Government of India, through Notification No. 36/2024-Customs dated 23rd July 2024, has introduced amendments to provide exemptions and concessional rates of Basic Customs Duty (BCD) and Social Welfare Surcharge (SWS) on critical minerals. Effective from 24th July 2024, this notification exempts various minerals, including natural graphite, cobalt, lithium, and others, from the full rate of customs duty and SWS, setting reduced rates or nil rates for these items. This measure aims to support industries reliant on these essential materials by lowering import costs.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF FINANCE
(DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE)
New Delhi
Notification No. 36/2024-Customs | Dated: 23rd July, 2024
G.S.R. …..(E).— In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 25 of the Customs Act, 1962 (52 of 1962) read with section 110 of Finance Act, 2018 (13 of 2018) (hereinafter referred to as the Finance Act), the Central Government, on being satisfied that it is necessary in the public interest so to do, hereby exempts the goods of the description specified in column (3) of the Table below, falling within the chapter or heading or sub-heading or tariff item of the First Schedule of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 (51 of 1975) (hereinafter referred to as the Customs Tariff Act) specified in the corresponding entry in column (2) of the said Table, when imported into India, from so much of the duty of customs leviable thereon under the said first schedule as is in excess of the amount calculated at the rate specified in the corresponding entry in column (4) of the said Table and from the whole of the Social Welfare Surcharge leviable thereon under section 110 of the Finance Act, namely:-
Table
| Sl. No. | Chapter/headi ng/sub‑ heading/tariff item |
Description of goods | Rate |
| (1) | (2) | (3) | (4) |
| 1. | 2504 | Natural Graphite | 2.5% |
| 2. | 2505 | Natural sands of all kinds, whether or not coloured, other than metal bearing sands of chapter 26 of The Customs tariff Act, 1975 | Nil |
| 3. | 2506 | Quartz (other than natural sands); quartzite, whether or not roughly trimmed or merely cut, by sawing or otherwise, into blocks or slabs of a rectangular (including square) shape | 2.5% |
| 4. | 25309091 | Strontium sulphate (natural ore) | Nil |
| 5. | 26030000 | Copper ores and concentrates | Nil |
| 6. | 26050000 | Cobalt ores and concentrates | Nil |
| 7. | 26090000 | Tin ores and Concentrates | Nil |
| 8. | 26110000 | Tungsten Ores and Concentrates | Nil |
| 9. | 2613 | Molybdenum ores and concentrates | Nil |
| 10. | 26151000 | Zirconium ores and concentrates | Nil |
| 11. | 261590 | Hafnium Ores and concentrates | Nil |
| 12. | 26159010 | Vanadium ores and concentrates | Nil |
| 13. | 26159020 | Niobium or tantalum ores and concentrates | Nil |
| 14. | 2617 | Antimony Ores and Concentrates | Nil |
| 15. | 28045020 | Tellurium | Nil |
| 16. | 28046100 | Silicon, containing by weight not less than 99.99% of silicon | Nil |
| 17. | 28046900 | Other silicon | Nil |
| 18. | 280490 00 | Selenium | Nil |
| 19. | 28053000 | Alkali or alkaline earth metals, Rare-earth metals, scandium and yttrium, whether or not intermixed or inter alloyed | Nil |
| 20. | 28112200 | Silicon dioxide | 2.5% |
| 21. | 28152000 | Potassium hydroxide | Nil |
| 22. | 28164000 | Oxides, hydroxides and peroxides, of strontium or barium | Nil |
| 23. | 28220010 | Cobalt oxides | Nil |
| 24. | 28220020 | Cobalt hydroxides | Nil |
| 25. | 28220030 | Commercial cobalt oxides | Nil |
| 26. | 28252000 | Lithium oxide and hydroxide | Nil |
| 27. | 282530 | Vanadium oxides and hydroxides | Nil |
| 28. | 28256010 | Germanium oxides | Nil |
| 29. | 282570 | Molybdenum oxides and hydroxides | Nil |
| 30. | 28258000 | Antimony Oxides | Nil |
| 31. | 28259020 | Cadmium oxide | Nil |
| 32. | 28273500 | Chlorides of Nickel | Nil |
| 33. | 28273930 | Strontium chloride | Nil |
| 34. | 28332400 | Sulphates of Nickel | Nil |
| 35. | 28342100 | Nitrates of potassium | Nil |
| 36. | 28369100 | Lithium carbonates | Nil |
| 37. | 28369200 | Strontium carbonate | Nil |
| 38. | 28419000 | Salts of oxometallic or peroxometallic acids of Beryllium and Rhenium | Nil |
| 39. | 2846 | Compounds, inorganic or organic of rare earth metals | Nil |
| 40. | 29181530 | Bismuth citrate | Nil |
| 41. | 3801 | Artificial Graphite, colloidal or semi-colloidal graphite, preparations based on graphite or other carbon in form of pastes, blocks, plates or other semi-manufactures | 2.5% |
| 42. | 8001 | Unwrought Tin | Nil |
| 43. | 81019400 | Unwrought tungsten, including bars and rods obtained simply by sintering | Nil |
| 44. | 81029400 | Unwrought molybdenum, including bars and rods obtained simply by sintering | Nil |
| 45. | 810320 | Unwrought tantalum, including bars and rods obtained simply by sintering, powders | Nil |
| 46. | 81052020 | Cobalt, unwrought | Nil |
| 47. | 81061010 | Bismuth, unwrought | Nil |
| 48. | 81092100 | Unwrought zirconium, powders, Containing less than 1 part hafnium to 500 parts zirconium by weight | Nil |
| 49. | 81101000 | Unwrought antimony, powders | Nil |
| 50. | 81121200 | Beryllium unwrought, powders | Nil |
| 51. | 811231 | Hafnium unwrought, waste and scrap, powders | Nil |
| 52. | 81124110 | Rhenium unwrought | Nil |
| 53. | 81126910 | Cadmium unwrought, Powders | Nil |
| 54. | 81126920 | Cadmium, wrought | Nil |
| 55. | 81129200 | Unwrought; Waste and scrap; powders of :-
(i) Gallium (ii) Germanium (iii) Indium (iv) Niobium (v) Vanadium |
Nil |
2. This notification shall come into force on the 24th day of July, 2024.
[F. No.334/03/2024-TRU]
(Nitish Karnatak)
Under Secretary to the Government of India
