What does EXIM compliance cover for an Indian company on SAP?
EXIM compliance is everything an Indian exporter or importer must declare, claim, track and close with the government and its bank for each shipment. It sits on top of the normal sales, purchasing and finance process in SAP:
- Customs declarations: a shipping bill for every export and a bill of entry for every import, filed on ICEGATE.
- Export incentives and duty schemes: RoDTEP, duty drawback, Advance Authorisation and EPCG, each with its own claims, obligations and closure.
- Special customs procedures for imports: MOOWR bonded manufacturing and concessional duty under the IGCR Rules 2022.
- Foreign-exchange realisation: every shipping bill and bill of entry is matched with its payment in RBI's EDPMS and IDPMS, and e-BRCs are generated through DGFT.
- Proof of origin: certificates of origin for exports, and the origin information importers must hold to claim a trade-agreement duty rate.
Standard SAP holds most of the data these steps need: buyers, invoices, items, quantities, values and HS codes. What it does not keep by default are the India-specific records: licence-wise export obligations, RoDTEP scrips, drawback claims, bonded stock and EDPMS status. That is the layer an EXIM solution adds.
Which government systems does an exporter or importer deal with?
| System | Run by | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| ICEGATE | Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) | Shipping bills, bills of entry, drawback and RoDTEP credits, IGCR and MOOWR filings |
| DGFT portal | Directorate General of Foreign Trade | Advance Authorisation, EPCG, e-BRCs, certificates of origin |
| EDPMS and IDPMS | Reserve Bank of India, through the authorised dealer bank | Matching exports and imports with their payments |
These systems share data. The shipping bill filed on ICEGATE becomes the export entry that EDPMS tracks, the drawback claim, the RoDTEP claim and the evidence that redeems an Advance Authorisation. An error on one document therefore shows up in several places later. The ICEGATE guide explains what each declaration contains.
What export incentives and duty schemes must be tracked?
| Scheme | What it gives | What must be tracked | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| RoDTEP | Refund of embedded duties and taxes as a percentage of FOB value, as e-scrips | Item-wise declaration on the shipping bill, scrips and their use | RoDTEP in SAP |
| Duty drawback | Refund of customs duty on imported inputs, at the All Industry Rate or a brand rate | Claim on the shipping bill, recovery if proceeds are not realised | Duty drawback in SAP |
| Advance Authorisation | Duty-free import of inputs used in exports | Export obligation, 15% value addition, inputs matched to shipping bills | Advance Authorisation in SAP |
| EPCG | Zero-duty import of capital goods | Export obligation of six times the duty saved within six years | EPCG in SAP |
RoDTEP runs to 31 December 2026 for DTA, Advance Authorisation, SEZ and EOU exports. RoDTEP must be declared on the shipping bill at the time of filing, or no RoDTEP accrues on that item. For Advance Authorisation and EPCG, a missed obligation means paying the saved duty with interest, so the obligation has to be tracked from the first import to closure.
Which customs procedures matter for imports?
- Bill of entry timing: a bill of entry must be filed before the end of the day before the goods arrive. Late filing costs ₹5,000 a day for the first three days and ₹10,000 a day after that, capped at the duty payable. See the ICEGATE guide.
- MOOWR: a manufacturer can import inputs and capital goods into a licensed bonded warehouse with customs duty deferred. Duty on inputs is paid only when finished goods are cleared into India, and not at all when they are exported. Every bonded movement must be recorded. See MOOWR in SAP.
- IGCR: where a notification ties a lower duty rate to a specified use, the importer must use the goods for that purpose and file a quarterly IGCR-3 statement. See IGCR in SAP.
- Origin for imports: an importer claiming a trade-agreement duty rate must hold the origin information CAROTAR 2020 requires. See certificates of origin and FTA.
What happens after the goods have shipped?
Every export is tracked in RBI's EDPMS until the proceeds are realised, and every import in IDPMS until it is paid. From 1 October 2026, export proceeds for goods must be realised within nine months of shipment. Open entries block or reverse benefits: drawback is recovered if proceeds are not realised. e-BRCs, generated through DGFT, are the proof of realisation that other schemes rely on. See EDPMS, IDPMS and e-BRC.
Exporters also apply for certificates of origin online through DGFT, now also by Open API from their ERP, so buyers can claim lower duty under a trade agreement.
What does a typical month of EXIM work look like?
- File shipping bills and bills of entry on ICEGATE from SAP sales and purchase documents, and bring the customs responses back.
- Declare RoDTEP and drawback item by item on each shipping bill, and reconcile the credits received.
- Update export obligations for each Advance Authorisation and EPCG licence against the month's shipping bills.
- Record bonded movements and IGCR usage, and prepare the MOOWR and IGCR returns.
- Match realisations against EDPMS and payments against IDPMS, and generate e-BRCs.
- Apply for certificates of origin for shipments going to trade-agreement countries.
When this runs on spreadsheets, each step re-keys data that already exists in SAP. That is where errors, lost incentives and open EDPMS entries come from.
How do OptiEXIM and OptiEXIMc handle it?
IVL builds two EXIM solutions for SAP, covering the work above from SAP documents:
- [OptiEXIM](/platform/trade/optiexim/) runs inside SAP S/4HANA or ECC. It has been in production since 1998 and runs at 300+ customers, and is SAP-certified.
- [OptiEXIMc](/platform/trade/optieximc/) runs on SAP BTP for SAP S/4HANA, including RISE with SAP and Public Cloud (GROW with SAP). It has been built clean-core since 2019, is SAP-certified, and files directly through the ICEGATE APIs.
Both calculate RoDTEP and drawback, track Advance Authorisation and EPCG obligations, record MOOWR and IGCR movements, generate e-BRCs through the DGFT API, track EDPMS and IDPMS status and file certificates of origin with DGFT. The trade hub shows the full set of trade products.
Frequently asked questions
What is EXIM compliance in SAP?
Filing and tracking India's customs, foreign trade and foreign-exchange requirements from SAP data: shipping bills and bills of entry, export incentives, duty schemes, EDPMS and IDPMS, e-BRCs and certificates of origin.
Does standard SAP cover Indian EXIM requirements?
Standard SAP holds most of the data, but not the India-specific records such as licence-wise export obligations, RoDTEP scrips, drawback claims, bonded stock and EDPMS status. An EXIM solution adds that layer.
Which government portals does an Indian exporter use?
ICEGATE for customs declarations and credits, the DGFT portal for licences, e-BRCs and certificates of origin, and RBI's EDPMS through the exporter's bank for realisation of export proceeds.
Is RoDTEP still available?
Yes. RoDTEP runs to 31 December 2026 for DTA, Advance Authorisation, SEZ and EOU exports. It must be declared item by item on the shipping bill at the time of filing.
How long do exporters have to realise export proceeds?
From 1 October 2026, export proceeds for goods must be realised within nine months of shipment. Each shipping bill stays open in EDPMS until its proceeds are realised.
What is the difference between OptiEXIM and OptiEXIMc?
OptiEXIM runs inside SAP S/4HANA or ECC. OptiEXIMc runs on SAP BTP for SAP S/4HANA, including RISE with SAP and GROW with SAP, and keeps the core clean. Both cover the same EXIM processes from SAP documents.
Can we file on ICEGATE directly from SAP?
Yes. An importer or exporter with a valid IEC and ICEGATE registration can file shipping bills and bills of entry from SAP data. OptiEXIMc files directly through the ICEGATE APIs.
Sources
This guide summarises the rules for general information and is not legal advice. Check the current notifications before acting on them.