Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is a national standards body for the harmonious development of the activities of standardisation, conformity assessment and quality assurance of goods, articles, processes, systems and services.
Foreign Manufacturers Certification Scheme is one such arrangement that the Bureau of Indian Standards has been running since 2000 to grant a licence to the manufacturer located outside India.
What is FMCS?
FMCS is a scheme under which the Bureau of Indian Standards grants a license to a foreign manufacturer for the use of the BIS “Standard mark” on a product which shall conform to the relevant Indian Standard(s). The license is granted by Foreign Manufacturers Certification Department (FMCD) at BIS headquarters in New Delhi. The detailed procedure for grant of licence is mentioned on BIS website under Foreign Manufacturer Section.
The Foreign Manufacturers Certification Scheme is applicable to all products, with Electronics and IT Goods notified as exceptions under the Registration Scheme of BIS.
Who is it for?
Manufacturers with factories located outside India can apply for BIS standard mark to FMCS. However, to be eligible for this certification, they should: –
Have all manufacturing facilities/machinery at their factory location
Possess all equipment/arrangements at their factory for assessment of products as per appropriate ISS (Indian Standard Specifications)
Competent testing personnel in their labs for the testing of products as per relevant ISS
Acceptance to the Terms and Conditions of the license
Ensure compliance of their products to applicable ISS
Application process
For grant of licence, the manufacturer has to submit a complete application against relevant Indian Standard to FMCS. The checklist of the application form is to be attached with the application form.
Few important steps for application for grating license are mentioned below.
Deposition of requisite fee for application (in equivalent USD)
Nomination of an Authorized Indian Representative (AIR) as mentioned in the nomination form
Fill up the application form in the prescribed format as available on BIS website.
All required documents as indicated in the checklist.
Grant of Licence
The licence is initially granted for at least one year and up to two years. The licence is granted to the manufacturer to mark their product with a standard mark in their premises only.
Operation of License
The manufacturers who have been granted a BIS license are required to follow the Terms and Conditions associated with BIS certification.
Renewal of License
Licenses under FMCS are initially granted for a minimum of one year or a maximum of two years; hence a renewal of the license will be required after the said period. The renewal of license is considered for a period of one to five years based on whether the advance minimum marking fee and the annual license fee have been paid and operation of license is satisfactory.
In case the application for renewal is submitted after the due date of validity, the licensee will have to pay a late fee as applicable.
For renewal of license, licensee has to submit renewal application along with the month-wise production details including consignee addresses authenticated by chartered accountant.
