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For makers and traders who sell abroad. Find the council that covers your product, and see what it will not do for you.
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An export promotion council is a trade body for one group of products, such as garments, leather or machines. You join the one that covers your main product, get a certificate called RCMC, and use its fairs, buyer meetings and market news.
PromotEdge works on the parts a council leaves to you: your website, catalogue and follow-up.
India's Foreign Trade Policy calls these councils organisations of exporters, set up to promote Indian exports. DGFT, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, keeps the official list. Other countries have bodies with the same name. This page is only about India.
RCMC stands for Registration-cum-Membership Certificate. A council gives it to you when you join. You need an IEC (Import Export Code) first, and our export marketing for Indian exporters page points to DGFT's own page for it.
A council can put you in a hall with buyers. Your website and catalogue, and how fast you reply, decide what happens next.
From DGFT's official list (Appendix 2T, version of 6 February 2023) and each body's own pages, opened on 30 October 2026. DGFT has renamed and added bodies since, so check before you apply.
| Your product | Council | What the official pages show |
|---|---|---|
| Ready-made garments | Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) | Set up in 1978. Holds a garment fair twice a year. Leaves out woollen knitwear and garments of leather, jute and hemp. |
| Cotton yarn, fabrics, made-ups | Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL) | Lists the papers for an online application. Exporters with under Rs 15 lakh of exports need Udyam proof. |
| Handloom products | Handloom Export Promotion Council (HEPC) | Says it began in 1965 and joins fairs and buyer-seller meets. |
| Machines, vehicles, auto parts, pumps, tools, steel | EEPC India | Head office in Kolkata. Its menu has Online RCMC. |
| Gems and jewellery | Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) | Runs the IIJS shows and buyer-seller meets. Posts new-member fees. |
| Leather goods | Council for Leather Exports (CLE) | Posts a fee sheet and a renewal circular of 25 March 2026. |
| Handicrafts | Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts (EPCH) | Online apply and renew for membership. |
| Plastic goods, from woven sacks to toys | Plastics Export Promotion Council (Plexconcil) | Lists buyer-seller meets under Events. |
| Medicines and bulk drugs | Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil) | Online apply and renew for membership or RCMC. |
| Electronics, software, IT services | Electronics and Computer Software Export Promotion Council (ESC) | Has pages for members and for foreign buyers. |
| Sports goods and toys | Sports Goods and Toys Export Promotion Council (SGEPC) | DGFT changed its name on 12 June 2025. Its site links online RCMC. |
| Seafood | Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) | An authority, not a council. Register as an exporter first, then apply for RCMC. |
| Farm and processed food | Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) | Gives RCMC through DGFT's portal since 17 July 2023. |
| Spices | Spices Board | Its exporter registration certificate counts as an RCMC. |
Also on DGFT's list: CHEMEXCIL (chemicals; its site's security certificate has expired, so no link), CAPEXIL (cement, ceramics, paper, minerals), and councils for carpets, silk, jute, shellac, wool, powerloom, services and more. The silk council became MATEXIL on 25 June 2025. Five bodies on the 2023 list have Kolkata addresses. For a stall in the east, see exhibition stall design in Kolkata.
Deeper reading if you want the research behind the plan.
Fees depend on the council and on your exports. Two councils print these, read on 30 October 2026.
| Council and fee | Who it is for | Total with 18% GST |
|---|---|---|
| Leather council, renewal for 2026-27 | Exports below Rs 15 lakh last year | Rs 5,900 |
| Leather council, renewal for 2026-27 | Exports above Rs 500 crore | Rs 1,77,000 |
| GJEPC, new membership | Exports up to Rs 25 lakh | Rs 17,582, with a one-time admission fee of Rs 7,500 |
Source: Leather council, circular of 25 March 2026, its fee sheet and GJEPC, new membership (no date on the page).
The leather council's circular says first-time micro and small exporters can get back 75% of the RCMC fee, up to Rs 20,000, under a scheme of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises. The unit needs Udyam registration (the government's small-business registration) and an IEC not older than 3 years.
A council arranges the meeting. The preparation and the follow-up are yours.
| The job | What a council's own page says | What stays with you |
|---|---|---|
| Meeting buyers | GJEPC holds one-on-one, pre-scheduled meetings between selected foreign buyers and Indian makers. MPEDA lists buyer-seller meets and road shows. | Choose which buyers to meet, send your catalogue first, and bring a price sheet. |
| Trade fairs | AEPC holds the India International Garment Fair twice a year, with over 350 exhibitors. | Stall design, samples, a lead card for each visitor and a reply within the week. |
| Funding for fairs | The leather council's circular says members can get funding for overseas fairs and meetings under Market Access Support, if they meet its conditions. | Reading the scheme's current rules before you book a stall. |
| Website, catalogue and replies | We found no such help on the council pages we read. | All of it. We build the website, the catalogue, search pages for importers and LinkedIn outreach. |
Source: GJEPC, AEPC, MPEDA and the leather council, read 30 October 2026. DGFT's mission page gives no conditions.
1. Hold an active IEC with an updated profile on DGFT's portal, and a digital signature token or Aadhaar e-signature.
2. Apply under Services, then e-RCMC, to the council for your main product. TEXPROCIL says online filing has been compulsory since 1 April 2022. It lists self-attested IEC, PAN and GST copies and company papers.
3. The council checks and issues the RCMC online. The leather council says it emails it within 3 working days of the fee.
Source: DGFT, e-RCMC, TEXPROCIL and the leather council's procedure, read 30 October 2026
Our beliefWe know digital inside out, and we think like an Indian business.
“My product fits two councils. Which one do I join?”
DGFT's handbook says to name your main line of business and join the council for that product. If none covers it, or you have no main line yet, FIEO (the Federation of Indian Export Organisations) can issue the RCMC.
“I do not export yet. Is it too early to join?”
The handbook lets a prospective exporter register as an associate member. Ask what that costs first.
“I joined a council, and no buyer has written to me.”
Membership opens doors to fairs and meetings, and orders still need work. Pick one product line and two countries. See export lead generation.
“We took a stall at the council's fair, and the visiting cards sat in a bag.”
Build the stall around one product line. Put every card in a CRM (the software that holds every lead) on day one, and reply within the week.
“After the buyer meeting, the buyer found a thin website.”
Buyers check you before they reply. Show specifications, certificates and real factory photos. See our export website and catalogue page.
“A consultant told me RCMC is needed for every shipment.”
Since 15 September 2026 it is not needed for a consignment worth Rs 3,00,000 or less at the port of loading. The rules below have the details.
No price list. These things move the number.
Each council sets its own fee, and the joining-fee table above shows two. We don't publish a price list for our own work. We quote after a first call, against a written scope.
| Way of working | When it fits |
|---|---|
| Project | A catalogue, website or stall. We confirm the timeline in the quote |
| Monthly plan | Follow-up after each event. Minimum 3 months, 30 days' notice |
Council fees and stall space are paid to the council or the organiser, at their rates.
Four points from DGFT's own text, read on 30 October 2026.
When RCMC is asked for. Foreign Trade Policy 2023, para 2.57, says a person applying for an authorisation to import or export, or for any other benefit under the policy, must show the RCMC. On 15 September 2026 DGFT added a rule (Notification 36/2026-27): no RCMC is needed for a consignment whose FOB value is Rs 3,00,000 or less. FOB (free on board) is the value of the goods at the port of loading.
Which council issues it. The Handbook of Procedures, chapter 2, says you state your main line of business and take the RCMC from the council for that product. FIEO issues it when no council covers the product.
How long it lasts. An RCMC runs five years from 1 April of the licensing year it was issued, unless it says otherwise (para 2.81). The Council for Leather Exports told members on 25 March 2026 that its RCMC depends on yearly renewal (circular). Ask your council which applies.
What you owe the council. Tell it within one month if your ownership, name or address changes (para 2.82). A council can de-register a holder who breaks its conditions, and the holder can appeal to DGFT within 45 days.
General guidance, not legal advice. Your chartered accountant (CA) can check it against your shipment.
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GibaBrazilian Former Volleyball PlayerSportsAn export promotion council is a body of exporters set up to promote Indian exports. Each looks after a group of products, such as garments, leather or machines. You join the one for your main product and get an RCMC.
DGFT's list, Appendix 2T, had 37 entries in its version of 6 February 2023. It mixes councils with boards and authorities, such as the Tea Board and APEDA. DGFT has renamed bodies since, so check its public notices for the current list.
Join the council that covers your main line of business, as DGFT's handbook says. The table above maps common products to councils. If none covers your product, or you sell many with no main line yet, FIEO can issue the RCMC.
RCMC is the Registration-cum-Membership Certificate a council gives its members. The Foreign Trade Policy asks for it when you apply for an authorisation or a benefit under the policy. Since 15 September 2026 it is not needed for a consignment of Rs 3,00,000 FOB or less.
The IEC is the basic paper to export goods. The RCMC is asked for when you claim a benefit or authorisation under the Foreign Trade Policy, and not for consignments of Rs 3,00,000 FOB or less. An RCMC is one paper among several; the invoice, packing list and shipping bill are on our export documentation checklist. If you plan to claim a benefit, join early. Ask your CA.
It depends on the council and your exports. On 30 October 2026 the leather council's renewal for 2026-27 ran from Rs 5,900 to Rs 1,77,000 with GST, by export size, and GJEPC listed Rs 17,582 for a new member exporting up to Rs 25 lakh. Ask your council for its current sheet.
It can put you in front of buyers through fairs and buyer-seller meets, which several councils run. It does not follow up for you or build your website. Buyers check you online after a meeting, so your catalogue, site and replies matter.
Schemes under the Foreign Trade Policy, such as Advance Authorisation and the EPCG scheme (machines imported at reduced duty), ask for the RCMC, says the leather council's 2026 circular. The Export Promotion Mission has its own rules. Check them first.
Ongoing monthly work has a 3-month minimum. After that you can stop with 30 days' notice. A project has a clear end, and we confirm its timeline in the quote. The smallest first step, a free 30-minute call and a one-page plan, commits you to nothing.
Before work starts, we agree in writing who your main contact is, how often you meet, and who signs off each piece of work. The person who plans your campaign talks to the person who designs it every day. The seniors you meet at the first call are the people who run your work.
