As the Indian tea industry complains that imports of cheap and low-quality drinks are on the rise, the Tea Board on Tuesday said all import consignments of tea should be mandatorily tested from May 1 to ensure quality.
Tea Board India issued a directive saying, “…it is directed that, with effect from May 1, 2026, all import consignments of tea will be compulsorily tested as per the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) attached hereto, to ensure quality.”
In particular, the import of low-quality duty-free tea remains a major concern for planters, who have been alleging that such shipments are destroying the country’s tea industry by depressing crop prices and adding to the troubles of growers.
Industry bodies had earlier urged the government to impose 100 per cent import duty on cheap imports of liquor, mainly from Nepal, Kenya and other African countries.
In Tuesday’s directive, the Tea Board said that to import tea into India, an importer licensed by the board with a valid license number should submit import information. Proforma invoice with tentative date of arrival of the shipment, warehouse details for storage of such imported tea, number of containers and breakdown of cost of tea, freight and insurance in the Tea Council portal.
“The importer will have to pay an application fee of Rs 11,120 per sample plus GST through the Tea Council portal while applying for the provisional import clearance certificate,” the Tea Board said. While applying, the importer will have to upload the photograph of the packet through which the imported tea will be re-exported, the Tea Board said.
“On arrival of the import consignment, the Tea Board official will, within 24 hours, at the concerned port area, draw two sets of samples from any container out of the batch of five containers. The container for sampling will be selected randomly by the Tea Board official,” the instructions said.
“We welcome the directive with SOPs. It will definitely restrict the entry and re-export of poor quality and non-FSSAI tea into India,” said Bejoy Gopal Chakraborty, president of the Confederation of Indian Small Tea Growers Association (CISTA).
It is noteworthy that in the domestic market, Darjeeling tea is facing competition from varieties grown in Nepal, whose price is up to 50 percent less than Darjeeling tea.
Darjeeling tea was the first product to get GI tag in India. According to industry insiders, demand for Darjeeling tea in the domestic market has declined due to competition from Nepal tea.
Published on February 10, 2026
