Procedure for Handling of Export Cargo Returning to Indian Ports due to Closure of the Strait of Hormuz

Posted On - 31 March, 2026 • By - King Stubb & Kasiva

[1]The Commissioner of Customs, Chennai-IV (Export) Commissionerate, has issued this Public Notice prescribing local procedures for handling export cargo returning to Indian ports due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The Public Notice implements CBIC Circular No. 09/2026-Customs and also operates as a Standing Order for officers of Chennai-IV (Export) and Chennai-III (Preventive) Commissionerates. It remains valid up to 22 March 2026.

The Public Notice provides that returning vessels shall berth at the same Indian port from which they originally departed.

Key procedural relaxations include:

  • Waiver of requirement to file a Sea Arrival Manifest for eligible returning vessels;
  • Permission to offload containers without filing a Bill of Entry, subject to verification of seals and documents;
  • Cancellation of Shipping Bills and LEOs, including post-EGM cancellations through a designated functionality in ICES;
  • Mandatory sharing of details of cancelled Shipping Bills with RBI and DGFT through ICEGATE;
  • Grant of Back-to-Town (BTT) facility subject to verification by the proper officer.

The Notice further clarifies that vessels returning after calling at a foreign port without discharging cargo shall be treated as having completed export, as goods would be deemed to have been taken out of India.

For export cargo already granted LEO but where EGM has not yet been filed, a simplified BTT procedure has been prescribed, considering that export incentives would not have been disbursed in such cases.

Further, BTT-related fees and penalties for such consignments are waived, in line with Public Notice No. 31/2026 dated 6 March 2026 issued by the Commissioner of Customs, NS-II, Jawaharlal Nehru Custom House (JNCH), Nhava Sheva.

All requests under this framework are to be processed on priority to reduce port congestion, demurrage, and trade disruption.

[1] Public Notice No. 17/2026, Office of the Commissioner of Customs, Chennai-IV (Export) Commissionerate, Dated 13th March 2026