The Office of the Principal Commissioner of Customs, Inland Container Depot (ICD) Patparganj and Other ICDs, Delhi, has issued a public notice granting relief to importers and trade members affected by a technical issue in the ICEGATE system that disrupted the filing of Bills of Entry under certain free trade agreement notifications.
According to Public Notice No. 03/2026–27 dated May 19, 2026, traders faced a major system-related difficulty while filing Bills of Entry under the ASEAN–India Free Trade Area (AIFTA) Notification No. 046/2011 and SAPTA Notification No. 050/2018. The issue surfaced on May 13 and May 14, 2026, when users encountered “Error 999”, preventing successful submission of Bills of Entry through the ICEGATE platform.
The notice states that because of the system error, importers and other stakeholders were unable to complete mandatory filing requirements within the prescribed timeline. Such failures could ordinarily attract late filing charges or penalties under Customs provisions.
Taking note of the technical disruption and in line with the government’s stated objective of facilitating trade while maintaining Customs compliance, the Customs department has decided to waive the late fee or penalty arising from delayed filing in these specific cases.
The waiver applies to consignments that landed or arrived during the affected period from May 13, 2026 to May 14, 2026. This measure is expected to provide relief to importers who could not complete filings solely because of the system failure rather than any fault on their part.
The department also invited stakeholders to bring any further difficulties to its notice for resolution. The public notice was issued under the authority of Rajeev Yadav, Principal Commissioner of Customs, ICD Patparganj and Other ICDs, New Delhi.
The move is likely to be welcomed by the trading community, particularly businesses relying on preferential tariff benefits under AIFTA and SAPTA arrangements, as technical glitches during customs filing processes often create compliance and cost burdens for importers.
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