BIS certification in India, how to get a licence and the fees

BIS certification in India, process and fees for makers and importers

BIS certification is a licence or registration from the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) to mark products meeting Indian Standards. It is generally voluntary, but an effective Quality Control Order (QCO) makes it compulsory for covered goods, subject to that order's exemptions.

BIS stands for the Bureau of Indian Standards, India's national standards body under Section 3 of the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016. The schemes sit in Schedule II of the BIS (Conformity Assessment) Regulations, 2018, amended in 2020, 2023 and 2024 (BIS rules and regulations page).

Which BIS certificate scheme applies to your product

A "BIS certificate" here means a Scheme-I licence or a Scheme-II registration.

The number formats come from the BIS enforcement page. Under Scheme-II the product is tested in a BIS-recognised lab and the manufacturer declares conformity. Applications go through the CRS portal at www.crsbis.in (FMCS FAQ). BIS management system certification, such as IS/ISO 9001, is a different scheme (system certification).

When BIS certification is mandatory

BIS says its certification scheme "is basically voluntary in nature". The Central Government makes it compulsory for specific products on grounds of public interest, health, environment, unfair trade practices or national security, "through issuance of QCOs" (products under compulsory certification).

The legal hook is in the BIS Act. Section 16(1) lets the government make the Standard Mark compulsory by Gazette order. Section 17(1) then says no person shall "manufacture, import, distribute, sell, hire, lease, store or exhibit for sale" those goods without the mark under a valid licence. The QCO itself comes from the line ministry, not BIS (PIB, 12 Mar 2025).

In December 2025 the government counted 773 goods under 191 QCOs plus two horizontal QCOs, up from 106 products under 14 QCOs in 2014 (PIB press note, 23 Dec 2025). That count is a snapshot. The Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals had already rescinded 14 polyester and polymer QCOs on 12 November 2025 and six more on 28 November 2025, so those withdrawals predate the 773 figure. After it, the linear alkyl benzene QCO was suspended from 1 April 2026 to 31 December 2026 (S.O. 5343(E), 29 September 2026). Use the current compulsory list, not the December total.

To check your own product, use the compulsory certification list on the BIS page above and the ministry notices list. To find the Indian Standard for a product, search Manakonline or ask the BIS technical department (BIS FAQ).

Read the order's start date, exemptions and later amendments before you plan production or an import. The compulsory certification page also links QCOs that are notified but not yet in force.

How to get a BIS licence in India

To obtain BIS certification under Scheme-I, apply and pay online on Manakonline (BIS FAQ). You need the manufacturing and test set-up the Indian Standard requires, and the product must conform (BIS FAQ). Each Indian Standard and each factory needs its own application. One licence can cover several varieties in its scope (BIS FAQ).

The current process is set by the Guidelines for Grant of Licence of 25 February 2026:

1. File Form-V with a self-evaluation cum verification report.
2. Pick option-1 or option-2.
3. Host the BIS factory visit, normally one day for an Indian factory.
4. Once BIS decides to grant, pay the licence fee and the advance minimum marking fee.

Under option-1, BIS visits, draws samples and sends them to a third-party lab. The target is 90 days if everything passes first time. Under option-2, once called the simplified procedure, you file BIS or BIS-recognised lab reports with the application, and BIS still draws a sample at the visit. The target is 30 days. One report must be no more than 90 days old. With several reports, the latest stays within 90 days and the oldest within 180. Some products can use only option-1. An "All India First" licence, the first for that standard, has a 45-day target.

The BIS FAQ, last updated 3 February 2026, still says about one month and four months. Go by the February 2026 guidelines.

After the grant, expect surprise factory visits, and BIS buying ISI-marked goods for testing (BIS FAQ).

The first licence lasts at least one year and at most two. You can renew for up to five years on Manakonline, with production figures (BIS FAQ). Apply preferably two months before expiry. A filing within 90 days after the validity date needs a ₹5,000 late fee. Miss the 90 days and the licence expires (renewal guidelines, 5 March 2025).

BIS certification fees and marking fee

The published Scheme-I fees are (BIS fee list):

Each Indian Standard has an annual minimum marking fee plus a unit rate. You pay the annual licence fee plus the minimum marking fee after BIS decides to grant (BIS FAQ) and declare actual production at renewal (BIS FAQ). For IS 2028:2024, the 10 June 2026 amendment set minimums of ₹81,000 for large firms and ₹65,000 for MSMEs, at ₹0.30 per 100 pieces. Look up your standard on the BIS fee page or the Manakonline fee search. If no fee exists yet, BIS sets one on an "All India First" application (BIS FAQ).

A March 2024 notification cut the Scheme-I annual minimum by 80% for micro firms and start-ups and 50% for small firms, with another 10% for women entrepreneurs, stated to run until 31 May 2026. No Scheme-I extension appears on the BIS fee page as of 7 October 2026, so check it before you budget on these cuts. Medium firms have no separate percentage: they use the lower MSME minimum. Scheme-X is a different scheme, and a 17 March 2026 Gazette notification gave it an extension to 31 May 2029.

BIS for imports and foreign manufacturers (FMCS)

Products under a QCO "can be imported to India only with Standard Mark under a valid licence from BIS" (FMCS FAQ). QCOs exempt goods made in India for export, but that exemption does not help imports. DGFT's import policy notes say the exporting manufacturer needs a BIS licence. The foreign manufacturer applies, not the importer, and the licence is tied to that factory and standard (FMCS FAQ).

Factories outside India use the Foreign Manufacturers Certification Scheme, run since 2000 by the Foreign Manufacturers Certification Department at BIS headquarters in New Delhi. It covers every product except MeitY-notified electronics and IT goods, which go through CRS. Hard-copy applications stopped on 31 May 2026. Since 1 June 2026 only online applications are accepted.

The main differences from a domestic licence:

• Nominate an Authorized Indian Representative (AIR) in Form-VI. The AIR lives in India, is at least a graduate, accepts responsibility for the BIS Act and the licence, and normally represents one manufacturer. A foreign national qualifies only if employed in the manufacturer's Indian office and living in India (FMCS FAQ).
• All FMCS cases use option-1, normally with a two-day factory visit. The 30-day route doesn't apply (grant guidelines).
• Samples are tested only in BIS or BIS-recognised labs in India. Reports to IEC or other non-Indian standards are not accepted (FMCS FAQ).
• After grant you sign an Agreement and Indemnity Bond and provide a performance bank guarantee of USD 10,000 from a bank with an RBI-approved branch in India.

BIS puts the average FMCS grant at about six months from recording a complete application (grant process). Fees match the domestic list, plus per-diem charges, the inspectors' tickets, visas and insurance, and a ₹10,000 contingency fund. Non-SAARC applicants pay in US dollars. SAARC applicants, including factories in Bangladesh or Sri Lanka, can pay in rupees with GST or in dollars (BIS fee list). BIS publishes no money figure for the travel costs. Once licensed, you send monthly or quarterly production and dispatch reports (FMCS grant process).

BIS certification consultants

BIS publishes no list of approved consultants, so a "BIS approved consultant" claim has no official basis. The manufacturer files the application (BIS FAQ). BIS says it provides no consultancy in its management system guidelines, which is not a product-consultant list. Section 26 of the BIS Act bars a deceptive name resembling BIS unless BIS permits it. Consultant and AIR fees are private.

You can ask RegAffairs AI whether a QCO covers your product and get an answer that cites the Gazette orders.