To improve trade facilitation for importers and exporters, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has released a circular announcing the launch of the Exchange Rate Automation Module (ERAM) with effect from July 4.
According to the circular, “the automated system of determining and publishing the exchange rate shall replace the existing manual process, and shall come into effect on July 4, 2024.”
ERAM, according to the Finance Ministry, is a major step toward trade facilitation because it will now publish the exchange rates of 22 currencies online ahead of time for convenience of use by all importers and exporters.
Twice a month, on the evenings of the first and third Thursdays, these exchange rates would be posted on the ICEGATE website. They would take effect at midnight of the following day. Circular 07/2024-Customs provides a detailed explanation of the procedural modality, according to the Finance Ministry.
The current method of informing users of exchange rates via a notification will be replaced by this automated approach. The CBIC website will have a link that directs users to the ICEGATE website, where the rates that have been published are available for viewing.
In order to allow users to view the rates from a prior day, the published exchange rates will be kept in the system and made available on ICEGATE for future use.
