChapterChapter 27
- BIS
- BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) is India's national standards body. For a growing list of products, its certification is mandatory before goods can be sold or imported.
- ChaptersChapter 5Chapter 13Chapter 22
- Black Money Act
- Black Money Act is the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015, the statute that criminalises undisclosed foreign assets and income and that round-tripped money ultimately answers to.
- ChapterChapter 31
- BPJPH
- BPJPH (Badan Penyelenggara Jaminan Produk Halal) is the Indonesian government agency responsible for issuing and regulating halal certificates.
- ChapterChapter 6
- Brand rate
- Brand rate is a bespoke duty drawback rate calculated and approved for an individual exporter based on verified consumption data and actual customs duties paid on inputs when the standard AIR schedule is inadequate.
- ChapterChapter 30
- BRCGS
- BRCGS (Brand Reputation Compliance Global Standards) is the food-safety certification British and European supermarkets require of their suppliers.
- ChapterChapter 8
- BTOM
- BTOM (Border Target Operating Model) is the UK's post-Brexit regime for food and plant-health controls at the border. It sorts goods into low, medium and high risk, and the tier your product sits in decides what paperwork and physical checking it meets on arrival.
- ChapterChapter 8
- Buyer credit limit
- ECGC's cap on covered exposure to a buyer; free intelligence
- ChaptersChapter 20Chapter 29
- Buying agent
- Buying agent is the India-based liaison office, or the individual representative, that sources on behalf of a foreign department store, supermarket chain or brand group.
- ChapterChapter 15
C
35 terms- CAGR
- CAGR (compound annual growth rate) is the smoothed year-on-year rate at which a market would have had to grow to move from its starting value to its current one over a given period.
- ChapterChapter 12
- CARM
- CARM (CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management) is the Canada Border Services Agency’s portal for importer accounting and duty payment.
- ChapterChapter 7
- CAROTAR
- CAROTAR (Customs Administration of Rules of Origin under Trade Agreements) is India's strict regulatory framework enforcing verification of origin claims, requiring importers to provide verifiable evidence of local value addition.
- ChapterChapter 6
- Cash conversion cycle
- Cash conversion cycle is the number of days your money sleeps per order. Supplier advance plus production plus transit plus receivable terms, minus any credit your supplier gives you.
- ChapterChapter 17
- CBAM
- CBAM (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism) is the EU's charge on the carbon emitted in making certain imports. It covers iron and steel, aluminium, cement, fertilisers, hydrogen and electricity, and its payment phase began in 2026.
- ChapterChapter 3
- CBM
- CBM (cubic metre) is the unit LCL freight is priced in, and the unit your FCL crossover is computed in.
- ChapterChapter 27
- CBP
- CBP (US Customs and Border Protection) is the US agency that clears imports, collects duties and enforces trade rules at the American border.
- ChaptersChapter 3Chapter 31
- CCC
- CCC (China Compulsory Certification) is China's mandatory safety mark for listed products sold in or imported into the country.
- ChapterChapter 5
- CDSCO
- CDSCO (Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation) is India's regulator for medicines, medical devices and cosmetics. Imported cosmetics need its registration for each product.
- ChapterChapter 22
- CE marking
- CE marking is the mark a manufacturer places on a product to declare that it meets EU safety, health and environmental requirements. Many product categories cannot be sold in the EU without it.
- ChapterChapter 3
- Ceiling FOB
- Ceiling FOB is the highest free-on-board price you can quote at your origin port while still leaving every layer in the destination chain the margin it expects.
- ChaptersChapter 16Chapter 17
- CEPA
- CEPA (Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement) is the name India uses for some of its broader trade agreements, such as those with the UAE and Oman. They cover services and investment as well as goods.
- ChapterChapter 1
- Certificate of origin
- Certificate of origin is the document from your supplier, or from you, proving where goods were made, and the one that opens the zero-duty rate under a trade agreement.
- ChapterChapter 17
- CETA
- CETA (Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement) is the name of India's trade agreement with the United Kingdom.
- ChapterChapter 1
- Chain of title
- Chain of title is the record of every owner of a trademark since it was registered.
- ChapterChapter 8
- Chargeback
- Chargeback is a deduction an organised retailer makes from your invoice when the paperwork or the packaging fails one of its rules – a wrong barcode, a missing packing slip, a pallet out of spec.
- ChapterChapter 16
- CHED-D
- CHED-D (Common Health Entry Document, type D) is the UK border declaration for high-risk food of non-animal origin, such as spices and rice.
- ChapterChapter 8
- CIF
- CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight) has you pay the freight and the insurance to the destination port while the risk passes at loading in India.
- ChapterChapter 27
- CII
- CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) is one of India's main industry associations. It organises trade events and business delegations.
- ChapterChapter 9
- CNC
- CNC (computer numerical control) machines are cutting and shaping machines run by computer programs, used for precise industrial work.
- ChapterChapter 22
- COMESA
- COMESA (Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa) is a regional trade bloc covering much of eastern and southern Africa.
- ChapterChapter 9
- Common law and civil law
- Common law and civil law are the two main legal traditions. Common law, used in India and anglophone Africa, builds on court judgments. Civil law, used in francophone Africa, rests on written codes.
- ChapterChapter 9
- Confirmed LC
- Confirmed LC (Letter of Credit) is an LC that a second bank, usually in the exporter's country, also guarantees. The exporter is paid even if the buyer's bank cannot pay or cannot move the money.
- ChaptersChapter 9Chapter 29
- Contract manufacturing
- Contract manufacturing is producing goods to another company's specification, under their brand, for a fee or an agreed margin.
- ChapterChapter 13
- Corrective-action plan
- Corrective-action plan is the formal technical document an exporter or trade body files with a sovereign biosecurity regulator following a compliance suspension, detailing the precise procedural deficiency, the remedial protocols implemented, the execution timelines, and the audited operational logs confirming that the remedy is active.
- ChapterChapter 20
- CPSC
- CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) is the US regulator for consumer goods, and the body whose testing and certification requirements children’s products have to satisfy.
- ChapterChapter 7
- CSB-V
- CSB-V is the courier shipping bill used for e-commerce exports. It is the document that lets a parcel leave the country as a proper export, with GST zero-rating and scheme benefits attached, rather than as an untracked gift.
- ChapterChapter 18
- Cultivar
- Cultivar is a plant variety bred for particular traits, such as a specific kiwi or avocado.
- ChapterChapter 22
- Customs Authority for Advance Rulings (CAAR) is the Indian customs body that issues advance rulings. A trader applies before the shipment. The ruling decides the tariff classification, the valuation method and the rules of origin.
- ChapterChapter 25
D
22 terms- DA
- DA (documents against acceptance) is a trade finance arrangement where the exporting bank releases title documents to the foreign importer only after the buyer formally accepts a bill of exchange, committing to settle the invoice on an agreed future maturity date, typically 60 days out. The buyer takes physical possession of the cargo before you receive your funds, which is why the spread between DA and an LC at sight carries an explicit financing cost.
- ChapterChapter 19
- Dak Ghar Niryat Kendra (DNK)
- Dak Ghar Niryat Kendra (DNK) is an India Post branch equipped to book exports, running on a hub-and-spoke model with the Foreign Post Offices.
- ChapterChapter 18
- DAP
- DAP (delivered at place) is the same delivery with the duty left unpaid. The courier collects it from your customer before handing over the parcel, which is where conversions and reviews go to die.
- ChapterChapter 18
- DDP
- DDP (delivered duty paid) is the shipping term where you prepay the destination country's import duty and taxes, so the customer sees one price at checkout and nothing at the door.
- ChapterChapter 18
- DEFA
- DEFA (Digital Economy Framework Agreement) is an emerging ASEAN-wide treaty governing digital trade, paperless customs clearance, cross-border payments, and data governance.
- ChapterChapter 6
- Demurrage and detention
- Demurrage and detention are punitive per-day storage and container-holding penalties charged by terminal operators and shipping lines once free days expire.
- ChapterChapter 28
- Diaspora retail
- Diaspora retail is the established commercial network of independent Indian grocers, ethnic supermarkets, sweet shops, and festival pop-up stalls serving overseas immigrant communities, representing the initial retail shelf almost every Indian consumer brand occupies abroad.
- ChapterChapter 23
- DIGEMID
- DIGEMID (Dirección General de Medicamentos, Insumos y Drogas) is Peru's national authority overseeing medicines and medical devices, serving as the primary certification gate for pharmaceutical exporters targeting the Peruvian market.
- ChapterChapter 10
- Documentary collection
- Bank-forwarded docs released against payment or acceptance
- ChaptersChapter 19Chapter 28Chapter 29
- Documents against Acceptance (DA)
- Documents against Acceptance (DA) is a documentary collection mechanism where the buyer's bank releases title documents upon the buyer's signed acceptance of a bill of exchange promising payment at a future date.
- ChapterChapter 29
- Documents against Payment (DP)
- Documents against Payment (DP) is a documentary collection mechanism where the buyer's bank releases original shipping documents conferring cargo title only upon immediate financial settlement.
- ChapterChapter 29
- Doors
- Doors is retail shorthand for the number of individual stores that stock a product.
- ChapterChapter 8
- Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA)
- Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) is a bilateral tax treaty between India and another country preventing the same income from being taxed twice through foreign tax credits or tax exemptions supported by tax residency certificates.
- ChapterChapter 30
- DRI
- DRI (Directorate of Revenue Intelligence) is India's specialist customs and trade intelligence agency, working human and documentary sources alongside the automated risk-management systems to build valuation and classification cases.
- ChapterChapter 31
- DSHEA
- DSHEA (Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act) is the US law that lets a supplement or Ayurvedic product reach shelf without pre-approval, provided the label makes a structure-or-function claim rather than a disease claim.
- ChapterChapter 7
- Dummy IEC
- An import-export code held in a front person's name so that the real owner of the goods stays hidden from customs, a feature of undervaluation schemes.
- ChapterChapter 22
- Dunnage
- Dunnage is the loose timber, board or matting packed around cargo to stop it shifting. Quarantine inspects it as closely as the goods.
- ChapterChapter 11
- Duty Drawback
- Duty Drawback is the statutory customs mechanism refunding basic customs duties and integrated taxes paid on imported inputs that are physically used in the manufacture of exported goods.
- ChapterChapter 30
E
24 terms- e-BRC
- e-BRC (electronic Bank Realisation Certificate) is the statutory electronic certificate self-generated on the DGFT portal from bank data, verifying that an export shipment was settled in foreign exchange.
- ChapterChapter 29
- e-FIRC / FIRA
- e-FIRC / FIRA (electronic Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate or Advice) is the statutory banking document evidencing receipt of inward foreign exchange for a specific trade transaction.
- ChapterChapter 29
- EAC
- EAC (East African Community) is the regional bloc that includes Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
- ChapterChapter 9
- ECCNET
- ECCNET is GS1 Canada’s product registry. Getting a barcode here is the first mandatory step before any Canadian grocery chain will look at your product.
- ChapterChapter 7
- ECCS
- ECCS (Express Cargo Clearance System) is customs' digital system for courier consignments. It carries the shipping bill, the return-to-origin mechanism for uncleared parcels, and Form E for re-imported returns, which is what gives the courier lane an audit trail a bank will accept.
- ChapterChapter 18
- ECGC
- ECGC (Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India) is the government-owned insurer that protects Indian exporters against a foreign buyer's failure to pay.
- ChaptersChapter 1Chapter 29
- ECOWAS
- ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) is the regional bloc that includes Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire and Senegal.
- ChapterChapter 9
- ECTA
- ECTA (Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement) is the name of India's trade agreement with Australia.
- ChapterChapter 1
- EDPMS
- EDPMS (Export Data Processing and Monitoring System) is the Reserve Bank of India electronic tracking system that logs shipping bills and monitors the timely realisation and repatriation of export proceeds.
- ChapterChapter 29
- EEA
- EEA (European Economic Area) is the EU plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. The three non-EU members follow the EU's product rules without belonging to its customs union.
- ChapterChapter 8
- EEFC account
- EEFC account (Exchange Earners' Foreign Currency account) is an Indian bank account permitting exporters to hold export proceeds in foreign currencies without immediate rupee conversion.
- ChapterChapter 29
- EFTA
- EFTA (European Free Trade Association) is a trade bloc of four European countries outside the EU: Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
- ChapterChapter 1
- EGM
- EGM (Export General Manifest) is the shipping line or airline filing that confirms cleared cargo physically departed Indian territory, unlocking export incentive credits and bank reconciliation.
- ChapterChapter 28
- EORI number
- EORI (Economic Operators Registration and Identification) number is the registration a business needs to import goods into the EU or the UK.
- ChapterChapter 8
- EPC
- EPC (Export Promotion Council) is a product-specific body recognised by India's commerce ministry. EPCs issue membership certificates, run trade delegations and administer market-development support.
- ChapterChapter 9
- EPCG
- EPCG (Export Promotion Capital Goods) is an incentive scheme allowing import of capital machinery at zero customs duty subject to fulfilling an export obligation equal to six times the duty saved within a six-year period.
- ChapterChapter 30
- EPM
- Export Promotion Mission: the six-year, INR 250.6 billion umbrella approved in November 2025 that consolidates the government's export support.
- ChaptersChapter 29Chapter 30
- EU
- EU (European Union) is a single market of 27 countries. Clear one member state's regulatory bar and your product can circulate to all.
- ChapterChapter 3
- Exclusivity agreement
- Exclusivity agreement is a contract under which a factory keeps a design proprietary to one buyer within an agreed territory for a fixed term, in exchange for a committed annual volume, with the development cost recovered as a per-unit fee rather than an up-front payment.
- ChapterChapter 14
- Exim Bank
- Exim Bank (Export-Import Bank of India) is the government-owned bank that finances Indian exports and extends credit lines to foreign governments.
- ChapterChapter 9
- Export factoring
- Export factoring is a financial arrangement where an exporter sells accounts receivable to a specialised factor who assumes credit risk and manages collections.
- ChapterChapter 29
- Export Promotion Mission
- Export Promotion Mission is the umbrella government programme consolidating national export support into an outcome-based institutional architecture with dedicated funding allocations across subvention and infrastructure.
- ChapterChapter 30
F
18 terms- False Claims Act
- False Claims Act is the United States federal statute imposing treble damages and civil penalties on customs and procurement fraud, incentivising whistleblowers with substantial shares of recovered government funds.
- ChapterChapter 31
- FBA
- FBA (Fulfilment by Amazon) is the arrangement where you ship inventory into Amazon's warehouses in the destination market and Amazon picks, packs and delivers each order.
- ChapterChapter 18
- FDA
- FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) is the US regulator for food, medicines, cosmetics and medical devices. Most exporters in these categories must register their facility with it before shipping.
- ChapterChapter 3
- FEMA
- FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act) is the civil law governing cross-border currency and capital transactions by Indian residents, and the framework an undisclosed foreign structure or an unreported round-trip ultimately violates.
- ChapterChapter 31
- Food broker
- Food broker is a commission agent in North American grocery who opens supermarket doors and manages shelf placement without ever taking title to your goods.
- ChapterChapter 16
- Forward contract
- Forward contract is an over-the-counter derivative agreement with a bank locking an exchange rate for a future currency delivery, priced strictly on interest rate differentials.
- ChapterChapter 29
- FSMA
- FSMA (Food Safety Modernization Act) is the US law that shifted food regulation from responding to contamination toward preventing it. Its preventive-controls rules are what an American importer is working to when they ask you for a food-safety plan.
- ChapterChapter 7
- FSSAI
- FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) is India's food regulator.
- ChapterChapter 8
- FTA
- FTA (free trade agreement) is a treaty under which two or more countries cut or remove import duties on each other's goods. CEPA, CETA, ECTA and TEPA are all FTAs under different names.
- ChapterChapter 1
- FTDR
- FTDR (Foreign Trade Development and Regulation Act) is the statute under which the DGFT suspends or cancels an Importer-Exporter Code and takes other trade-control action against a violator.
- ChapterChapter 31
- Fumigation
- Fumigation is the treatment of goods or their packaging with a gas that kills pests, proven by a certificate from an approved provider.
- ChapterChapter 11
G
9 terms- G-mark
- G-mark (Gulf Conformity Mark) is the GCC's mandatory safety marking for regulated product categories, the region's equivalent of Europe's CE mark.
- ChapterChapter 4
- GACC
- GACC (General Administration of Customs of China) is China's customs authority. Foreign food producers must register with it before they can export food to China.
- ChapterChapter 5
- GCC
- GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) is the six-nation Gulf bloc of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain.
- ChapterChapter 3
- General Rules of Interpretation (GRI)
- General Rules of Interpretation (GRI) are the six rules that control classification under the Harmonised System.
- ChapterChapter 25
- GI tag
- GI tag (Geographical Indication) is a legal mark certifying that a product comes from a specific region and owes its qualities to that origin, as with Darjeeling tea or Kashmiri saffron.
- ChapterChapter 2
- GIFT City (IFSC)
- GIFT City (IFSC) is the Gujarat International Finance Tech-City International Financial Services Centre, providing India-resident businesses a domestic jurisdiction with international regulatory, financial, and tax treatment.
- ChapterChapter 30
- Golden sample
- Golden sample is the single approved master sample, signed, date-stamped and sealed in duplicate by both buyer and supplier, against which every later production run and every quality dispute is judged.
- ChapterChapter 14
H
5 terms- Halal certification
- Halal certification is the official attestation confirming that a product meets Islamic dietary and handling requirements, issued by a certifying body recognised by the destination country's authority.
- ChapterChapter 4
- Harmonised System (HS)
- Harmonised System (HS) is the international six-digit system that classifies traded goods.
- ChapterChapter 25
- Hawala
- Hawala is an informal, ledger-based money-transfer system that settles value across borders without a matching international bank transaction, leaving no EDPMS or e-BRC trail behind it.
- ChapterChapter 31
- HoReCa
- HoReCa (Hotels, Restaurants and Catering) is the trade shorthand for the food-service channel, as distinct from retail, supplying hotel groups, caterers and restaurant chains on specification and continuity.
- ChapterChapter 4
- HS code
- HS code (Harmonised System) is the internationally standardised number that classifies a traded product. India uses it at eight digits to set duties and rules.
- ChapterChapter 1
I
17 terms- IDPMS
- IDPMS (Import Data Processing and Monitoring System) is the Reserve Bank of India electronic platform that reconciles foreign currency payments against customs bills of entry for imported goods.
- ChapterChapter 29
- IEC
- IEC (Importer-Exporter Code) is the ten-digit registration issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade. No business in India can import or export without one.
- ChapterChapter 1
- IGST
- IGST (Integrated Goods and Services Tax) is the GST charged on imports. A registered business can usually claim it back as a tax credit.
- ChapterChapter 22
- IGST on imports
- IGST on imports is integrated GST charged on the CIF value plus BCD plus SWS. For a GST-registered reseller it returns as input credit against domestic sales, which makes it a cash-flow cost rather than a permanent one.
- ChapterChapter 17
- Importer of record
- Importer of record is the party legally responsible for an import. It files the customs declaration, pays the duties and answers for the product meeting local rules.
- ChapterChapter 8
- INMETRO
- INMETRO (Instituto Nacional de Metrologia, Qualidade e Tecnologia) is the Brazilian national institute responsible for technical standards and conformity assessment. Its certification marks are legally mandatory across a wide range of industrial, automotive, electrical, and consumer goods.
- ChapterChapter 10
- Institute Cargo Clauses
- Institute Cargo Clauses are the standard marine cargo policy terms issued jointly by the International Underwriting Association of London and the Lloyd's Market Association, structured across three standardised tiers. ICC (C) covers a short list of catastrophic vessel events, ICC (B) adds water damage and specified handling perils, and ICC (A) covers all risks subject to named policy exclusions. A baseline CIF contract obliges the seller to procure only minimum cover under Clause C, meaning the level of coverage represents a vital contract term to be specified rather than a detail left to the insurer.
- ChapterChapter 20
- Interest subvention scheme
- Interest subvention scheme is the government export finance support mechanism under the Export Promotion Mission offering interest rate relief on rupee export credit for eligible MSME manufacturers.
- ChapterChapter 29
- IPAFFS
- IPAFFS (Import of Products, Animals, Food and Feed System) is the UK's online system on which importers notify the border authorities before food consignments arrive.
- ChapterChapter 8
- ISF
- ISF (Importer Security Filing), known in the trade as “10+2”, is the advance cargo data the US requires before a vessel sails. Filing it late or wrongly carries penalties, and the filing is your buyer’s obligation built on your information.
- ChapterChapter 7
- ITC Trade Map
- ITC Trade Map is a free online database from the International Trade Centre showing who imports and exports what, from where, and in what volumes.
- ChapterChapter 1
- ITC(HS)
- ITC(HS) is the Indian Trade Classification. It is based on the Harmonised System.
- ChapterChapter 25
J
3 terms- JAKIM
- JAKIM (Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia) is Malaysia's federal Islamic authority. Its halal certification is recognized globally as an operational benchmark, providing immediate credibility across the Middle East and South-East Asia.
- ChapterChapter 6
- JETRO
- JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization) is the Japanese government's agency for promoting trade and investment.
- ChapterChapter 5
- JIS
- JIS (Japanese Industrial Standards) are Japan's national product standards. The JIS mark shows a product has been certified to them.
- ChapterChapter 5
K
1 term- KC
- KC (Korea Certification) is Korea's mandatory safety mark for many electrical, electronic and consumer products.
- ChapterChapter 5
L
4 terms- LC at sight
- LC at sight is an irrevocable letter of credit that authorises immediate payment by the issuing bank upon the presentation of compliant shipping, insurance, and inspection documents, rather than deferring settlement across future weeks.
- ChapterChapter 19
- LDC
- LDC (Least Developed Country) is the United Nations category for the world's poorest economies. LDCs get duty-free access to the EU under its Everything But Arms scheme, and lose it some years after they graduate out of the category.
- ChapterChapter 8
- Let Export Order (LEO)
- Let Export Order (LEO) is the statutory clearance order granted by Indian Customs on the ICEGATE portal permitting cargo to be loaded onto an export vessel or aircraft, confirming that export inspection, assessment, and compliance verifications are concluded.
- ChapterChapter 27
- Letter of Credit (LC)
- Letter of Credit (LC) is a bank's conditional undertaking to pay an exporter against presentation of strictly complying shipping and trade documents within stipulated deadlines.
- ChapterChapter 29
M
17 terms- Macmap
- Macmap is the International Trade Centre's free database of tariffs and import requirements by product and destination.
- ChaptersChapter 6Chapter 9
- Made-ups
- Made-ups are finished textile goods other than clothing, such as bed linen, towels, curtains and table linen.
- ChapterChapter 8
- MAI
- MAI (Market Access Initiative) is the Ministry of Commerce and Industry's export-promotion assistance scheme. It subsidises stall rental, airfare and market studies for eligible micro, small and medium exporters showing at designated overseas fairs.
- ChapterChapter 15
- Marine insurance
- Cover for cargo against loss or damage in transit, conventionally written for the CIF value plus 10 percent.
- ChaptersChapter 17Chapter 20
- Master data sheet
- One page from which every shipment document is populated
- ChaptersChapter 28Chapter 32
- Merchant exporter
- Merchant exporter is a registered trader who procures finished merchandise from a domestic Indian manufacturer and exports it under their own commercial invoice without operating a factory floor.
- ChapterChapter 23
- MERCOSUR
- MERCOSUR is the South American trade bloc led by Brazil and Argentina, with which India has a limited preferential trade agreement.
- ChaptersChapter 3Chapter 10
- MFN
- MFN (Most Favoured Nation) is the standard duty rate a country charges in the absence of a trade agreement, the number your FTA rate is compared against.
- ChapterChapter 3
- Minimum import price
- Minimum import price is a floor price written into a trade agreement. The lower duty applies only to goods imported at or above it.
- ChapterChapter 8
- Mirror trade data
- Mirror trade data is a comparison of two reports of the same trade. One report is the export declaration of the supplying country. The other is the import declaration of the destination country, for the same product and the same period.
- ChapterChapter 25
- MISA
- MISA (Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia) is the licensing authority through which foreign entities register to establish 100 percent foreign-owned businesses in the kingdom.
- ChapterChapter 4
- MoCRA
- MoCRA (Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act) brought US cosmetics under a registration and listing regime for the first time in decades. Facilities and products both have to be registered.
- ChapterChapter 7
- Mode 4
- Mode 4 is the WTO's term for services delivered by people who travel to another country to work there temporarily.
- ChapterChapter 8
- MOOWR
- MOOWR (Manufacture and Other Operations in Warehouse Regulations) lets businesses keep imported inputs in a bonded facility without paying duty until finished goods enter the Indian market. No duty is paid if the goods are exported.
- ChapterChapter 22
- MOQ
- MOQ (minimum order quantity) is the smallest quantity a buyer will order, or a manufacturer will produce, in a single production run.
- ChaptersChapter 12Chapter 22
- MRO
- MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) is the aftermarket for equipment already in service, covering spares, consumables and refurbishment.
- ChapterChapter 13
N
8 terms- NABH accreditation
- NABH accreditation is the quality certification issued by the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers, and it is the credibility floor for any hospital selling to an international patient.
- ChapterChapter 21
- Natasha's Law
- Natasha's Law is the UK rule, in force since October 2021, requiring full ingredient and allergen labelling on food. It is named for Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, a teenager who died after eating a baguette whose sesame was not declared, and it is why British allergen labelling is enforced to the letter rather than to the spirit.
- ChapterChapter 8
- NCM
- NCM (Nomenclatura Común del MERCOSUR) is the eight-digit regional tariff classification system based on the international Harmonised System. Exporters must verify their product's exact NCM code to accurately calculate Brazilian landed duties and taxes.
- ChapterChapter 10
- Nitaqat
- Nitaqat is Saudi Arabia's Saudization quota system, mandating minimum employment ratios of Saudi nationals across sectors and company sizes.
- ChapterChapter 4
- Non-circumvention clause
- Non-circumvention clause is the contractual undertaking by a supplier not to approach, quote to, or supply the buyer's own customers directly.
- ChapterChapter 14
- NPN
- NPN (Natural Product Number) is Health Canada’s licence for a natural health or Ayurvedic product. Unlike the US path, it reviews your safety and efficacy evidence before granting the licence.
- ChapterChapter 7
- Nutraceutical
- Nutraceutical is a food or food-derived ingredient marketed for a specific health benefit rather than for basic nutrition or taste, regulated somewhere between food and medicine depending on the destination jurisdiction.
- ChapterChapter 12
O
7 terms- ODM
- ODM (Original Design Manufacturer) is a company that designs and makes products which other companies sell under their own brand names.
- ChapterChapter 5
- Offsets
- Offsets are obligations placed on a foreign supplier winning a large government contract, typically in defence, to reinvest a share of the contract value in the buying country through local sourcing, technology transfer or joint production.
- ChapterChapter 13
- Open account
- Open account is a trading arrangement where goods are manufactured and shipped with payment due at an agreed credit term such as 30, 60 or 90 days after delivery.
- ChapterChapter 29
- Open policy
- Open policy is an annual commercial marine cargo contract that automatically covers every export shipment declared under it throughout the policy period, rather than requiring individual certificates purchased voyage by voyage.
- ChapterChapter 20
- Open terms
- Open terms means shipping first and collecting payment later, on trust, with no advance or bank guarantee.
- ChapterChapter 9
- Out of Charge
- Out of Charge is the final customs release order allowing imported cargo to clear the customs barrier and halt the terminal free-time clock.
- ChapterChapter 28
- Overseas direct investment (ODI)
- Overseas direct investment (ODI) is the RBI and FEMA regulatory framework governing capital investment, loans, and corporate guarantees extended by Indian resident entities into foreign subsidiaries or joint ventures.
- ChapterChapter 30
P
17 terms- P&L
- P&L (profit and loss statement) is a business's record of revenue, costs and profit over a period.
- ChapterChapter 2
- Packing credit / PCFC
- Packing credit / PCFC is pre-shipment short-term working capital sanctioned by banks to finance procurement and production of export goods, available in rupees or as PCFC in foreign currency.
- ChapterChapter 29
- Performance marketing
- Performance marketing is paid online advertising, such as on Meta and Google, where you pay for and measure clicks, sign-ups or sales.
- ChapterChapter 22
- Place of supply
- Place of supply is the statutory test that determines where a service is treated as having been supplied, and therefore whether it qualifies as a zero-rated export or attracts domestic GST.
- ChapterChapter 21
- Plant-variety protection
- Plant-variety protection is the legal right a breeder holds over a new plant variety. Growing it commercially without a licence is an infringement.
- ChapterChapter 22
- PM MITRA parks
- PM MITRA (PM Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel) parks are large textile parks planned by the central government, bringing spinning, weaving, processing and garmenting together at one site.
- ChapterChapter 2
- PMLA
- PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) is the criminal statute that attaches once proceeds of an underlying offence are routed through the financial system, converting a tax or customs matter into an arrest-and-attachment exposure.
- ChapterChapter 31
- POEM
- POEM, the place of effective management, is the statutory international taxation standard that determines corporate tax residency by establishing where key managerial decisions and commercial policies are genuinely executed, rather than where the corporation was formally incorporated.
- ChapterChapter 23
- Post-shipment finance
- Post-shipment finance is bank funding extended against shipped export bills through discounting, purchase, or negotiation to bridge the cash-flow gap until overseas buyer settlement.
- ChapterChapter 29
- Posted-worker convention
- Posted-worker convention refers to the India-UK Double Contribution Convention. It exempts Indian employees sent to work temporarily in the UK, and their employers, from UK social security contributions for up to three years.
- ChapterChapter 8
- Proposition 65
- Proposition 65 is a California labelling law requiring warnings on products containing any of a long list of chemicals. It applies to anything sold in California regardless of where it was made, the list is broader than most exporters expect, and it is the single most common surprise on a first consumer shipment.
- ChapterChapter 7
- PVoC
- PVoC (Pre-Export Verification of Conformity) is an inspection regime run by Kenya and several other countries. Goods are checked against the destination's standards before they leave India.
- ChapterChapter 9
Q
2 terms- Qualifying free zone person (QFZP)
- Qualifying free zone person (QFZP) is the corporate tax status under UAE tax law granting eligible free-zone entities a zero percent tax rate on qualifying income provided they maintain adequate physical substance and zone compliance.
- ChapterChapter 30
- Quality Control Order
- Quality Control Order (QCO) is an Indian notification making conformity to a specified standard mandatory for a listed product, so that anything sold in India, imported or locally made, must carry the BIS certification.
- ChapterChapter 13
R
14 terms- RCA
- RCA (revealed comparative advantage) is a country's share of world exports in a specific product divided by its share of world merchandise exports overall. A ratio above 1 indicates that the country exports proportionally more of that product than the global average.
- ChapterChapter 12
- REACH
- REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) is the EU regulation requiring chemical substances, including those inside finished goods, to be registered and assessed before sale.
- ChapterChapter 3
- Reason-to-write
- Reason-to-write is a substantive operational development within your own enterprise that gives you a genuine reason to contact an overseas buyer without asking for an order.
- ChapterChapter 19
- RELIEF scheme
- An INR 4.87 billion government scheme that supported exporters' elevated freight costs during the 2026 West Asia disruptions.
- ChapterChapter 30
- Reverse buyer-seller meet
- Reverse buyer-seller meet (RBSM) is a matchmaking event held in India by an Export Promotion Council, where the government funds the travel and lodging of qualified foreign buyers so they can inspect exhibits and negotiate on the spot.
- ChapterChapter 15
- RMG
- RMG (ready-made garments) is the trade term for factory-made clothing sold finished.
- ChapterChapter 8
- RoDTEP
- RoDTEP (Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products) is the Indian scheme that refunds uncredited embedded central, state, and local levies incurred during export manufacturing.
- ChapterChapter 4
- RoHS and WEEE
- RoHS and WEEE are EU rules for electrical goods. RoHS restricts hazardous substances such as lead and mercury. WEEE requires producers to register and pay for the collection and recycling of electrical waste.
- ChapterChapter 8
- RoSCTL
- RoSCTL (Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies) is the targeted incentive scheme providing tax rebates through transferable duty credit scrips for the apparel and made-up textile sectors.
- ChapterChapter 30
- Rules of origin
- Rules of origin are the conditions a product must meet to count as made in India under a trade agreement, and so qualify for its lower duty.
- ChapterChapter 11
S
20 terms- SABER
- SABER is Saudi Arabia's online conformity platform requiring regulated goods to be registered and issued shipment conformity certificates prior to customs clearance.
- ChapterChapter 4
- SADC
- SADC (Southern African Development Community) is the regional bloc anchored by South Africa.
- ChapterChapter 9
- Safeguard duty
- Safeguard duty is a temporary extra duty on a product whose imports surge enough to hurt domestic producers, applied whichever country the goods come from.
- ChapterChapter 5
- Sagarmala
- Sagarmala is the central government's programme, launched in 2015, to modernise ports and improve the road, rail and coastal links that feed them.
- ChapterChapter 2
- SAIP
- SAIP (Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property) is the kingdom's registry for trademarks, patents and copyright, worth checking before signing any distribution agreement.
- ChapterChapter 4
- SAP ECC and S/4HANA
- SAP ECC and S/4HANA are versions of SAP's business software. ECC is the older version, with standard support ending in 2027, and S/4HANA is its replacement.
- ChapterChapter 8
- SASO
- SASO (Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization) is the statutory regulator establishing the technical product-conformity standards enforced through SABER.
- ChapterChapter 4
- SCOMET
- SCOMET is the Special Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment and Technologies list governing dual-use strategic exports from India, requiring mandatory prior government authorisation.
- ChapterChapter 28
- Seat of arbitration
- Seat of arbitration is the legal jurisdiction whose courts supervise an international arbitration and whose procedural law governs the proceedings, representing a separate legal question from where physical hearings take place or which governing law controls the underlying contract.
- ChapterChapter 20
- Section 135
- Section 135 is the provision of the Customs Act that converts serious, wilful evasion from a civil penalty matter into a criminal offence carrying imprisonment.
- ChapterChapter 31
- Sell-through
- Sell-through is the share of stock a distributor actually sells to its customers, as opposed to stock sitting in its warehouse.
- ChapterChapter 9
- SFA
- SFA (Singapore Food Agency) is the statutory board overseeing food safety and imports in Singapore, enforcing strict compliance on product registration, traceability, and ingredient labelling.
- ChapterChapter 6
- Shipping bill
- Export customs declaration; scheme tick-boxes live here
- ChaptersChapter 28Chapter 29Chapter 30
- Siscomex
- Siscomex (Sistema Integrado de Comércio Exterior) is the Brazilian government's digital single-window portal through which all foreign trade declarations, import licences, and customs clearances must be submitted.
- ChapterChapter 10
- Slotting fee
- Slotting fee is what a supermarket or mass merchant charges up front to give a new product its shelf space.
- ChapterChapter 16
- SOFTEX
- SOFTEX is the declaration a software and services exporter files against each invoice, performing the function a shipping bill performs for goods by placing the export value on record for the banking system's realisation matching.
- ChapterChapter 21
- SONCAP
- SONCAP (Standards Organisation of Nigeria Conformity Assessment Programme) is Nigeria's conformity certification, required for regulated products entering the country.
- ChapterChapter 9
- Star Export House
- Star Export House is an official accreditation granted by the DGFT based on cumulative export turnover thresholds, conferring trade facilitation privileges, faster customs green-channel clearances, and administrative dispensations.
- ChapterChapter 30
- SWS
- SWS (social welfare surcharge) is a further 10 percent charged on the BCD itself, not on the goods. Because it is a percentage of a percentage, it disappears the moment the BCD does.
- ChapterChapter 17
T
13 terms- Tasattur
- Tasattur is Saudi Arabia's anti-concealment statute criminalising arrangements where a foreign national operates a business under the commercial registration of a Saudi citizen.
- ChapterChapter 4
- Telex release
- Telex release is the electronic notice from an origin shipping line instructing destination agents to deliver cargo without surrender of physical original bills of lading.
- ChapterChapter 28
- TEPA
- TEPA (Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement) is the name of India's trade agreement with the four EFTA countries.
- ChapterChapter 1
- TEU
- TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) is the standard measure of container capacity. A twenty-foot container is one TEU, and a forty-foot container is two.
- ChapterChapter 2
- TradeNet
- TradeNet is Singapore's electronic single-window trade platform, through which all import permits, customs declarations, and carrier filings must be processed prior to arrival.
- ChapterChapter 6
- Transfer pricing
- Transfer pricing is the statutory requirement under international and Indian tax law mandating that all commercial and financial transactions between associated enterprises be priced and documented strictly on an arm's length basis.
- ChapterChapter 30
- Transshipment
- Transshipment is the routing of goods through a third country, genuinely or on paper only, to disguise their origin and access tariff or trade-remedy treatment the true origin would not qualify for.
- ChapterChapter 31
- Trial-order ladder
- Trial-order ladder is a small opening production order priced at baseline unit economics that suit neither balance sheet, paired with volume price tiers for subsequent shipments agreed in writing before the first container leaves.
- ChapterChapter 19
U
7 terms- UCP 600
- UCP 600 (Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits) is the International Chamber of Commerce legal rulebook governing letters of credit worldwide under strict documentary compliance standards.
- ChapterChapter 29
- Udyam registration
- Udyam registration is the Indian government's registration number for a micro, small or medium enterprise, issued by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and verifiable free on the Udyam portal.
- ChapterChapter 14
- UKIPO
- UKIPO (UK Intellectual Property Office) is the British government office that registers trade marks, patents and designs. Its register is public.
- ChapterChapter 8
- UL
- UL (Underwriters Laboratories) is a private safety-certification body. American buyers of electrical goods routinely expect a UL or equivalent mark even where no law demands one.
- ChapterChapter 7
- UN Comtrade
- UN Comtrade is the United Nations database of official trade statistics reported by countries around the world.
- ChapterChapter 1
- Unit value
- Unit value is the average price per kilogram, litre, or piece a supplier realises in a given market, calculated by dividing total trade value by physical trade volume.
- ChapterChapter 12
- Usance LC
- Usance LC is a letter of credit permitting deferred payment at a predetermined date after document presentation or bill of lading date rather than immediately at sight.
- ChapterChapter 29
V
4 terms- VAT
- VAT (value added tax) is the consumption tax charged on sales across Europe, similar to India's GST.
- ChapterChapter 8
- VGM
- VGM (Verified Gross Mass) is the mandatory declaration of a packed container's weight, filed before the box is gated in. Without it the container does not load.
- ChapterChapter 27
W
6 terms- Wasta
- Wasta is the cultural network of personal standing, trust and relationship capital in the Arab world that facilitates administrative processes and business introductions.
- ChapterChapter 4
- White space vs graveyard
- A five-question diagnostic (the regulatory wall, unit value, earlier failures, durability and the absence of big players) that tells whether an uncrowded category is an open opportunity or one that others tried and abandoned.
- ChaptersChapter 12Chapter 32
- WPC
- WPC (Wireless Planning and Coordination Wing) is the telecom department unit that approves wireless devices, such as Bluetooth or Wi-Fi products, before they can be imported.
- ChapterChapter 22
Z
1 term- Zakat
- Zakat is the Islamic wealth levy assessed under Saudi tax law at 2.5 percent on the net wealth or adjusted profit attributable to Saudi and GCC equity holders.
- ChapterChapter 4