Food flavouring material

Food flavouring material for human consumption

FSSAI CLEARANCE

HSN 2106 90 60 (Food flavouring material) is subject to Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Import Licence and label-compliance requirements under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and the FSS (Import) Regulations, 2017. Import through designated food-entry ports is mandated under General Note 4(D) of Schedule I of the ITC (HS) 2022, administered by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT). A category-specific prohibition applies: milk-containing food preparations from China remain prohibited pending laboratory-capacity upgrades for melamine testing.

What this is

HSN code

2106 90 60

Chapter

21 · Miscellaneous edible preparations

Primary regulator

FSSAI · Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 · FSS (Import) Regulations, 2017

Customs documentation

Import Licence from FSSAI
Specimen copy of label from FSSAI
Designated-port declaration to CBIC

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 the FSSAI Import Licence and upload it in e-Sanchit under document code 911001 before filing the bill of entry. Also upload the Specimen Copy of Label under document code 0110FS; both documents must be present in e-Sanchit before the customs officer grants out-of-charge.
FSS (Import) Regulations, 2017 · CBIC Instruction 09/2023-Cus dated 07-03-2023 · FSSAI order dated 18-11-2022 under F.No. Import/TFM/Apex/2022-FSSAI
2
Route the consignment only through a designated food-import entry point in compliance with General Note 4(D) of Schedule I of the ITC (HS) 2022. Confirm that any label deficiencies covered by the rectifiable-labelling regime — including per-serve RDA contribution and expiry date — are rectified at the customs bonded warehouse before visual inspection, by affixing a single non-detachable sticker adjacent to the principal display panel without altering the original label.
General Note 4(D) of Schedule I of ITC (HS) 2022 · CBIC Instruction 10/2022-Customs dated 28-06-2022 · FSSAI Letter 1828/Misc Matters/FSSAI/Imports-2021 dated 17-06-2022
3
Verify that the food flavouring material does not contain milk or milk solids as an ingredient if the origin is China; such products remain prohibited under DGFT Notification 01/2015-20 dated 23-04-2019 until port laboratory capacity for melamine testing is upgraded. Consignments in breach are liable to detention and re-export.
DGFT Notification 01/2015-20 dated 23-04-2019

A word of counsel

The most frequent compliance failure on this tariff line is overlooking the China-origin prohibition: importers of compound flavouring materials that incorporate milk solids — even trace quantities used as carriers — from Chinese manufacturers find consignments detained and ordered for re-export, with no rectification pathway available. The prohibition is categorical and has no sunset date in the current ITC (HS) schedule; it remains operative until DGFT issues a superseding notification following laboratory-capacity confirmation at all designated ports.

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Frequently asked

Does HSN 2106 90 60 require BIS certification?

No, food flavouring material is not within 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 and the FSS (Import) Regulations, 2017, with DGFT-administered port-restriction and China-origin prohibition overlays.

Which documents must be uploaded in e-Sanchit at the bill of entry for this HSN?

The FSSAI Import Licence (document code 911001) and the Specimen Copy of Label (document code 0110FS) must both be uploaded in e-Sanchit before customs out-of-charge, per CBIC Instruction 09/2023-Cus dated 07-03-2023.

Does the China-origin prohibition on milk-containing products apply to food flavouring materials that use milk solids only as a carrier or minor ingredient?

Yes. DGFT Notification 01/2015-20 dated 23-04-2019 prohibits import of food preparations with milk or milk solids as an ingredient from China without qualification as to quantity or function; any food flavouring material containing milk solids in any proportion and originating from China is caught by the prohibition.

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