When is an Import Export Code updated?
An Import Export Code is updated on the DGFT portal every year from April to June. The filing is made even when no detail has changed. The 10-digit code does not expire on an anniversary, and a missed update can deactivate it.
Which months is the update filed in?
April, May, and June. The holder signs in on the DGFT portal and files the IEC update in that window. There is no other month in which the yearly confirmation is due. What the code is, and why GST registration does not replace it, is on the Import Export Code guide.
What is confirmed?
The update confirms the details the portal already holds, and it records a change where one has happened. A change of address, of the mobile number or email, of the bank account, or of a partner or director is entered in the same filing. A year with no change is still filed.
One PAN holds one code, whether the business is a proprietorship, a firm, a limited liability partnership, or a company. The update does not create a second code for the same PAN. The application for a first code is on the Import Export Code page.
What happens if the window is missed?
The code can be deactivated. A deactivated code is not the number customs will accept until the holder files the update and the code is restored. Deactivation is not a penalty quoted as a rupee sum on this page, and it is not the issue of a fresh 10-digit code.
Is the yearly update a new code?
No. The same code is confirmed. The yearly filing does not carry a fee. Surrender of a code, and a revocation, are separate from this confirmation. The original application for the code is also a separate filing, and that application carries the government fee.
Frequently asked questions
Four questions cover an unchanged code, expiry, the fee, and a new number.
Must the code be updated when nothing changed?
Yes. The April to June filing is made even when the address, the bank, and the signatory are the same.
Does the code expire each June?
No. It does not lapse on a fixed anniversary. A missed update can deactivate it. Deactivation is not the same as the code expiring.
Does the yearly update charge a fee?
No. The confirmation filed in the April to June window does not carry a fee. The original application for the code is a different filing.
Does a deactivated code get a new number?
No. The same 10-digit code is updated and restored. A new code is not issued for the same PAN.
Sources
The Import Export Code is issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade. The holder confirms it each year from April to June.