The Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) is an export incentive scheme introduced by the Government of India, specifically for exporters of apparel, garments, and made-up textile products falling under Chapters 61, 62, and 63 of the ITC (HS) classification. The scheme's core purpose is to reimburse exporters for various embedded State and Central taxes and levies that are not refunded through other mechanisms like GST or Duty Drawback. Examples of these unrefunded taxes include VAT on fuel for transportation, electricity duty, and mandi tax.
The scheme was introduced on March 7, 2019, by the Ministry of Textiles. Its creation was driven by the need to replace the earlier Rebate of State Levies (RoSL) scheme, which only covered State taxes, and to provide a more comprehensive refund mechanism. Crucially, RoSCTL was also developed as a World Trade Organization (WTO)-compliant mechanism to replace the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) for the textile sector, which had faced challenges from countries like the US for violating WTO subsidy rules. The objective is to ensure the principle of "zero-rating" of exports, making Indian products more price-competitive in the global market.
The mechanism works by issuing the rebate in the form of transferable duty credit scrips (also called e-scrips) based on the Free on-board (FOB) value of the exports. These scrips are issued electronically via the Customs system and can be used by the exporter to pay Basic Customs Duty on the import of goods, or they can be sold to another importer. The scrips are freely transferable but must be transferred as a whole, not in part, and are valid for one year from their creation.
RoSCTL is closely connected to the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), which administers the scheme, and the Ministry of Textiles. It operates alongside the Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) scheme, which covers most other export sectors outside of apparel and made-ups. The scheme has been extended multiple times, with the latest extension granted by the Ministry of Textiles until September 30, 2026, without any change to the existing guidelines, rates, or coverage. The key change from its predecessor, RoSL, was the expansion of coverage to include both State and Central taxes and levies.