By Ajay Srivastava
Non-tariff barriers (NTB) now cause more export loss than tariffs ever did. India must raise the issue of NTBs in trade talks, make recognition of standards reciprocal, escalate unjust rules to the World Trade Organisation, use counter-measures where needed, & insert NTB-discipline clauses in trade pacts, writes Ajay Srivastava
Hurdles that go beyond tariffs
Tariffs are no longer the real barrier to trade. Indian exports today face a more complex and hidden obstacle: Non-tariff barriers (NTBs). While customs duties have fallen worldwide, countries increasingly restrict imports through health rules, product standards, certifications, licensing systems, and inspection regimes. Many of these are presented as legitimate safeguards—but when they lack scientific basis, apply selectively, or impose excessive cost, they become covert trade barriers. Indian goods face such obstacles across the EU, US, China, Japan, Korea, Russia, Latin America and West Asia.
If India is serious about achieving trillion-dollar exports, dismantling NTBs must now be as central as tariff negotiations once were.
Non-tariff measures vs non-tariff barriers
Not all regulations are unfair. Governments impose non-tariff measures (NTMs) to protect public health, plants, animals, and the environment. These include standards, lab testing, certification, inspection and licensing. But when such measures become arbitrary, scientifically unjustified, inconsistent across countries, or impossibly complex, they cross the line into non-tariff barriers (NTBs). The test is simple: if a rule protects citizens, it is legitimate; if it mainly restricts imports—it is a trade barrier.
Indian exports face a range of NTBs
Almost every major export sector is exposed. Indian rice, tea, spices, seafood and chemicals face repeated hurdles in the EU. Shrimp, garments, medicines and sesame seeds are blocked in Japan. Food, dairy, fish and industrial products face intense controls in China. The US restricts fruit and seafood. Korea bars Indian bovine products. In West Asia and Latin America, Indian ceramics, diagnostics, medicines, and appliances face high certification costs. Russia and Central Asia impose registration burdens on veterinary drugs and machinery. In effect, India exports into a maze, not a market.
Are Indian items blocked due to quality issues?
Only partly quality failures exist—but what turns them into NTBs is the unequal and excessive response. Three major patterns dominate. First, tough and often arbitrary pesticide limits: EU residue norms for rice, tea and spices are far stricter than US standards. Even farmers who follow prescribed practices fail foreign tests. Japan banned Indian sesame three decades ago over contamination that persists only on paper.
Second, animal disease: India’s inability to create foot-and-mouth disease-free zones prevents dairy and meat exports to major markets.Third, disproportionate inspections: Japan tests every shrimp shipment despite no residue detection for years. The EU inspects Indian seafood at five times the global norm. Mexico banned all Indian chillies following detection in two shipments.
The non-quality roadblocks
The most damaging are prior registrations, documentation hurdles and foreign-only certification systems. Argentina needs drugs to be registered with multiple agencies. Russia demands registration fees in euros for each veterinary product. Saudi Arabia requires embassy-attested agreements for diagnostics. China insists on factory inspections by its own
agencies, Chinese-only lab testing, and no appellate process. Registration often takes years and many firms never qualify.
Domestic rules as protectionism
Japan rejects Indian lab reports despite international accreditation. The EU’s chemical compliance system makes Indian registrations very costly. Ayurvedic medicines are effectively banned through documentation requirements impossible to meet. The US barred Indian shrimp on turtle safety norms. Brazil mandates local testing despite equivalent systems abroad. Italy bans steel products allowed across Europe.
What should India do?
India must modernise export systems: upgrade pesticide controls, enforce traceability in food exports, build certified animal disease-free zones, eliminate contamination risks at source, modernise inspection systems, expand accredited labs and link farm-to-port supply chains digitally. It must raise the issue of NTBs in trade negotiations, make recognition of standards reciprocal, escalate unjust rules to the WTO, use counter-measures where needed, and insert NTB-discipline clauses in FTAs.
Why it matters
NTBs now cause more export loss than tariffs ever did. Indian firms are no longer losing markets on price—they are losing them on paperwork, processes and politics. Without systematic NTB action, India’s export ambition will remain rhetoric.
The writer is founder, Global Trade Research Initiative
