Import in India is governed by the certain rules and regulation, which are issued by the import-export governing bodies. IImport Export government authorities decide which items will be imported and which item will be prohibited. The quantity of goods to be imported and tax imposed on the imported goods is also under the control of import governing body. Import-Export governing bodies also play an important role in settling the Foreign Trade Agreement in matters related to import of goods.

Ministry of Commerce and Industry

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry is the nodal authority for formulating and implementing the foreign trade policy in matter related to Import. The Department of Commerce play a key role in matters related to multilateral and bilateral commercial relations, state trading, export promotion measures and development and regulation of certain import oriented industries and commodities. There are two departments under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The first one is the Department of Commerce and the second is Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion. The department of Ministry of Commerce which is sometimes also termed as Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion was established in the year 1995, and in the year 2000 Department of Industrial Development was merged with it.
Ministry of Commerce and Industry has its offices in all the major cities. Its Delhi office is located at Udyog Bhavan, New Delhi – 110011 India

Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT)

DGFT or Directorate General of Foreign Trade is a government organisation in India responsible for the formulation of guidelines and principles for importers as well as exporters of country.
Preparation, formulation and implication of Exim Policies are one of the main functions of DGFT. Apart from Exim Policy, DGFT is also responsible for issuing IEC or Import Export Code. IEC codes are mandatory for carrying out import export trade operations and enable companies to acquire benefits on their imports/exports, customs, exports promotion council etc in India. DGFT also play an important role in controlling DEPB rates and setting standard input-output norms. Any changes or formulation or addition of new codes in ITC-HS Codes are also carried out by DGFT (Directorate General of Foreign Trade).
DGFT has its offices in all the major cities. Its Delhi office is located at IP Bhawan, New Delhi.

Central Board of Excises Customs (CBEC)

The Central Board of Excises Customs (CBEC) under Ministry of Finance is the controlling authority to handle custom duty related matters. CBEC regularly publishes the "Indian Customs Tariff Guide that provides all types of information on custom duty rules and regulation in India.
Custom duty not only raises money for the Central Government but also helps the government to prevent the illegal imports and exports of goods from India. The Central government has emergency powers to increase import or export duties whenever necessary after a notification in the session of Parliament.

Objectives of Custom Duties

• Regulating the amount of import in India in order to protect the domestic market.
• Protecting Indian Industry from undue competition
• Prohibiting certain imports of goods for achieving the policy objectives of the Government.
• Regulating imports
• Coordinating legal provisions with other laws dealing with foreign exchange such as Foreign Trade Act, Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Act, etc.

All import goods are classified into categories known as called "headings" and "subheadings" (Harmonised System Codes) for the purpose of levy of duty. For each sub-heading, a specific rate of duty has been prescribed in the Customs Tariff Act, 1975.