The DGFT is building a faceless trade system. Here's what it means for you
By Shweta Sonali — 2026-09-15
Last week a friend who exports cotton asked me how long his trade licence approval usually takes. I gave him an estimate. He told me the actual timeline depended on which regional DGFT officer had his file that day.
That's the broken thing the government is finally trying to fix.
The commerce ministry just announced they're setting up a Central Processing Department inside the DGFT. Fifty-three officers have been moved into this new unit, including five Joint DGFTs, ten Deputy DGFTs, and seven Assistant DGFTs. It launches late October 2026. The whole operation sits at the Central Licensing Area in Delhi.
Here's what it actually does.
Right now, your export licence application travels to whichever regional DGFT office covers your area. That officer reviews it. Approval times vary wildly. The new system centralises everything. One processing unit handles all trade applications—exporters, importers, sourcing teams managing regulatory approvals. No jurisdiction fragmentation. Paperless. Faceless.
Faceless doesn't mean cold. It means no one officer decides your fate based on personal discretion or how well they know you. The application goes in. The system processes it to a standard. You get approval or you don't, uniformly.
The stated goals are transparent enough: reduce processing times, improve transparency, support ease of doing business. For textile and apparel people specifically, this matters because you deal with constant regulatory approvals. Advance Authorisations. EPCG schemes. Exemption certificates. Right now each regional centre handles these differently.
Fifty-three is a lot of officers to move at once. This isn't a trial. The government is rolling the whole thing out.
Will it actually work? I don't know. Government systems often launch cleanly and then become messy. But the intent is solid. If you're used to calling your regional DGFT contact and waiting, this changes the game.