What is a shipping bill and what law requires it
A shipping bill is the entry an exporter makes for goods leaving India by vessel or aircraft. Section 50 of the Customs Act, 1962 requires the exporter to present it electronically on the customs automated system in the prescribed form and manner; goods leaving by land use a bill of export. The exporter declares the truth of its contents and is responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the information, the authenticity and validity of every supporting document, and compliance with any restriction or prohibition on the goods.[1] It is the export-side counterpart of an import entry: the bill of entry in India, or the CBP entry your US buyer's customs broker files.
Two sets of regulations give the document its shape. The Shipping Bill and Bill of Export (Forms) Regulations, 2017 prescribe Form SB I or SB II for a shipping bill and SB III or SB IV for a bill of export.[3] The Shipping Bill (Electronic Integrated Declaration and Paperless Processing) Regulations, 2019 apply at every customs station running the Indian Customs EDI System (ICES) and define the shipping bill as the electronic integrated declaration accepted and assigned a unique number by that system, including its electronic records or printouts.[2] In practice it is the data set you or your customs broker transmit through ICEGATE, not a paper form.
The bill is deemed filed, and self-assessment complete, when ICES generates a shipping bill number for the declaration. The authorized person must keep the assessed copy and all original supporting documents for five years from presentation; contravening the regulations carries a penalty of up to fifty thousand rupees.[2] See the shipping bill glossary entry, and the pillar guide on how to export from India to the USA for where this document sits in the whole shipment.
Types of shipping bill: free, drawback, RoDTEP, scheme and NFEI
ICES has no separate forms for each type. The type follows from the two-digit scheme code declared against every item and the claims attached to it. A bill carries either all items under scheme code 99, reserved for No Foreign Exchange Involved (NFEI) consignments such as free trade samples, warranty replacements and gift parcels, or all items under commercial scheme codes; mixing the two is not permitted, and an NFEI bill needs an RBI waiver number when the FOB value exceeds Rs 25,000.[9]
The variants an Indian exporter to the United States usually meets, as of October 15, 2026:
| Variant | What you declare in the shipping bill | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| No scheme claim (often called a free shipping bill) | Scheme code per item, IGST payment status per item (NA, LUT or P for paid), no incentive tables | ICES exports message format[9] |
| Drawback shipping bill | Description, quantity and particulars needed to fix the drawback rate, a declaration that a claim under the Drawback Rules is being made, and the DBK schedule number and drawback quantity per item | Drawback Rules, 2017, rule 13; ICES DBK table[6][9] |
| RoDTEP declaration | Info code RODTEPY (claimed) or RODTEPN (not claimed) for every item, plus statement DEC / RD001 for each claimed item | ICEGATE Advisory 01/2021[12] |
| Advance Authorisation (DEEC) or EPCG shipping bill | License particulars for the item, including the Customs registration number and date, in the license table, when the scheme code involves a DEEC or EPCG license | ICES exports message format[9] |
| EOU shipping bill | Seal type A or S with EOU details, packet and container details | ICES exports message format[9] |
| NFEI shipping bill (scheme code 99) | Category code (free trade sample, warranty replacement, gift parcel and so on); RBI waiver number above Rs 25,000 FOB | ICES exports message format[9] |
Who files it: exporter self-filing or a customs broker on ICEGATE
The 2019 regulations let an authorized person file: the exporter itself, or a person it authorizes who holds a valid license under the Customs Brokers Licensing Regulations, 2018, including the broker's Form G card-holding employee. The authorized person enters the electronic integrated declaration and uploads the supporting documents on ICEGATE with a digital signature, or has the data entered at the Customs service center.[2] When an exporter files directly, the broker license field in the ICES message carries the value SELFSUBMITCH001.[9]
Either way you need an ICEGATE registration. ICEGATE registers IEC holders and their authorized persons, with child users for employees, and customs brokers as a principal F-card holder who approves G-card employees; registrations are approved by the department and credentials are emailed.[15] ICES accepts a shipping bill only after it has received your IEC data from DGFT, and when a normal GSTIN is declared the PAN of the IEC and of the GSTIN must match.[9] The registrations are covered in the IEC, AD code, LUT and RCMC guide.
Many exporters shipping to the United States have a customs broker (CHA) file. Airlift's Indian branches arrange Indian export clearance, including the shipping bill filed on ICEGATE, alongside factory pickup, container stuffing and the carrier booking.
What data the shipping bill carries
The ICES exports message is built from a header, one or more invoices, items under each invoice, and optional tables for containers, drawback, licenses, statements and supporting documents; a shipping bill needs at least one invoice and each invoice at least one item.[9] The header identifiers are what other systems later match against: the IEC and branch serial number, the authorized dealer (AD) code of the bank through which the proceeds will be realized, the GSTIN and its type, and the state of origin, which must be the state where the items were manufactured; a separate shipping bill is needed for each state of origin.[9]
The invoice segment carries the invoice number and date, currency and exchange rate, and the nature of contract (FOB, CIF, CF or CI) with freight, insurance, commission and discount so that Customs can derive the FOB value. The item segment carries the scheme code, the eight-digit RITC (ITC-HS) code, description, quantity, unit price, present market value, end use, the IGST payment status (NA, LUT or P) with taxable value and IGST amount, and the reward flag. For containerized cargo the container table records the container number, size, seal type indicator (bottle seal, electronic seal or RFID), seal number and seal date.[9] Seal and stuffing choices are explained in the factory stuffing, CFS and ICD guide.
Accuracy matters downstream: the GSTIN, invoice number and port code are validated against the shipping bill before an IGST refund moves;[11] the RoDTEP rebate is a percentage of FOB value fixed per eight-digit HS code;[14] and the bill is transmitted to the RBI's EDPMS, which tracks realization of your export proceeds.[10] The RITC code and FOB value should match your commercial invoice and packing list, and the HTS line your buyer uses (see the HTS code finder).
Shipping bill filing procedure: from filing to Let Export Order and loading
The containerized sea export flow at an EDI port, ICD or CFS, as of October 15, 2026. Timings between steps depend on the port, the risk result and the custodian.
- File the declaration. Your broker (or you) transmits the shipping bill through ICEGATE with a digital signature and uploads the supporting documents. When ICES generates the shipping bill number, the bill is deemed filed and self-assessed.[2]
- Bring the goods in and register them. When the cargo reaches the port, CFS or ICD, a goods registration message records seal type, nature of cargo, weights, packages, marks and numbers, container count and gateway port against the shipping bill number; it can be re-submitted until the officer registers the goods in ICES.[9]
- Assessment and risk evaluation. The clearance order may be made electronically through the customs automated system on the basis of risk evaluation; bills not selected go straight through, others are assessed by an officer and, if required, examined.[1][2]
- Let Export Order (LEO). When the proper officer is satisfied that the goods are not prohibited and any export duty and charges are paid, the officer orders clearance and loading for exportation under section 51. The order may be recorded on ICEGATE and is conveyed electronically to the authorized person, the custodian and anyone the authorized person designates.[1][2]
- Gate-in and loading. The person in charge of the vessel may not load export goods unless a shipping bill duly passed by the proper officer has been handed over, so the carrier loads your container only against a passed shipping bill.[1] Vessel cut-offs are the carrier's; see cargo cut-off and the vessel schedule tool.
- Departure manifest (EGM). Before the vessel departs, the authorized sea carrier delivers the departure manifest electronically to the proper officer.[5] This step proves export for every claim on the bill (next section).
| Step | Who | System | Output |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic integrated declaration | Exporter or licensed customs broker | ICEGATE to ICES | Shipping bill number; deemed filed and self-assessed[2] |
| Goods registration | Exporter or customs broker, at the port, CFS or ICD | ICES | Goods registered against the shipping bill; weights, packages, seal and container details[9] |
| Assessment and risk evaluation | Customs automated system; officer where selected | ICES | Facilitated, or assessed and examined[1] |
| Let Export Order | Proper officer of Customs | ICES / ICEGATE | Order under section 51, conveyed electronically to exporter and custodian[1][2] |
| Loading | Carrier and terminal | Terminal systems | Only against a passed shipping bill[1] |
| Departure manifest (EGM) | Authorized sea carrier | ICEGATE (SCMTR) | Manifest covering the shipping bill numbers; may be updated within 24 hours after departure[5] |
| Post-EGM processing | Customs system and officer | ICES, RMS, GST common portal | IGST refund validation, drawback and RoDTEP scrolls[7][12] |
EGM in export: what the Export General Manifest is and why it matters
Section 41 of the Customs Act requires the person in charge of a conveyance carrying export goods to deliver a departure manifest or export manifest electronically to the proper officer before departure, with a declaration as to its truth; failure without sufficient cause carries a penalty of up to fifty thousand rupees.[1] For sea cargo the Sea Cargo Manifest and Transhipment Regulations, 2018 prescribe its contents, including a cargo declaration in Form VIIA for a vessel leaving an Indian port for a foreign port. The carrier may update it within twenty-four hours after departure (seventy-two hours for a vessel carrying non-containerized cargo), and Customs may permit amendments or condone delay where there was no fraudulent intention.[5]
The EGM is filed by the carrier, not by you, yet it is the event your money depends on. Under rule 96 of the CGST Rules the shipping bill is deemed to be your IGST refund application only when the departure or export manifest covering its number and date has been filed.[7] ICEGATE's refund validations include a check that the carrier has filed the EGM; a bill without one returns code SB002.[11] RoDTEP works the same way: the claim is processed once the EGM is filed, the shipping bills then go to RMS for risk-based routing, and no change to the claim is allowed after the EGM.[12]
Two EGMs can apply to one shipment. A container stuffed at an inland container depot moves under a shipping bill filed at the ICD, and the ocean carrier files the gateway EGM at the sea port. If the gateway EGM is missing or wrong, the IGST validation returns SB006 and you are told to have the carrier file it electronically and follow up with the gateway port Customs.[11] The public enquiry on ICEGATE shows both the EGM status and the gateway EGM status against a shipping bill.[10]
Shipping bill amendment and post-export conversion
Section 149 of the Customs Act lets the proper officer, in his discretion, authorize amendment of a document after it has been presented, in the form, manner and time prescribed. Once the goods have been exported, a shipping bill may be amended only on documentary evidence that existed at the time of export. Amendments may also be authorized electronically on the basis of risk evaluation, and the Board may specify amendments the exporter can make itself on the common portal.[1] After LEO, expect to produce the contemporaneous evidence: the invoice, packing list, contract or letter of credit as it stood when the goods left.
Converting an exported shipping bill into an incentive claim is a separate procedure under the Export Entry (Post export conversion in relation to instrument based scheme) Regulations, 2025, notified and in force from April 3, 2025, which superseded the 2022 regulations. The application must be made in writing within one year from the date of clearance under section 51; the jurisdictional Commissioner may extend by up to six months for recorded reasons, and the Chief Commissioner by up to six more months. Time lost to a court or tribunal stay is excluded.[4]
Conversion is allowed on documentary evidence that existed at export, on payment of the fee under the Levy of Fees (Customs Documents) Regulations, 1970, and only if all conditions of the target scheme are met, benefits already taken under the scheme or drawback you are leaving have been reversed where not admissible, the electronic filing conditions were complied with, no contravention or investigation is pending on those exports, and the original entry was filed under an instrument based scheme, under drawback or for an export obligation. Where possible the Commissioner decides within thirty days.[4] A RoDTEP claim cannot be added this way after the EGM; the intent must be declared at filing.[12] Your customs broker should confirm what a particular amendment needs at your port.
How the shipping bill drives IGST refund, drawback and RoDTEP
IGST refund. For goods exported on payment of IGST, the shipping bill is the refund application. It is deemed filed only when the manifest covering it has been filed, a valid GSTR-3B has been furnished and the exporter has completed Aadhaar authentication; if the shipping bill data does not match the export invoices in GSTR-1, it is deemed filed on the date the mismatch is rectified. The GST portal transmits the export invoices to Customs, Customs confirms export, and an amount equal to the IGST paid per shipping bill is credited to the bank account in your registration.[7] The IGST must appear in table 3.1(b) of GSTR-3B and the invoices in table 6A of GSTR-1, and for refunds of unutilized input tax credit on exports (goods shipped under LUT without IGST payment), where the GST invoice value and the shipping bill value differ, the lower of the two is used to calculate the eligible refund.[8]
Drawback. Under the Customs and Central Excise Duties Drawback Rules, 2017 an electronic shipping bill filed under a claim for drawback is itself deemed to be the drawback claim, filed on the date the proper officer makes the LEO under section 51; the claim rests on the declaration and particulars entered at filing under rule 13.[6] See the duty drawback glossary entry.
RoDTEP. The Foreign Trade Policy 2023 describes RoDTEP as a rebate at a notified percentage of FOB value, with per-unit value caps where notified, on items under eight-digit HS codes, issued as a transferable e-scrip in a CBIC electronic ledger and usable only to pay Basic Customs Duty. Exports with no electronic documentation in ICEGATE EDI are ineligible.[14] You declare RODTEPY per item, Customs processes the claim after the EGM, a scroll is generated, and an IEC holder registered on ICEGATE with a digital signature creates an e-scrip account to generate and transfer scrips.[12][13] Rates and eligibility are in the RoDTEP, drawback and IGST refund guide; whether your goods qualify is a question for your customs broker or chartered accountant.
How to check shipping bill status on ICEGATE, and common rejection reasons
ICEGATE's Public Enquiry 2.0 works without a login: Services, then Enquiry, then Public Enquiry 2.0. Under Document Status choose Shipping Bill, select the location and enter the number and date. The result shows the bill's details, item-wise reward details, current status, EGM status, drawback query details, other government agency details, IGST invoice details, gateway EGM status, payment details and e-document validity. The same menu offers SB in RBI-EDPMS (date of transmission to RBI and status there) and a DGFT Shipping Bill Status Enquiry.[10] The status of IGST refund claims is available after login to your ICEGATE account: once every invoice on a bill validates, a scroll is generated, approved at the port and sent to PFMS for disbursement.[11] The ICEGATE helpdesk is at 1800-3010-1000 and icegatehelpdesk@icegate.gov.in.[13][10]
Rejections and holds cluster around a few causes. At filing: the IEC has not reached ICES from DGFT, the PAN of the IEC and GSTIN do not match, NFEI and commercial items are mixed in one bill, or items from more than one state of origin are in one bill.[9] After export, the IGST validation codes tell you where the refund stopped:[11]
| Code | Meaning | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| SB000 | Successfully validated | Wait for the scroll: it is generated once all invoices on the bill validate, approved at the port and sent to PFMS; if a temporary scroll is generated but the bill is missing from the final scroll, give the correct bank account details to the proper officer at the Customs formation[11] |
| SB001 | Invalid shipping bill details | The SB number, date and port code combination in the GSTR-1 invoice does not match the bill; amend the invoice on the GST system[11] |
| SB002 | EGM not filed | Contact the shipping line, airline or carrier to file the EGM[11] |
| SB003 | GSTIN mismatch | The GSTIN used to file GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B must be the one declared on the shipping bill[11] |
| SB004 | Record already received and validated | Duplicate transmission of the shipping bill and invoice record from GSTN; the earlier transmission has already been validated[11] |
| SB005 | Invalid invoice number | Invoice number in GSTR-1 does not match the shipping bill; correct it through Table 9A of GSTR-1[11] |
| SB006 | Gateway EGM not available | The gateway EGM was not filed electronically or has an error (common for ICD exports); have the carrier file it electronically and, once corrected, write to ICEGATE or gateway port Customs[11] |
Acronyms you will meet: SB, LEO, EGM, RMS, PGA and the rest
The short forms used on ICEGATE screens, broker emails and this guide.
- SB: shipping bill, the export entry under section 50.[1]
- ICES / ICEGATE: the Indian Customs EDI System that processes the bill, and CBIC's customs automated system through which it is filed.[2]
- LEO: Let Export Order, the order permitting clearance and loading under section 51.[1]
- EGM: Export General Manifest, now the departure manifest under section 41 and the Sea Cargo Manifest and Transhipment Regulations.[1][5]
- RMS: the Risk Management System that selects bills for officer intervention, before LEO and again for post-EGM incentive processing.[1][12]
- PGA / OGA: partner or other government agencies, whose release orders appear in the ICEGATE document status for regulated goods.[10]
- IEC, AD code, GSTIN: the Importer-Exporter Code from DGFT, the authorized dealer code of your remittance bank, and your GST registration, all header fields of the bill.[9] See IEC.
- RITC: the eight-digit ITC-HS code of each item.[9]
- DBK, RoDTEP, LUT: drawback, Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products, and the Letter of Undertaking for export without IGST payment, each a declaration or status on the bill.[6][12][9]
- NFEI: No Foreign Exchange Involved, scheme code 99.[9]
- EDPMS: the RBI's Export Data Processing and Monitoring System, which receives the shipping bill for proceeds tracking.[10]