Operationalizing The DGFT E-Commerce Export Framework: 100% FDI, Sellers-on-Record, And Cross-Border Supply Contracts

When a company’s commercial contracts diverge from its physical inventory and cash flows, regulatory gridlock is inevitable. Mismatches across banking, customs, and tax filings do not just trigger compliance flags, they choke working capital and halt operations.

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) officially notified “Introduction of Inventory-based Cross-border E-Commerce Export Framework under FTP”. The new rules require foreign-backed e-commerce marketplaces to establish dedicated wholly owned Indian entities for inventory-based exports under 100% FDI permissions, while local suppliers function as GST-compliant “Sellers-on-Record”. The rules require the legal exporter, supply contracts, payment records and inventory records to describe the same transaction. Indian regulatory systems, including ICEGATE for customs, EDPMS for foreign exchange, GSTIN for taxes and DGFT for trade, can cross-check the information reported across these records. If a platform describes itself