C ircular No. I 9/2024-Customs
F. No. 484/03/2015-pan I
Government of India
Ministry of Finance
Department of Revenue
Central Board oflndirect Taxes and Customs
lntemalional Customs Division
New Delhi, the 30d of September, 2024
Subject: Digitization of Customs Bonded Warthouse pmcedurts rclating to obtaining
Warrhouse License, Bond to Bond Movement of warehoused goods, and uploading of Monthly
Returns - rcg.
To facilitate ease ofdoing business in respect ofthe Customs Bonded Warehouses,CBlC has
introduced a Warehouse Module on ICEGATE to enable -
(i)online filing ofapplication for obtaining a Warehouse License;
online submission and processing of requests for transfer of warehousedgoods
to another person and/or another warehousel and
(ii)
(iii) uploading Monthly returns for the Customs Bonded Warehouse.
2. The Directorate General of Systems (DG Systems) has issued detailed User Manuals for
providing necessary guidance to the members ofthe trade as well as the Departmental officers, that
can be accessed onhttos://www. icesate. sov. in/idelines/warehouse-licensins
httos://www. icegate. sov. ir/suide housewarehouse-transfer and
https://www. iceeate. gov. in/quidelines/warehouse-monthlyreturns respectively. An overview of the
processes enabled is explained in following paragraphs.
2.1. WarehouseLicensingProcedure
Reference is invited to the Public Warehouse Licensing Regulations, 2016, the Private
Warehouse Licensing Regulations, 2016 and the Special Warehouse Licensing Regulations, 2016
that provide for licensing of Public, Privale and Special Warehouses under Section 57, 58 and
58A ofthe Customs Act, 1962, respectively. The Circular 2612016-Customs dated 09.06.2016, as
amended, prescribes an application Form for obtaining a license for a Customs Bonded Warehouse.
2.1.1. This process has now been digitized wherein the authorised signatory of an applicant can log
in to the ICEGATE portal and submit the application online along with accompanying documents.
The application once submitted would be received by the proper officer linked to the Customs
jurisdiction filed by the applicant. The application will then be processed by Customs in the back-
end.
2.1.2. A functionality for raising any query by the proper officer on this online application has
also been built in the module. Further, the applicant/authorised signatory can respond to such
queries received from the ofiicer on the module itself The final decision to accept or reject the
application for licensing shall be processed at the back-end. Once the application for license is
accepted, the officer can generate a warehouse code online, and the license would be forwarded to
the applicant.
2.1 .3. lt is noted that in some Customs Zones, the work of Customs warehouse licensing is handled
only at the Commissionerates specifically designated by the Zone. Therefore, all Customs Zones
shall issue Public Notice, clearly speci$ing the port code(s) of the jurisdiction(s) for receiving and
processing warehouse license applications filed on ICEGATE. For example, Delhi Customs Zone
may specifl INDEL4 as the appropriate port code. The applicant will, accordingly, fill-in the port
code specified by the jurisdictional Zone in the application for Warehouse license. Further, ICES
shall create a separate role for Customs offrcers for handling warehousing license related work that
would be linked to the port code specified by the Zone. Once an application for obtaining a
license is filed using the port code specified by the Zone, the application would move to the officer
ofthat port having the role created referred above.
2.1.4. For further details of the Warehouse licensing module, the users are advised to refer the User
Manual available at https://wwwicegate.gov.inlguidelines/warehouse-licensing.
Case 1: Change in ownership without change in the Warehouse;
2.2. Transfer ofWarehoused Goods to another person and/or another warehouse:
Broadly, the Warehouse Module caters to online filing of request and its processing for the
following three scenarios -
Case 2: Change in Warehouse with no change in ownership, and
Case 3: Change in the Warehouse as well as ownership ofgoods
The designed workflow takes care of aspects related to recording relevant particulars of Seller and
Buyer, validation and reconciliation of quantity and value of goods under transfer, furnishing
warehousing (triple duty) bond by the buyer, acceptance ofrequest by the proper officer etc. Detailed
step-by-step workflow in each ofthese scenarios is enclosed at Annex-A.
2.2.1 . Once operational, the module will track and keep record of any material imported under an
Into-Bond Bill of Entry including its current location and ownership details throughthe successive
transfers to different warehouses and/or owners. It will also monitor goods flowing into and out of a
warehouse in precise terms, thus facilitating filing and processingof monthly returns.
2.2.2. Regulation 3 of the Warehouse Goods (Removal) Regulations, 2016 prescribes a physical
Form for transfer of goods from one warehouse to another warehouse. The Form provides for fuler
alia recordtng of physical despatch of goods from the originating warehouse and recording of
physical receipt of goods at the destination warehouse. The said recordings are required to be signed
by the licensee or the bond officer, as the case may be. While the module on ICEGATE will capture
all relevant transaction details in the ICES database, the aforesaid physical Form will also be used to
monitor and close physical movement of goods. The said physical Form will be integrated with
module in due course. Till such time, it shall continue to be in force and is required to be filled
manually in addition to the online modality provided by the module.
2.3. Monthly Returns:
Regulation l1 of the Warehouse (Custody and Handling of Goods) Regulations,20l6
requires a licensee to file monthly retums. Board vide Circulu No. 25l2016-Customs dated
08.06.2016, as amended by Circular No. 04/2023-Customs dated 21.02.2023, has prescribed
filing oftwo monthly returns by licensees as per Form A and Form B:
(i) Form-A: a return with information on the receipt, storage, operations and removalof
goods in the month.
(ii) Form-B: a return with information on the warehoused goods for which the specified
warehousing period is expiring in the month.
2.3.1. The Warehouse module shall enable uploading scanned copies (in PDF format) of these
Monthly Retums on ICEGATE. Also, conesponding officers would be able to dou'nload these
scanned documents for necessary action at their end. The Warehouse owner/author2ed
representatives should carefully file the details in their monthly return so as to enable proper
reconciliation of warehoused goods.
2.3.2. The filing ofthese Monthly Returns using Webforms would be made available on ICEGAIE
in Phase 2.
2.4. Attention is invited to Section 59(3) of the Customs Act, 1962 which requires furnishing of
such security, as may be prescribed, in addition to execution ofthe warehousing bond. Accordingly,
the requirement of security has been prescribed under Circular 21l2016-Customs dated 31.06.2016,
as amended. Para 5 ofthe said Circular mandates that the security to be furnished by the importer or
owner ofgoods shall be furnished at the Port of Import where the bill of entry for warehousing was
filed. Accordingly,it is reiterated that the proper officer at the Port of Import must ensure submission
of the triple duty bond and security in terms of Section 59 of the Customs Act read with Circular
2 I /20 I 6-Customs dated 3 1.05.201 6 (as amended).
3. The users ofthe Warehouse Module i.e. trade and officers alike, are requested to gothrough
the User Manuals issued in this regard to familiarize themselves with the necessary steps to be
followed. The User Manuals serve as a guide that depicts all stages in an easy- to-understand manner
aided by screenshots/pictures of the module interface. This is meant to handhold the users through
the different stages ofthe processes.
3.1. Applicants/Authorized Signatories,/Licensees facing any difficulties in the access or use ofthe
Warehouse Module can email their grievance to icegatehelpdesk@icegate.gov in for suitable
redressal. Customs officers facing similar issues may email it to saksham.seva@icegate.gov in for
expedit ious reso lution.
4. Chief Commissioners of Customs are directed to issue necessary Public Notices to specifo
the port code(s) as envisaged atPara2.l.3 above as well as assist in on boarding members of the
"r4
5. Hindiversionfollows
?-r
(Prabhjot Kaur)
OSD (Customs & EP)
Email: osd-customseo@gov. in
trade and other users onto the Warehouse Module on ICEGAIE.
A.n[f&A
Transfer ofwarehoused qoods to another nerson and/or another war€house
(Step-by-step process flow on ICEGATE)
In reGrence to transfer of warehoused good to another owner and/or another
warehouse, different scenarios need separate workflows and case-specific checks and
validations. Following are the different scenarios for Inter/lntra Warehouse movement of
Goods:
. Intra warehouse - Change ofOwnership without change in warehouse
. Inter warehouse -
o Change in Ownership ofgoods or
o No change in Ownership ofgoods.
Cese I : Change in Ownershi! without change in war€house
2. Supplier, who owns the warehoused goods, shall initiate an application in a Form
available on ICEGAIE, for intent ofthe proposed sale/transfer ofgoods, and mark/send
it to the buyer. Supplier as well as buyer both are required to be registered on ICEGATE.
The following details have to be entered by the supplier at the time of filing the said Form:
3. The aforementioned application of supplier shall be displayed on the dashboard of
the buyer with an option to accept/reject. This would be treated as "Transfer of
Ownership ofwarehoused goods" for the purpose ofcustoms ledger of warehoused goods.
Once the buyer accepts the said request, screen will be made available to the buyer on
ICEGATE for submitting the Triple Duty Bond Number and Date as generated by ICES.
For the purpose of generation of Triple Duty Bond details at ICES, the Buyer needs to
submit the Triple Duty Bond physically for acceptance to the ofiicer at the Port of Import
o Details of the goods (intended to be sold/transferred) and the details of
corresponding into-bond BilI of Entry (Item-wise).
o Details of buyer including its IEC. It may be noted that IEC shall be mandatory
as the buyer will eventually have to file ex-bond Bill ofEntry or ex-bond Shipping
Bill. ICEGATE registration shall be mandatory for buyer. IEC validation will be
done with ICEGATE.
as is being done presently. Once the bond is accepted, the officer makes the entry of Bond
details in ICES to generate a Bond number in ICES. The same Bond number and date
needs to be entered by the Buyer at the time of accepting the aforesaid application of the
supplier.
4. Once submitted after acceptance of the buyer, the Bond details submitted by the
Buyer on ICEGATE portal would be validated by ICES and the Form will move for
approval to the officer in-charge ofthe warehouse. The officer may approve, and thus allow
the change in ownership. At this stage, the triple duty bond of the seller would be re-
credited and the bond for the buyer would be debited and the Buyer's acceptance would be
intimated to the Seller. Details of the transaction along with details ofthe credit and debit
of triple-duty bonds will also be intimated to the officer at the Port of import in real time.
Case 7: Change in warehouse with no change in ownershin
5. Supplier shall initiate an application in the Form available on ICEGAIE, with the
intent ofthe physical transportation ofwarehoused goods. The following details need to be
entered by the supplier at the time of filing the said Form:
o Details ofthe goods (intended to be transferred), details ofcorresponding into-bond
Bill of Entry (tem-wise), destination warehouse details, and space certificate of
destination warehouse.
o In this case, the details ofbuyer would be the same as that ofsupplier.
o Soft Copy ofTransshipment Bond and transit risk insurance policy covering the duty
involved.
o Transshipment Bond details available in ICES.
For generation ofTranshipment Bond details in ICES, the supplier needs to submit the said
bond physically for acceptance to customs ofrcer of source warehouse. Once the bond is
accepted, the officer makes the entry ofBond details in ICES to generate a bond number in
ICES.
6. The aforementioned Form filed by the supplier shall be displayed on the
dashboard of the buyer (which in this case is the same as the seller) with an option to
accept/reject. Since in this case, the seller and buyer are the same, no new triple duty bond
is to be submitted, however the user would need to upload the copy ofthe space certificate
issued by the destination warehouse where the goods are to be transferred.
7. Once submitted after acceptance by the buyer (same as seller), the Form shall move
to the officer-in-charge of the source warehouse where the goods are lying, who may
approve or reject the Form after reviewing the necessary documents. Further, once this
Form is approved, the transhipment bond of the seller would be debited electronically.
The goods may be transfened physically to the destination warehouse. Role ofthe Officer
shallremain the same.
8. Subsequent to the acceptance of the Form by officer-in-charge of the source
warehouse, the same would move to the concetned officer-in-charge of the destination
warehouse who would be required to update the receipt ofgoods by providing confirmation
ofthe goods received, on ICEGAIE, thereby completing the transfer Since this is updated
by the officeq the transhipment bond would be re-credited at the same time. The offcer in-
charge of the destination warehouse would provide confirmation of the receipt of goods
based on the information received fiom the warehouse licensee as well as based upon
physical inspection, in case of sensitive goods, as may be required. Bond will be re-credited
once officer confirms at the destination warehouse. Details of the transaction will also be
intimated to the officer at the Port of import in real time.
Case 3: Chanse in warehouse as well as chanse in ownenhip ofqoods
9. Supplier shall initiate an application in the Form available on ICEGAIE for intent
of the proposed sale on its dashboard. The following details needs to be entered by the
supplier at the time ofraising the said request:
o Details ofthe goods (intended to he sold,/transferred), details of corresponding into-
bond Bill ofEntry (Item-wise), and destination warehouse details.
o Details ofbuyeq including its IEC.
o Soft copy oftransshipment bond and transit risk insurance policy covering the duty
involved in the Warehouse Goods being moved; if the seller does not provide
this, the same would be required to be provided by the buyer.
o Transhipment Bond details available in ICES; ifthe seller does not provide this, the
same would be required to be provided by the buyer.
10. The aforementioned Form ofthe supplier shall be displayed on the dashboard ofthe
Buyer (recipient) with an option to accept or reject. As part ofthe process ofaccepting the
form, the buyer shall provide the following:
o Soft copy oftransshipment bond and transit risk insurance policy covering the duty
involved in the Warehouse Goods being moved, where the supplier has not
providedthese documents.
o Transshipment Bond details available in ICES, where the supplier has not
provided these details.
o Triple Duty Bond details available in ICES.
o Space certificate obtained from destination warehouse.
After submission ofthe details by buyer and supplier as above, ICES would validate the
Triple Duty Bond details submitted by the buyer and Transshipment Bond details submitted
by the Buyer or supplier, as the case may be, on ICEGATE portal.
For the purpose of generation of Triple Duty Bond details in ICES, the buyer needs to
submit the bond physically at the port of import for acceptance. Once it is accepted and
port officer makes entry of bond details in ICES, a bond number is generated in ICES.
Likewise, for generation of Transshipment Bond details in ICES, the buyer or the seller, as
the case may be, needs to submit the Transshipment Bond physically for acceptance to the
customs officer at the source warehouse. Once the bond is accepted, the officer makes the
entry ofBond details in ICES to generate a Bond number at ICES. The same Bond number
and date needs to be entered by the Buyer or Seller at the time of filing or accepting the
transfer application, as the case may be.
11. Once submitted by the supplier and accepted by the buyer, the Form will move to
the officer-in-charge at the source warehouse for verification of concerned documents such
as soft copy of space certificate uploaded by the buyer, soft copy ofthe transhipment bond
along with transit risk insurance policy submitted by the buyer/seller whoever
undertakes the transhipment. The officer may accept or reject the application. Once verified
and accepted, the officer may approve the transaction allowing the change in ownership.
12. Consequent to approval of the application at this stage, the triple duty bond of the
seller would be re-credited and the bond for the buyer would be debited.
'13.
Lastly, the application would move into the queue oflhe officer in-charge ofthe
destination warehouse, where he would be required to provide confnmation of the receipt
of goods, hence completing the transaction. Further, at this stage, the transshipment
bond given by the buyer or seller would be re-credited.
14. Details of the transaction along with details ofthe credit and debit of triple-duty
bonds will also be intimated to the officer at the Port of import in real time.
