US urges India not to restrict trade with laptop import policy

US Trade Representative Katherine Tai on Friday asked India to ensure the nation's new import requirements for tech hardware such as laptops and tablets do not impede trade in future, reports Bloomberg and Reuters.

Tai, who is on a three-day visit to India, discussed issues ranging from business visas for Indian workers to duty-free access on goods with India's Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal in New Delhi. While the import management system has minimised the impact on businesses, she "urged India to ensure that the end-to-end online system currently in operation and related policies do not restrict trade going forward," according to a joint statement.

In October last year, India said it will allow imports of tech hardware without a mandatory license, softening curbs it had previously planned to impose. Under the new plan, some of the world's biggest technology companies including Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd need to register for the import management system, and authorisations, based on the value of shipments, that will be valid until the end of September 2024.

New Delhi also reiterated its demand to restore duty-free access to some of its goods under the so-called generalised system of preferences and sought an increase in the number of inspections by the US Food and Drug Administration to reduce backlog, the joint statement said. The South Asian nation has been nudging the Biden administration to reverse a Trump-era move withdrawing duty-free status on thousands of Indian export products.

Easier visas and further engagement for signing a pact to do away with dual social security taxation for its workers was also discussed.

The US surpassed China as India's biggest trade partner in 2022, with bilateral shipments reaching a record $137.24 billion, up from $114.69 billion in 2021.