What is the story about?
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, held a time-bound Special Campaign for the expeditious issuance of Export Obligation Discharge Certificates (EODCs) under the Advance Authorisation (AA) and Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) Schemes from 1st to 31st March 2026.
EODC approvals in March 2026 rose 242% over February 2026 under the Advance Authorisation scheme and 234% under the EPCG scheme. 12,690 EODCs were approved in March, compared to 3,747 in February, representing a 3.39 times increase.
EODCs are critical instruments for the formal closure of export obligations. They enable the release of bank guarantees and bonds, reduce exporter grievance burden, and ensure effective compliance monitoring under India’s trade facilitation framework. The campaign aimed to accelerate disposal of claims and benefit exporters across the country.
The campaign facilitated the clearance of 59% of the pending pipeline under the AA scheme and 54% under the EPCG scheme during March 2026. The Special Campaign resulted in the approval of 12,690 EODCs in a single month, compared to 44,018 approvals during the preceding eleven months from April 2025 to February 2026.
In March 2026, 13,238 out of 13,627 available AA EODC cases were processed, achieving a processing rate of 97%. Under the EPCG scheme, 8,281 out of 8,473 available cases were processed, reflecting a processing rate of 98%.
Also Read: IMF, World Bank, IEA to form joint group to tackle West Asia war impact
As a direct outcome of the Special Campaign, the number of in-progress cases declined from 15,360 as on 1st March to 3,966 as on 1st April despite the addition of 6,740 new EODC cases during March 2026. The Special Drive for expeditious issuance of EODCs has been extended for a further period of two months from 1st April to 31st May.
Also Read: India curbs imports of gold, other precious metal jewellery from ASEAN countries
EODC approvals in March 2026 rose 242% over February 2026 under the Advance Authorisation scheme and 234% under the EPCG scheme. 12,690 EODCs were approved in March, compared to 3,747 in February, representing a 3.39 times increase.
EODCs are critical instruments for the formal closure of export obligations. They enable the release of bank guarantees and bonds, reduce exporter grievance burden, and ensure effective compliance monitoring under India’s trade facilitation framework. The campaign aimed to accelerate disposal of claims and benefit exporters across the country.
The campaign facilitated the clearance of 59% of the pending pipeline under the AA scheme and 54% under the EPCG scheme during March 2026. The Special Campaign resulted in the approval of 12,690 EODCs in a single month, compared to 44,018 approvals during the preceding eleven months from April 2025 to February 2026.
In March 2026, 13,238 out of 13,627 available AA EODC cases were processed, achieving a processing rate of 97%. Under the EPCG scheme, 8,281 out of 8,473 available cases were processed, reflecting a processing rate of 98%.
Also Read: IMF, World Bank, IEA to form joint group to tackle West Asia war impact
As a direct outcome of the Special Campaign, the number of in-progress cases declined from 15,360 as on 1st March to 3,966 as on 1st April despite the addition of 6,740 new EODC cases during March 2026. The Special Drive for expeditious issuance of EODCs has been extended for a further period of two months from 1st April to 31st May.
Also Read: India curbs imports of gold, other precious metal jewellery from ASEAN countries

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