Popcorn (Zea mays var. everta)

Popcorn maize, unprocessed corn for popping (Zea mays var. everta)

FSSAI CLEARANCE

HSN 1005 90 30 (Popcorn, Zea mays var. everta) is subject to Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Import Licence under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and to a Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Import Licence under DGFT Notification 31/2015-2020 dated 13 November 2019, in compliance with the Hyderabad High Court order dated 9 July 2018. Consignments must be routed through designated food-import entry points under General Note 4(D) of Schedule I of the ITC (HS) 2022, with Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) oversight at the bill-of-entry stage.

What this is

HSN code

1005 90 30

Chapter

10 · Cereals

Primary regulator

FSSAI · Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006

Customs documentation

Import Licence from FSSAI
Import Licence from DGFT
Specimen copy of label from FSSAI

Applicable Partner Government Agencies

FSSAIFSSAI·Food Safety and Standards Authority of India

Procedural directions for customs clearance are issued by: Directorate General of Foreign Trade, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs.

Compliance steps

1
Obtain a DGFT Import Licence before shipment, in compliance with the Hyderabad High Court order dated 9 July 2018. Upload the FSSAI Import Licence (document code 911001) and the Specimen Copy of Label (document code 0110FS) in e-Sanchit before filing the bill of entry; customs out-of-charge will not be granted until both documents are verified.
DGFT Notification 31/2015-2020 dated 13-11-2019 · DGFT Policy Circular 27/2015-20 dated 26-07-2019 · Hyderabad High Court order dated 09-07-2018
2
Route the consignment exclusively through designated food-import entry points in compliance with General Note 4(D) of Schedule I of the ITC (HS) 2022. Non-designated port entry renders the consignment liable to detention and re-export.
General Note 4(D) of Schedule I of the ITC (HS) 2022 · CBIC Instruction 05/2023-Cus dated 08-02-2023
3
Ensure labelling conforms to the FSS (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020 before arrival. Permissible rectifiable deficiencies — including per-serve RDA contribution and expiry date — may be corrected at the customs bonded warehouse by affixing a single non-detachable sticker adjacent to the principal display panel, without altering original label information, prior to authorised-officer inspection.
CBIC Instruction 10/2022-Customs dated 28-06-2022 · CBIC Instruction 09/2023-Cus dated 07-03-2023 · FSSAI order dated 18-11-2022 under F.No.Import/TFM/Apex/2022-FSSAI · FSSAI Letter 1828/Misc Matters/FSSAI/Imports-2021 dated 17-06-2022

A word of counsel

The dual-licence requirement on this tariff line is the most common source of consignment detention: importers who obtain the FSSAI Import Licence but overlook the separate DGFT Import Licence — mandated by a court order rather than a routine policy condition — arrive at port without a legally complete customs clearance package. The DGFT licence requirement under DGFT Notification 31/2015-2020 is not a general food-import condition; it is specific to popcorn under this CTI and cannot be substituted by any FSSAI or general agricultural-import permission.

Need a regulatory steer on this product?

Speak to a regulatory counsel about your specific HSN, IS, and supplier situation.

Speak to an Expert

Frequently asked

Does HSN 1005 90 30 require BIS certification?

No, popcorn maize is not within the BIS Quality Control Order regime. Import is governed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and by a DGFT Import Licence mandated under DGFT Notification 31/2015-2020 pursuant to the Hyderabad High Court order dated 9 July 2018.

Which documents must be uploaded in e-Sanchit for this HSN before out-of-charge?

The FSSAI Import Licence (document code 911001) and the Specimen Copy of Label (document code 0110FS) are both mandatory e-Sanchit uploads; the proper officer will verify these before granting out-of-charge.

Can labelling deficiencies be rectified at the port for this consignment?

Yes, specified labelling deficiencies — including per-serve RDA contribution and expiry-date information — may be rectified at the customs bonded warehouse by affixing a single non-detachable sticker, provided the correction is made before visual or re-inspection by the authorised officer and the original label is unaltered, per CBIC Instruction 09/2023-Cus and FSSAI clarification order dated 18 November 2022.

Last verified against gazette notifications: 2026-05-16. Source: FSSAI / DGFT / CBIC / Indian Customs CUSDATA.