India: India's FSSAI Waives its Clearance Requirement for Imported Food Products Meant for Re-Export

On October 16, 2023, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare/Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) published the advisory TIC-C10201/2/2022-IMPORTS-FSSAI. The FSSAI advisory refers to Regulation 7(3) of the Food Safety and Standards (Import) regulations (2017), which states that “unless otherwise specified, Indian Customs need not refer the imported food products to the Food Authority (i.e., FSSAI), if such products are meant for exports as per the extant instructions and export rejected or re-imported articles of food meant for re-export.” The FSSAI has determined to waive its clearance requirement to better enable the ease of doing business with India.