Here is what you should know about the new baggage rules

Considering a foreign trip with a shopping list, especially from China? Here is what you should know about the new baggage rules.

Considering a foreign trip with a shopping list, especially from China? Here is what you should know about the new aircraft baggage rules:

Passengers from China can no longer bring goods duty free into India.(Pramod Thakur/HT File Photo)

Getting goods from China would no longer be duty free. In what would impact traders, who were bringing cheap goods from China to be sold in India, the announcement made by finance minister Arun Jaitley while presenting the Budget for 2016-17 kicks in from Friday.

Passengers from China can no longer bring goods duty free into India. Till now passengers coming from China were able to bring duty free goods of up to Rs 6,000.

Experts say the move will increase the cost of goods in the local markets, which have been flooded with Chinese goods. Knowing that a lot of traders were bringing mobile phones, textiles, televisions, plastic items, toys, etc and were selling in the markets as well as through online format , they will be impacted the most and prices of these products will go up.

Meanwhile, the passengers coming to India from any country, apart from China, but are not carrying dutiable goods, will not have to fill up the customs declaration form.

Only flyers carrying prohibited and dutiable goods will have to fill up the declaration form.

Also, under the new regime the duty-free allowance of passengers has been marginally increased.

The duty free allowance of two litres of alcoholic liquor, or wines, 125 cigarettes, 50 cigars and 125 gms tobacco, for the passengers will continue.

The monetary limit for the Indian passengers coming from any foreign destination, excluding Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar, has been increased from Rs 45,000 to Rs 50,000.

The duty-free allowance for people coming from Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar has been increased more than two times to Rs 15,000 from Rs 6,000 at present.

The increase in allowance will be applicable for journey by air only. However, those coming to India from land borders will not be able to get any amount of free allowance, as per the new rules.

The duty-free allowance for foreigners has also been increased to Rs 15,000 from the existing limit of Rs 8,000, from April 1.