NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 7: The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has introduced an Open Application Programming Interface (API) facility for the issuance and verification of Certificates of Origin (CoO) through the Trade Connect e-Platform.
The facility will allow eligible exporters to apply for Certificates of Origin directly through their Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), accounting or other business software by integrating these systems with the DGFT’s CoO platform.
The DGFT said the new facility would eliminate repetitive data entry, reduce errors and expedite the application process. Earlier, exporters were required to enter CoO-related information separately on the DGFT platform even when the same data was already available in their business software.
The facility covers both Preferential and Non-Preferential Certificates of Origin. Preferential CoOs are issued under Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) and Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs), enabling exporters to claim applicable tariff concessions in importing countries. Non-Preferential CoOs are used for customs clearance, compliance, trade remedy and other trade purposes without tariff benefits.
Under the new system, exporters can obtain API credentials through the API Management section of the CoO Portal and register the IP addresses from which their systems will connect.
Three APIs have been made available: the Authentication Token API for secure login, the CoO File API for submission of applications and receipt of certificates, and the Certificate Verification API for verification of issued certificates.
A transaction ledger will be maintained for each application, providing details of its status, including Draft, In Process, Approved, Certificate Issued and Rejected. It will also capture the acknowledgement ID, file number, file date and certificate number, allowing exporters to track applications electronically.
The DGFT said the system incorporates multiple security safeguards. Requests and responses are digitally signed using SHA-256 RSA digital signatures with 2048-bit X.509 certificates, while passwords are protected using PBKDF2 hashing with a dynamic salt. Access is restricted to IP addresses whitelisted by exporters, and each access token remains valid for 60 minutes.
The framework covers major trade agreements and certification schemes, including India–Japan CEPA, India–Korea CEPA, SAFTA, SAPTA, ASEAN–India FTA, India–Singapore CECA, India–Malaysia CECA, India–Chile PTA, India–Mercosur PTA, India–UAE CEPA, India–Australia ECTA, India–Oman CEPA, India–EFTA TEPA, India–UK CETA, the Generalized System of Preferences and the Non-Preferential CoO Scheme.
The system automatically applies the relevant fields, origin criteria and validation rules based on the agreement or certification scheme selected by the exporter.
The registration, authentication and technical integration process is available on the Trade Connect e-Platform. Further details have been provided in Trade Notice No. 25/2026-27, issued by DGFT on September 7.
