Summary: ICEGATE has announced a temporary suspension of Bills of Entry (BE) filing on 1 February 2026 due to system updates following the presentation of the Union Budget 2026–27. As per the advisory dated 30 January 2026, BE filing will be unavailable from 10:45 AM onwards until completion of budget-related changes in the customs system. A parallel communication on the CBIC portal mentions 11:00 AM as the start time, creating minor ambiguity. To avoid operational risk, importers and customs brokers are advised to treat 10:45 AM as the effective cut-off and plan filings accordingly. Importantly, other ICEGATE services will remain operational during this period, and BE filing will resume once updates are completed. The key practical takeaway is to advance filings and build buffer time on Budget Day to prevent clearance delays and last-minute disruptions.
ICEGATE BE Filing Downtime on 1st Feb 2026
ICEGATE has issued an advisory informing trade and customs stakeholders about temporary non-availability of Bills of Entry (BE) filing on 01.02.2026 due to system updates post presentation of the Union Budget 2026-27.
As per the ICEGATE advisory dated 30 January 2026, BE filing will not be available from 10:45 AM onwards on 01.02.2026 until completion of budget-related updates in the customs system.
Interestingly, the CBIC portal communication mentions the downtime commencing from 11:00 AM, leading to some confusion among importers and customs brokers.
Practical takeaway:
Irrespective of the minor difference in timing mentioned on the portals, trade is advised to treat 10:45 AM as the effective cut-off and plan filing and clearance activities accordingly to avoid last-minute disruptions.
It may be noted that all other ICEGATE services will continue to function as usual, and BE filing will resume once budgetary changes are fully updated in the system.
Importers and Customs Brokers should accordingly advance filing wherever possible and keep sufficient buffer time on Budget Day.
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