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HSN Code 3215: Printing ink, writing or drawing ink and other inks, whether or not concentrated or solid

HSN 3215 covers printing ink, writing or drawing ink and other inks, whether or not concentrated or solid. Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate) names this heading in 2 entries, at 5% / 18%. The basic customs duty in the Customs Tariff is 10%. Export policy: Free; RoDTEP 0.7% of FOB value. The heading has 15 eight-digit tariff items.

Checked against the official files on 2 October 202615 tariff itemsChapter 32 · Tanning or dyeing extracts; tannins and their…
GST rate5% / 18%

The heading is named in 2 entries. The description of the goods decides the rate.

Notfn 9/2025-CT (Rate) · 2 entries
Basic customs duty10%

Standard rate on all 15 tariff items.

Customs Tariff · First Schedule · Ch. 32
Import policyCheck Schedule 1

The item-wise import policy line is not shown on this page.

ITC(HS) 2022 · Schedule 1
Export policy · RoDTEPFree · 0.7%

No export authorisation needed for any line. RoDTEP continues up to 31 December 2026.

Sch. 2 Export Policy · Appendix 4R
Tariff items

All 8-Digit Codes Under HSN 3215

Classify the goods at eight digits before you quote a rate: the duty, the export policy and the RoDTEP rate are fixed line by line. Heading text: Printing ink, writing or drawing ink and other inks, whether or not concentrated or solid.

Tariff itemDescriptionBasic customs dutyExport policyRoDTEP
3215 11 10Lithographic ink and jellyBlack10%Free0.7%
3215 11 20Newspaper inkBlack10%Free0.7%
3215 11 30Rotary inkBlack10%Free0.7%
3215 11 40Screen printing inkBlack10%Free0.7%
3215 11 90OtherBlack10%Free0.7%
3215 19 10Lithographic ink and jellyOther10%Free0.7%
3215 19 20Newspaper inkOther10%Free0.7%
3215 19 30Rotary inkOther10%Free0.7%
3215 19 40Screen printing inkOther10%Free0.7%
3215 19 90OtherOther10%Free0.7%
3215 90 10Fountain pen inkOther10%Free0.7%
3215 90 20Ball pen inkOther10%Free0.7%
3215 90 30Indelible inkOther10%Free0.7%
3215 90 40Drawing inkOther10%Free0.7%
3215 90 90OtherOther10%Free0.7%

Basic customs duty is the standard rate in the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act. An exemption notification or a trade agreement can lower the duty actually payable. RoDTEP is a percentage of FOB value for exports from the domestic tariff area.

GST

GST Rate on HSN 3215

GST on goods is fixed by the entries of Notification No. 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), in force from 22 September 2025 and amended up to 30 April 2026. The rate shown is the total: half is central tax and half is State tax on a sale within a State, and the whole is charged as IGST on an inter-State sale or an import. Read the description in the entry, not only the code: the same heading can sit in two Schedules.

GST rateEntryCodes namedGoods covered by the entry
18%Schedule II, S. No. 573215All Goods, including printing ink, writing or drawing ink and other inks, whether or not concentrated or solid, fountain pen ink, ball pen ink
5%Schedule I, S. No. 24232Wattle extract, quebracho extract, chestnut extract (chapter-wide entry)
18%Schedule II, S. No. 639Any ChapterGoods which are not specified in Schedule I, III, IV, V, VI or VII (residual entry)

Goods of this heading that fall under no specific entry take the residual entry, unless they are exempt under the exemption notification issued with the rate notification.

Import

Customs Duty on HSN 3215

An import pays three things: basic customs duty at the tariff rate, social welfare surcharge at 10% of that duty (unless exempted for the goods), and IGST at the GST rate on the value plus both duties. A registered importer takes credit of the IGST.

Basic customs duty at
Social welfare surcharge, 10% of the duty
IGST at on value plus both
Total duty and tax
As a share of the value

Standard rates only: no exemption notification, anti-dumping or safeguard duty, or trade-agreement rate is applied, and the surcharge is taken at 10% although some goods are exempted from it. A registered importer takes credit of the IGST.

Whether an import is Free, Restricted or Prohibited is set line by line in ITC(HS) Schedule 1 (Import Policy), read with its General Notes on standards, quarantine and packaging. That policy line is not reproduced on this page; check it before you place the order.

Export

Export Policy and RoDTEP for HSN 3215

Under Schedule 2 of ITC(HS) 2022 the 15 tariff items are marked: 15 Free. “Free” means no export authorisation is needed; a Restricted item needs one from DGFT, and an STE item moves only through the named State trading enterprise.

RoDTEP is notified for 15 of the 15 tariff items, at 0.7% of FOB value (Appendix 4R, for exports from the domestic tariff area). The scheme continues up to 31 December 2026 at the rates in force on 30 September 2026.

The rate was cut by half for one month in 2026 and then restored. A shipping bill dated from 23 February to 22 March 2026 carries the reduced rate.

  1. Current RoDTEP schedule takes effectAppendix 4R and 4RE notified by Notification 32/2024-25.
  2. All rates and caps limited to 50%Notification 60/2025-26, with immediate effect.
  3. Full rates restoredNotification 66/2025-26 and its corrigendum: the rates of 22 February 2026 apply again from 23 March.
  4. Scheme continued to 30 September 2026Notification 74/2025-26, rates unchanged.
  5. Scheme continued to 31 December 2026Notification 41/2026-27: rates and caps as on 30 September 2026 continue.
Not shown on this page
  • The item-wise import policy (Free, Restricted or Prohibited) of ITC(HS) Schedule 1. Check it before you place an order.
  • Exemption notifications, anti-dumping and safeguard duties, and preferential rates under trade agreements. The duty shown is the tariff rate.
  • The GST exemption notification. Goods exempt under it pay no GST even if the heading is named in a rate entry.

Official documents behind this page

  1. Notification No. 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), 17 September 2025GST rate Schedules I to VI, in force from 22 September 2025, as amended by Notification No. 19/2025-Central Tax (Rate) of 31 December 2025 (Schedule VII omitted from 1 February 2026) and No. 01/2026 of 30 April 2026.
  2. Customs Tariff, First ScheduleCBIC Customs Tariff as on 30 June 2024, with the First Schedule amendments of the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024, the Finance Act, 2025 and the Finance Act, 2026 applied.
  3. ITC(HS) 2022, Schedule 2, Export PolicyDGFT: the export policy and policy condition of each tariff item.
  4. Appendix 4R and Appendix 4RE, RoDTEP ScheduleDGFT, with effect from 10 October 2024 (Notification No. 32/2024-25); the 2026 changes are in Notifications 60, 66 and 74 of 2025-26 and 41 of 2026-27.

Disclaimer: This guide is general information based on the law and notifications in force when it was last updated. It is not professional advice for your case — rates, thresholds and due dates change, so check the current position or speak to our CA team before you act on it.

People also ask

Questions, answered

Short, direct answers to the 5 questions readers ask most on this topic.

Notification No. 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), in force from 22 September 2025, names heading 3215 at 5% / 18%. The rate depends on the description in the entry, so match your goods to the entry before invoicing. Goods of the heading not covered by a specific entry take the residual 18% entry unless exempt.

The basic customs duty in the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act is 10%. Social welfare surcharge at 10% of the basic duty and IGST at the GST rate are added on import. An exemption notification or a trade agreement can reduce the duty actually payable.

Under ITC(HS) 2022, Schedule 2, the tariff items of heading 3215 are marked: 15 Free. Free items need no export authorisation. Restricted items need an authorisation from DGFT, and prohibited items cannot be exported.

Appendix 4R lists 15 tariff items of heading 3215 at 0.7% of FOB value. The RoDTEP scheme continues up to 31 December 2026 under DGFT Notification No. 41/2026-27.

Heading 3215 has 15 eight-digit tariff items in the Customs Tariff, from 3215 11 10 to 3215 90 90. GST returns and shipping documents use these eight-digit codes.