The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has issued a notification amending the import duty on mobile phone components like chargers, batteries and wired headsets, down to 12.5%. The import duty was increased during the Budget 2016-17 to 29.44% to include 10% custom duty, 12.5% countervailing duty and 4% special attention duty. Importers will now only have to pay the 12.5% countervailing duty, as the other duties have been revoked. Other parts or components used in the manufacture of broadband modems, routers, set top boxes for internet access, lithium-ion batteries for other than mobile handsets, digital video recorders, network video recorders and CCTV cameras will also benefit from reduced duty. This move should help manufacturers assembling complete sets in India keep their costs down. Currently, a completely packaged phone (accessories et al.) faces a 12% duty to import, for…
