U.S. flags India's burdensome import requirements as trade barrier ahead of Trump's tariffs

USTR report highlights India's import quality requirements as a barrier to trade, ahead of planned reciprocal tariffs.

The United States has flagged concerns over India's increasing and burdensome import-quality requirements, among its many barriers to trade, in a report released two days before planned U.S. reciprocal tariffs take effect.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative on Monday (March 31, 2025) provided an encyclopedic list of foreign countries' policies and regulations it regards as barriers, calling out India's customs barriers, import curbs and licenses, alongside high tariffs.

In the midst of President Donald Trump's efforts to upend the global trade order and shift it in Washington's favour, India is one of the few nations working to lower tariffs and win over Mr. Trump, who has often called the India a "tariff king" and "tariff abuser."

Both countries have started talks towards clinching an early trade deal. Last month, Reuters reported India was open to cutting tariffs on more than half of U.S. imports worth $23 billion, the biggest cut in years.

Still, the U.S. has concerns that some of India's import requirements are not internationally aligned, and that some are burdensome or lack clear timelines, the Trump administration said in its latest USTR report.

It wasn't clear if Trump's April 2 announcement on tariffs would factor in the findings of the USTR report.

Some of India's non-tariff barriers have also been a pressure point in bilateral trade ties.