The Ministry of Commerce and Industry announced on 19 October 2026 that the India–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) would enter into force on 20 October 2026. The announcement followed a joint virtual conference involving India’s Commerce and Industry Minister and New Zealand’s Minister for Trade and Investment. The agreement had been signed on 27 April 2026.
According to the official announcement, New Zealand is eliminating customs duties across all tariff lines for qualifying Indian exports, including the removal of existing peak duties of up to 10%. Sectors identified as potential beneficiaries include textiles and apparel, leather and footwear, gems and jewellery, engineering products, automobiles and components, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, agricultural products and processed foods. Preferential access remains subject to the applicable rules of origin and customs procedures; it is not an automatic exemption for every shipment.
The agreement also addresses services and investment. The Government reported New Zealand market-access commitments in approximately 118 service sectors and most-favoured-nation commitments in about 139 sub-sectors. It stated that New Zealand had committed to facilitate investment of USD 20 billion into India. Such an investment commitment should not be interpreted as money already invested.
The Government highlighted temporary-entry opportunities, including annual quotas of 5,000 Temporary Employment Entry visas and 1,000 Working Holiday visas, alongside other student and professional mobility provisions. These arrangements remain subject to their specific eligibility and immigration rules.
Sensitive products including dairy, sugar, edible oils and specified agricultural commodities remain protected through exclusions or safeguards. The Government also referred to bilateral agricultural-productivity cooperation involving apples, kiwifruit and honey.
For exporters and importers, the immediate compliance step is to identify the correct tariff classification, inspect the relevant tariff commitments, confirm originating status and retain the prescribed proof of origin. For imports into India, the appropriate product-specific customs duty notifications and DGFT tariff-rate-quota procedures must also be checked; the press release alone does not prescribe a blanket Indian customs exemption. This news concerns entry into force of the FTA, not a separate amendment to a customs notification.