Introduction: ICEGATE

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) digital gateway for Indian Customs, the Indian Customs Electronic Gateway (ICEGATE), offers e-filing services to trade, cargo carriers, and other channel partners. Indian Customs offers a variety of services via their website, including electronic filing of the Bill of Entry (import goods declaration), Shipping Bills (export goods declaration), e-payment of Customs Duty, a free web-based Common Signer utility for signing all Customs Documents, the ability to submit supporting documents online via the e-Sanchit portal, end-to-end electronic IGST refund, and more.

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To meet the diverse demands of the Traders, Icegate collaborates internally with numerous partner organizations like the RBI, Banks, DGFT, DGCIS, Ministry of Steel, Directorate of Valuation, and other Partner Government Organizations.

Objectives of E-Sanchit in Relation to EXIM

E-Sanchit, an organization under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in India, supports services related to foreign trade in India, which is overseen and promoted by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) (MoCI). The DGFT is the regulatory body responsible for carrying out the Foreign Trade Policy of India, which establishes straightforward, transparent, and effective procedures for the country's foreign trade. All customs processes and legal audits are provided by the Icegate platform.

Laws That Govern E-Sanchit portal

The Central Government has announced the Foreign Trade Policy, 2015–20, in accordance with the authority granted to it by Section 5 of the Foreign Trade (Development & Regulation) Act, 1992. This is the policy that aids in enhancing the nation's trade for the creation of economic growth and job creation. The Central Excise Tariff Act of 1985 (Act to Provide for Tariff for Central Duties of Excise) and the Customs Tariff Act of 1975 (Laws Relating to Customs Duties) are the two additional laws that govern the same. These two acts are the governing and regulatory roles as to how the Customs and Excise duties shall be levied on trade.

The Services that ICEGATE Serves

Through the ICEGATE portal, for the ease of Exporters and importers, before shipping goods from India, the customs agency can assist in applying for and receiving shipping bills, bills of entry, and other documents necessary for the export procedure. 

The ICEGATE serves essential services which are:

• Submission of supporting documents (shipping bill, bill of Entry, etc. through the e-Sanchit portal; 
• Electronic IGST return; 
• Electronic payment of customs duties;
• Common signer utility for signing all customs documents
• All electronic documents are handled before being processed by the customs EDI system. 
• Exporters have access to a 24-hour help desk. 
• Document status is tracked using the customs EDI (electronic data interchange). 
• Online checks of the Delivered Ex-ship (DES) and Duty Entitlement passbook (DEPB).

In addition to e-filing, ICEGATE offers business trading partners the following services:

• Online IPR registration, Central Excise and Service Tax e-payment, and electronic tax filing.
• License verification of DEPB, DES, and EPCG
• Gives code updates pertaining to import and export (import and export is a registration requirement for people who want to import or export goods or services from India. Import-export codes, which have 10 digits and are valid lifetime, are issued by the director general of foreign trade, the ministry of commerce and industries, the government of India.
• IGST refund analysis, PAN-based CHA data (Center for Health Information and Data Analysis), and linkages to various additional EXIM Trade-related information..

Advantages of Integrating ICEGATE

The ICEGATE Portal has improved the efficiency of the Customs department by allowing them to readily track the whereabouts of the items, the status of the invoices, etc. Cargo carriers, traders, importers, exporters, and other people have been able to easily address delivery and supply of goods-related issues through the unit, thanks to this platform.

ICEGATE Portal offers the following notable advantages:

• Simple e-filing services relating to import and export through the portal.
• Permits the Customs Department to automatically respond to importers and exporters after shipping bills, Bills of Entry, and other documents have been evaluated.
• Services for importers and exporters to check the status of their filings online.
• Users initiate the query resolution process.

Indirect Tax Laws and CBIC Under ICEGATE

The Department of Revenue, which is under the Ministry of Finance of the Government of India, includes the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs. To the extent that it falls under CBIC's purview, CBIC is responsible for the formulation of policy relating to the levy and collection of customs, central excise duties, central goods & services tax, and IGST, as well as the prevention of smuggling and administration of matters relating to customs, central excise, central goods & services tax, IGST, and narcotics. Custom houses, Central Excise and GST Commission rates, and the Central Revenues Control Laboratory are among the organizations under the board's administrative control.

The procedures listed below must be followed by the taxpayer, customs broker, or user in order to facilitate the processing of indirect tax-related papers at ICEGATE Portal:

• Collection of pertinent digital documents.
• Users and submitters must gather necessary documentation in PDF/A (ISO 19005-2) format or request that document issuers (sellers, exporters, airlines, shipping lines, regulatory authorities, etc.) deliver the document in the required format.
• The document should adhere to the following guidelines, such as:
• In black and white, the resolution shouldn't be less than 200 dpi.
• The maximum file size is 75 kb for an A4-sized page.
• Individual PDF files for separate documents. The maximum file size that is permitted is 1 MB; if a document is larger than that, it should be divided into two or more documents...
• Except for in the margin region, there shouldn't be any punch holes or staple marks.
• The text shouldn't be deformed or used through the page roller.
• If the submitter has to preview the file to make sure it is clear and readable, use the picture quality assessment tools if necessary.
• The PDF file must be digitally signed by the submitter using a certificate that has been registered on the ICEGATE platform. The submitter must save the file in an easily accessible location and give the papers a unique name. Linking the data to the individual's RES package, which is used to compile the electronic files for submission, is recommended...

ICEGATE Procedure Through E-Sanchit Portal

• The user willing to register have to first click on the sign up button for the registration at the ICEGATE portal, through the given link https://www.icegate.gov.in/UserReg/getStatus and follow the instructions given in the demo link
• Users have to create their own ICEGATE User ID, For Example ICEGATEUSE and after you have to add your email id, then select the user role.
• After Submission, complete your personal details.
• Before starting the registration process, the user needs to install their Digital Signature Certificate in their system. 
• Users and taxpayers who have registered on the Icegate portal with their digital signature certificate can electronically submit the necessary supporting documents
• The user will then click the upload documents button on the webpage to choose up to five documents, and then they must click the upload document button.
• The user will be prompted by the system to select the document type from a drop-down list after uploading the documents.
• After hitting the submit button, the documents are required to be submitted in order to produce IRNs.
• On the user's screen, eSanchit will respond to the system-generated IRN and DRN.
• The user/submitter must provide all necessary supporting documents as that of the transaction's description following ten minutes of IRN formation.

The Mandatory Export And Import Documentation In India

The government has made the following documentation necessary for an EXIM unit to export or import from India in accordance with the Foreign Trade Policy, 2015–20.

For Export Purposes 

• Bill of lading, lorry receipt, postal receipt, airway bill, railroad receipt—
• Packing list is included along with the commercial invoice.
• Shipping Bill, Postal Export Bill, or Export Bill

For Import Purposes

• The Bill of Lading, Postal Receipt, Airway Bill, Lorry Receipt, and Railway Invoice, invoice for goods sold plus packing list
• Invoice of entrance

Note: The supporting documentation that must be uploaded depends on the imported product, the claimed notification, and the requirements of the Participating Government Agency (PGA). The mandatory Compliance requirements, which can be seen online, give details on the supporting documentation needed for certain elements in the Bill of Entry. The matching Bill of Entry or shipping bill may be found in the separate area of supporting documents which will be linked to the uploaded papers there.

Linking The Papers To The Shipping Bill Or The Bill Of Entry

The accompanying document for the Declaration must have the following fields:

• Serial numbers for both the item and the invoice: The invoice and item number will be treated as zero if the supporting document applies to all of the items on the invoice. However, if it relates to a specific document, an item number will be provided.
• Unique number: For this, they may use the IRN (image reference number), which is the number the user is given when he electronically signs a PDF document and uploads it to the Icegate platform. This number is generated automatically.
• Document Type Code: All documents provided by the importer or customs broker have a document type. Use the Icegate portal's given directory to find the specific document type for the file that the unique number refers to.
• Code for the party who issued the document: optional
• The name and address of the party who issued the document.
• Reference number for the document: The unique number used by the document's issuer.
• The name of the town or city where the document was issued is the place of issue.
• Date of document issue: This is the day the necessary authority issues the paperwork.
• Document Expiry Date: If there is no expiration date listed on the document, leave the field empty. The document has a validity date during which it is valid.
• Name and address of the party in whose name the document is issued, often known as the document beneficiary. The party on whose name the document is issued must be identified by name and address.
• Document beneficiary party code: Documents including registrations, certificates, licenses, and others list the IE code of the party who is listed as the document's beneficiary.

The submitted bill of entry is viewed by the Customs officers or officers of participating government agencies along with the other relevant documents.

The procedure of searching the electronic trade supporting documents

• Login icegate portal (for registered users)
• Click on the icegate portal and enter your login details.
• Subsequently, Click on the Search button to search documents through DRN number/IRN number/Document type/date and the user can put one value or all values which the user desire to search.

Request for Retrieved Documents 

These documents are accessible for 30 days, after which they can only be retrieved from archives by submitting a "Retrieve from Archival" request.

The "Retrieve from Archival" request can be made by simply pressing the "Yes" button when asked to view a document at the portal where it is archived. This will cause an automatic "Retrieve from Archival" request to be made. 

Subsequently, the users must have to wait for 60 minutes before the document becomes available on the portal. The user must perform their normal search after 60 minutes in order to make the document available on the Icegate portal, where it will stay for the following seven days.

Final Words

The ICEGATE portal Users get an easy and efficient way to complete their import/export-related queries and documents, and completion of the filing process of taxation easily. This gateway facilitates EXIM transactions as well to speed up trade. The Indian Customs EDI System (ICES), which currently supports 245 Customs Locations, is used by the Customs department to complete the Icegate processing.