India–UK FTA (CETA): Legal Guidance for Businesses Trading Between India and the UK
The India–UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement is in force. Tariffs, rules of origin, services access and the cost of moving people between the two countries have all changed. King Stubb & Kasiva advises Indian and British businesses on what that means for their contracts, supply chains and workforce.
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Tell us what you trade and we will come back on where the agreement helps you.
15 Jul2026
CETA and the Double Contributions Convention in force
90%
of Indian imports of UK goods see tariffs cut or removed
26
sector analyses published by our lawyers since July
20
partners across 9 offices in 7 Indian cities
What the agreement changes
Most coverage of the CETA stops at the headline tariff numbers. The provisions that decide whether your business gains from it sit further down.
Tariffs
Duty reductions cover a wide span of goods lines, and most phase in over several years. What you pay at the border depends on whether the goods qualify for preference, not on the headline rate.
Rules of origin
Goods have to meet origin criteria before any preferential rate applies, and the criteria differ line by line. Sourcing decisions taken before the agreement may not survive it.
Services and mobility
Commitments on professional and business services, plus a Double Contributions Convention that changes the cost of posting employees between India and the UK.
Procurement and investment
Government contracts open up on both sides and the investment climate shifts across regulated sectors, bringing new compliance obligations with it.
Does your product actually qualify?
Preference is not automatic. A tariff line being “reduced” says nothing about whether your shipment gets the rate; that turns on the rules of origin, and this is where most claims fail.
There are three routes to originating status
A good qualifies if it is wholly obtained or produced in the UK or India; or produced entirely from originating materials of both parties; or made using non-originating materials but satisfying the product-specific rule for its tariff line. Most manufactured goods fall into the third category, where the analysis begins.
There is no single percentage threshold
A figure of 40% qualifying value content circulates widely and gets repeated as though it were the test. UK Government guidance gives 40% as a worked example for one product line. The applicable rule, and any value threshold inside it, is set product by product in the schedule of product-specific rules, so one number quoted across a whole catalogue will not hold.
Register before you claim
UK exporters must register with HMRC against their EORI number before completing origin declarations, and declarations must be dated on or after 15 July 2026. For goods entering India, an authenticated origin declaration goes to CBIC from a registered address and comes back with a unique reference number, which supports the claim for preferential treatment.
Relief is staged over years
Some lines fall to zero at once; many take a decade. Pricing, supply contracts and landed-cost models built on the headline “tariffs eliminated” will be wrong for years unless they track the staging for the specific tariff line.
Where origin claims come apart in practice
Third-country inputs never valuedTariff lines classified by habit, not HS 2022Evidence not retained for verificationClaims made before registration completed
Contract clauses the agreement puts in play
Supply, distribution and manufacturing agreements written before 15 July 2026 allocate duty and origin risk on assumptions that no longer hold. These are the clauses we are most often asked to reopen.
Price and duty adjustment
Who captures the benefit when a staged reduction lands, and who carries the cost if preference is denied? Fixed prices agreed pre-CETA usually hand the whole gain to one side by accident.
Origin warranties and indemnity
An express warranty that goods meet the product-specific rule, backed by an indemnity for duty, interest and penalties if a claim is later disallowed on verification.
Documentation and retention
Which party registers, which produces the declaration, who holds the supporting evidence, and for how long. Verification can arrive well after delivery.
Classification responsibility
HS classification drives the applicable rule. Contracts rarely say who is responsible for getting it right, or what happens when it is wrong.
Standards and conformity
Tariff access does not displace domestic product, labelling and regulatory requirements on either side. Those obligations need their own clause.
IP and technology transfer
Licensing, brand protection and technology-sharing terms in cross-border manufacturing arrangements, including what happens to improvements made in the host country.
Mobility and secondment
Assignment terms, payroll and contribution treatment under the Double Contributions Convention, and who bears the cost if the exemption is lost.
Governing law and dispute resolution
Forum, seat and enforcement across two jurisdictions, decided deliberately instead of inherited from a template.
The agreement, sector by sector
Our lawyers have published 26 analyses of the CETA since it entered into force, grouped below by the sector each one addresses.
The framework5
Start here: what the agreement is, when it bites, and the origin rules that decide whether you get the tariff at all.
Manufacturing & industrials5
Automotive, advanced manufacturing, chemicals and defence, where tariff lines and supply-chain structuring move together.
- Automotive: will British cars really become cheaper in India?
- Automotive: beyond tariff cuts, a new era of trade (companion piece)
- Advanced manufacturing: industrial investment and supply-chain integration
- Chemicals: contract manufacturing agreements under the FTA
- Defence and aerospace: a new corridor for technology partnerships
Life sciences & healthcare2
Market access for Indian pharma in Britain, and what the agreement opens for biotech and healthcare innovation.
Consumer, retail & agriculture4
British brands entering India, Indian goods reaching British shelves, and the standards questions in between.
Technology, media & education3
Services commitments and data questions for IT companies, GCCs, content businesses and education providers.
Capital, deals & financial services4
Where the agreement changes deal flow: cross-border M&A, financial services corridors, real estate and clean energy investment.
People, services & public contracts3
Secondments and social security, cross-border professional practice, and access to government procurement.
How we help
Advice on the agreement is only useful when it reaches a decision: whether a product qualifies, whether a clause needs renegotiating, whether an assignment is structured the cheapest lawful way.
Rules-of-origin opinions
A written view on whether a given product qualifies for preferential treatment, what documentation supports the claim, and where the exposure sits if it is challenged.
Contract review and renegotiation
Agreements signed before the CETA often put duty risk on the wrong party. We identify the clauses that need to move and negotiate the change.
Secondments and social security
Structuring assignments between India and the UK under the 60-month rule, including payroll, contribution and permanent-establishment consequences.
Market entry and structuring
Entity choice, FDI conditions, regulatory licensing and joint-venture terms for businesses setting up on either side of the corridor.
Government procurement
Eligibility assessment, bid documentation and compliance for Indian businesses pursuing UK public contracts and vice versa.
Why King Stubb & Kasiva
Trade questions rarely stay trade questions. An origin problem becomes a customs dispute, a secondment becomes a tax residence question, a distribution renegotiation becomes a competition issue. Our trade, corporate, tax, employment and disputes teams sit in one firm across nine offices in seven Indian cities, so those threads are handled together instead of referred out.
Managing Partner Jidesh Kumar has commented publicly on the trade deal and its effect on businesses and workers; read his analysis. For the wider practice, see our international trade and trade & commerce coverage.
The partners behind this analysis
Every piece in the series above was written by a named lawyer at the firm. 20 of them are partners; between them they cover trade and customs, corporate and M&A, tax, employment, IP and disputes.
Scroll sideways for all 20 partners, or meet the full team.
Frequently asked questions
When did the India–UK FTA come into force?
The India–UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) entered into force on 15 July 2026, alongside the companion Double Contributions Convention on social security signed on 10 February 2026. Its obligations apply now, though many of the tariff reductions phase in over several years.
Is the India–UK FTA the same thing as CETA?
Yes. CETA, the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, is the formal name of the agreement widely reported as the India–UK Free Trade Agreement. The two terms refer to the same instrument.
Does my product automatically get the lower tariff?
No. Preferential rates apply only to goods that satisfy the agreement’s rules of origin, and those criteria vary by product line. A product manufactured in India can still fail the test if enough of its value or processing originates elsewhere. Claiming preference without meeting the criteria creates customs exposure instead of a saving.
What happens if my product uses Chinese components?
It depends on how much value those components carry and what processing happens in India or the UK. Third-country inputs are not automatically disqualifying, but they are the most common reason an origin claim fails. This needs assessing product by product, before you claim.
How does the agreement change employee secondments?
The Double Contributions Convention, in force from 15 July 2026, lets detached workers posted between India and the UK stay in their home social security system for up to 60 months rather than the 36 originally proposed, avoiding double contributions. That changes the cost of an assignment, and it interacts with tax residence and permanent-establishment risk.
Do our existing supply contracts need to change?
Often, yes. Contracts negotiated before the CETA typically allocate duty, customs and origin-compliance risk on assumptions that no longer hold. Who bears the cost of a failed origin claim, who holds the documentation, and who benefits from a duty reduction are all worth revisiting.
Can UK lawyers, accountants and architects now practise in India?
The agreement contains services commitments affecting professional services, but access is neither automatic nor uniform across professions, and domestic regulatory rules continue to apply. The position differs by profession, so check it before making commitments.
Which sectors benefit most from the India–UK FTA?
Textiles, pharmaceuticals, automotive components, food and agriculture, and IT and business services are among the most directly affected, though the effect differs sharply within each. The sector analyses above set out where the opportunity and the compliance burden sit.
Is there a minimum percentage of local content for goods to qualify?
No. The rule that applies to your product is set line by line in the schedule of product-specific rules, and any value-content requirement sits inside that rule. A 40% figure is widely quoted online, but UK Government guidance gives it as a worked example for one product line. The reliable answer is the rule for your own tariff line.
What do we have to do before claiming preferential treatment?
UK exporters register with HMRC against their EORI number before completing origin declarations, and declarations must be dated on or after 15 July 2026. For goods going into India, an authenticated origin declaration is submitted to CBIC from a registered address and a unique reference number is issued, which supports the claim at import. Registration is a precondition; a claim made before it completes is exposed.
Are the tariff reductions immediate?
Some are; many stage over several years. UK Government guidance shows gearboxes at HS 8708.40, for example, moving from a 16.5% base rate to 14.85% for 2026 and reaching zero only in 2035. Anyone modelling landed cost on the headline “tariffs eliminated” will be wrong for years on those lines.
What proportion of trade is actually covered?
UK Government guidance states the agreement eliminates or reduces tariffs on 90% of Indian imports of UK goods. Coverage is not immediate zero duty, and it does not mean your particular line qualifies. The staging schedule and the rules of origin both sit between coverage and a saving you can bank.
Get in touch
Send us the specifics and we will route your enquiry to the right team. You can also reach us on +91 11 4131 8190 or at info@ksandk.com, or through our contact page.