Effective immediately, India has revised its toy import policy from ‘imported toys have to be tested by an NABL accredited lab’ to ‘randomly selected samples from each consignment for testing in NABL accredited labs for clearance’. This means that it is no longer a mandatory requirement to test with an NABL accredited lab.
In September 2017, India published Notification No. 26/2015-2020 to set new requirements for the import of toys. That notification contains, inter alia, the following important provisions:
- Requiring a certificate that toys conform to the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) (items 1 to 7, Table 1)
- A Certificate of Conformance (CoC) indicating that toys have been tested by a laboratory that is accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL)
On December 2, 2019, India published Notification No. 33/2015-2020 to amend its import policy on toys. This new Notification contains two important provisions:
- Replacing point 2 above with ‘sending randomly selected samples from each consignment to an NABL accredited lab for testing to determine clearance for Customs’
- Adding new import policy for toys/dolls and other similar recreational products (see Table 1)
The new policy has been effective since December 2, 2019 – the day of its publication in the Indian Gazette.
Highlights of the new amendment and Notification No. 26/2015-2020 of September 1, 2017 are summarized in Table 1.
| Notification No. 33/2015-2020, December 2, 2019 amending Notification No. 26/2015-2020 of September 1, 2017 Amendment in Policy Condition No. 2(iii) to Chapter 95 of ITC (HS), 2017-Schedule-1 (Import Policy)*,**,*** | |
| Item | Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) |
|---|---|
| 1 | IS 9873-1 ‘Safety aspects related to mechanical and physical properties' |
| 2 | IS 9873-2 ‘Flammability' |
| 3 | IS 9873-3 ‘Migration of Certain elements' |
| 4 | IS 9873-4 ‘Swings, slides and similar activities – toys for indoor and outdoor family domestic use’ |
| 5 | IS 9873-7 ‘Requirements and test methods for finger paints’ |
| 6 | IS 9873-9 ‘Certain phthalates esters in toys and children’s products’ |
| 7 | IS 15644 ‘Electric toys’ |
| *Import policy for toys/dolls etc: Import policy for toys/dolls and other similar recreational goods under any chapter will be governed by BIS standards **Imported toys require certificate conforming to the above BIS standards ***Randomly selected samples from each consignment will be sent to NABL accredited labs for testing and clearance | |
SGS offers a wide range of services to ensure that your products comply with the EU Toy Safety Directive. We offer training, safety/risk assessment, technical documentation check, labelling review, testing according to harmonized standards, SVHC screening, inspections and audits. With the largest global network of toy experts and testing facilities around the world - around 20 toy labs worldwide including 3 EU Notified Bodies (France, Germany and Netherlands), SGS is the partner to trust. Please do not hesitate to contact us for further information or visit our website.
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