All questions about Bill of Entry answered

What is a bill of entry and when is it filed?

• A bill of entry is legal document that contains details about imported goods and is filed either on or before their arrival by importers or customs clearance officers. It must be issued before the importer can claim ITC.

• A bill of entry can be filed for either  home consumption or bond clearance. The bond number and date of issue must be mentioned in the case of bond clearance.

Who is required to issue a bill of entry?

A bill of entry is to be issued by companies that either have consignments imported from other countries, or purchase them from SEZ (Special Economic Zones).

What is the procedure to issue a bill of entry?

A bill of entry is first filed and then subsequently inspected by a customs officer. After this inspection, the importer of the consignments must pay a basic customs duty on top of the IGST and GST compensation tax necessary to clear the goods. ITC can be claimed only for the latter.

What information must be included in a bill of entry?

The following details must be included in a bill of entry :

• The Port Code and licence number

• The customs house agent code, Import Export Code (IEC), and the name and address of the importer. Registered taxpayers may enter their regular or provisional GSTIN in the IEC field and unregistered taxpayers may enter their PAN or UIN.

• Port of shipment, country of origin with code number, and country of consignment with code number

• Date of issue of bill and details of goods and their value, including:

• Packages and quantity of goods
  • Number and description
  • Marks and numbers
  • Serial number and unit code
  • Weight and volume
  • Individual RITC numbers for each class of items
  • Customs tariff heading

• Customs duty
  • Nature of duty code
  • Assessable value
  • Basic rate and amount of supplies

• Additional duty
  • Central Excise Tariff (CET)
  • Special Additional Duty (SAD)
  • Value, rate, and additional duty

• IGST
  • GST code and compensation cess rate
  • IGST rate and amount
  • Exempt notification for claiming exemption from IGST and GST compensation cess

• Total amount of duty