India-Britain Free Trade Agreement likely from May; Import Duties on Cars and Whisky to be Reduced

April 13, 2026

The Free Trade Agreement between India and the UK is expected to come into force starting next month. According to sources, the agreement is likely to take effect from the second week of May.

Both nations signed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) on July 24, 2025. Under this agreement, 99 percent of India’s exports will gain duty-free access to the UK market, while India will implement a phased reduction in import duties on British products such as cars and whisky.

India and the UK have set a target to double their bilateral trade from the current level of $56 billion by the year 2030.

Enhanced Market Access for Indian Products: As per the terms of the agreement, India has opened its market to various consumer products—such as chocolates, biscuits, and cosmetics—while Indian exporters will gain improved market access for textiles, footwear, gems and jewelry, sports goods, and toys.

Export Opportunities for Electric and Hybrid Vehicles
Import duties on British Scotch whisky will be immediately reduced from 150 percent to 75 percent. This rate will be gradually brought down to 40 percent by the year 2035.

In the automobile sector, India will reduce import duties from the current 110 percent to 10 percent over a period of five years.

In return, Indian companies will gain access to the British market for the export of electric and hybrid vehicles on a quota basis.

India and the UK have also signed a bilateral social security agreement. This will ensure that temporary workers from both countries are not required to pay social security contributions twice.