India’s 8th WTO Trade Policy Review Scheduled for July

New Delhi, Feb. 27: India’s eighth Trade Policy Review (TPR) at the World Trade Organization (WTO) is scheduled for July 2026, where the country’s trade framework will undergo a comprehensive peer assessment by fellow member nations.

Ahead of the review, an Indian delegation led by Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) Member (Customs) Surjit Bhujabal presented the country’s digital customs transformation and implementation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), the finance ministry said on Thursday.

Special Trade Facilitation Sessions were organised at the WTO on February 24 by the CBIC and India’s Permanent Mission in Geneva. The sessions saw participation from delegates representing around 40 countries, along with WTO Secretariat officials, reflecting strong global interest in India’s trade facilitation measures.

India has completed 100 per cent notification of its TFA commitments within prescribed timelines. Building on this, the country has progressed toward “TFA Plus” measures under the National Trade Facilitation Action Plan (NTFAP 3.0), aiming to exceed baseline obligations and align with evolving global standards.

During the session, the customs delegation highlighted a “whole-of-government” strategy in reforming procedures and establishing a faceless, contactless and paperless ecosystem through extensive digitisation and process re-engineering.

Officials said the modernised digital customs platform integrates traders, authorities, banks and logistics operators, enabling electronic documentation, lowering transaction costs and accelerating clearance timelines. According to Bhujabal, these reforms over the past decade have supported trade expansion and strengthened India’s integration into global value chains.

India’s previous Trade Policy Review was conducted in January 2021 at the WTO headquarters in Geneva.