Crab

Prepared or preserved crab, crustacean preparations

FSSAI CLEARANCE · AQCS CLEARANCE

HSN 1605 10 00 (Crab) is subject to Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Import Licence and mandatory foreign-manufacturer registration under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, as a high-risk food product. Animal Quarantine and Certification Services (AQCS) Sanitary Import Permit clearance applies concurrently, and consignments are permitted only through 79 designated food-import ports with effect from 1 March 2023.

What this is

HSN code

1605 10 00

Chapter

16 · Preparations of meat, fish or crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates

Primary regulator

FSSAI · Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (high-risk food regime)

Customs documentation

Import Licence from FSSAI
Sanitary Import Permit from AQCS
Health Certificate from AQCS

Applicable Partner Government Agencies

FSSAIFSSAI·Food Safety and Standards Authority of India

AQCSAQCS·Animal Quarantine and Certification Services

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

Compliance steps

1
Confirm the foreign manufacturing facility is registered with the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India under the mandatory high-risk-food registration regime. The FSSAI Import Licence (document code 911001) and a Specimen Copy of Label (document code 0110FS) must be uploaded in e-Sanchit before the bill of entry is filed.
CBIC Instruction 30/2022-Cus dated 14-11-2022 · FSSAI order dated 10-10-2022
2
Obtain the AQCS Sanitary Import Permit (document code 911DF1) and Health Certificate (document code 6360AQ) before consignment dispatch. Quote the e-Sanchit IRN of the Sanitary Import Permit on the bill of entry to obtain the AQCS NOC for CTIs listed in Annexure A (Sl. No. 3) of CBIC Circular 24/2022-Cus.
CBIC Circular 24/2022-Cus dated 28-11-2022 · CBIC Instruction 09/2023-Cus dated 07-03-2023 · FSSAI order dated 18-11-2022 under F.No.Import/TFM/Apex/2022-FSSAI
3
Route the consignment exclusively through one of the 79 designated food-import ports notified under General Note 4(D) of Schedule I of the ITC (HS) 2022. Confirm label compliance under the FSSAI rectifiable-labelling regime before customs out-of-charge; non-rectifiable labelling defects attract detention.
CBIC Instruction 05/2023-Cus dated 08-02-2023 · CBIC Instruction 10/2022-Cus dated 28-06-2022 · FSSAI Letter 1828/Misc Matters/FSSAI/Imports-2021 dated 17-06-2022

A word of counsel

The most frequent error on this tariff line is treating the FSSAI Import Licence as the sole clearance requirement and arriving at port without the AQCS Sanitary Import Permit IRN. The AQCS clearance is an independent animal-origin overlay — a missing or unlinked 911DF1 IRN on the bill of entry results in detention at the designated port regardless of FSSAI licence currency. Additionally, diverting a crab-preparation consignment to a non-designated port converts a rectifiable oversight into a General Note 4(D) violation, triggering re-export or confiscation under the Customs Act, 1962.

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Frequently asked

Does HSN 1605 10 00 require BIS certification?

No, prepared or preserved crab falls outside the BIS Quality Control Order regime; no BIS QCO covers this product family. Import is governed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, with a concurrent Animal Quarantine and Certification Services Sanitary Import Permit and a 79-designated-port restriction operative from 1 March 2023.

Which e-Sanchit document codes are mandatory at the bill of entry for this tariff line?

Four documents must be uploaded: FSSAI Import Licence (911001), Sanitary Import Permit from AQCS (911DF1), Health Certificate (6360AQ), and Specimen Copy of Label (0110FS); the AQCS Sanitary Import Permit IRN must also be quoted on the bill of entry to obtain the NOC per CBIC Instruction 09/2023-Cus.

Is the foreign-manufacturer registration with FSSAI mandatory even for prepared crab products?

Yes. CBIC Instruction 30/2022-Cus and the FSSAI order dated 10 October 2022 mandate registration of foreign manufacturing facilities for fish and their products — a category that covers prepared and preserved crustaceans — and consignments from unregistered facilities are not permitted entry.

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