Methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE)
Methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) for fuel blending
HSN 2909 19 20 (Methyl tertiary butyl ether, MTBE) is covered by a Bureau of Indian Standards Quality Control Order. Conformity to IS 336:1973 is mandatory under the ISI Mark Scheme with effect from 25 December 2021, by virtue of the Ether (Quality Control) Amendment Order, 2021. Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances controls, Central Insecticides Board and Registration Committee permit requirements, and Public Liability Insurance obligations apply as separate customs-clearance overlays.
Procedural directions for customs clearance are issued by: Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, Directorate General of Foreign Trade.
- 1Source only from a Bureau of Indian Standards CM/L-licensed manufacturer holding a current licence against IS 336:1973 for ether. Verify the supplier's CM/L number, licensed product scope, and manufacturing facility on the BIS online register before placing the purchase order.Ether (Quality Control) Amendment Order, 2021 · S.O. 2183(E) dated 29-06-2020 · S.O. 2548(E) dated 24-06-2021
- 2Ensure each consignment bears the ISI standard mark and the supplier's CM/L number per Scheme-I of Schedule-II to the BIS (Conformity Assessment) Regulations, 2018. Marking must appear on the product or primary container, not only on outer packaging.Scheme-I of Schedule-II to the BIS (Conformity Assessment) Regulations, 2018 · Ether (Quality Control) Amendment Order, 2021
- 3Verify whether MTBE figures in the Schedule to the Insecticides Act, 1968. If it does, obtain registration and a permit from the secretariat of the Central Insecticides Board and Registration Committee; import is restricted to places specified under Rule 45 of the Insecticides Rules, 1971.Insecticides Act, 1968 · Rule 45 of the Insecticides Rules, 1971 · ITC (HS) policy condition 2 to Chapter 29
- 4If the consignment exceeds the specified quantities of hazardous substances, take out a Public Liability Insurance policy before import as required under the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991.S.O. 227(E) dated 24-03-1992 issued by the Ministry of Environment and Forests
- 5Include mandatory additional qualifiers in the import declaration for Chapter 29 commodities as stipulated in paragraphs 4.1 and 4.2 of CBIC Circular 23/2023-Cus with effect from 15 October 2023. Quote the BIS CM/L number on the bill of entry; absent or scope-mismatched CM/L triggers consignment detention.CBIC Circular 23/2023-Cus dated 30-09-2023 · BIS Act, 2016 · Customs Act, 1962
The single most consequential error on this tariff line is assuming that IS 336:1973 governs MTBE as a standalone product standard, when the standard was originally drafted for diethyl ether and covers a family of ethers. Importers who treat any IS 336 CM/L as sufficient without verifying that the supplier's licensed product scope specifically covers MTBE risk a scope-mismatch finding at port — triggering detention even where the mark itself appears on the container. Confirm the precise product scope named in the CM/L certificate, not merely the IS number, before the purchase order is placed.