Ask ten people in the international scrap trade what India requires for import compliance and you’ll get six different answers. Half will say PSIC. A few will say BIS. Some will say both. At least one will say neither.
The confusion is understandable. India tightened steel import regulations significantly from 2023 onwards, and BIS certification requirements under the Steel and Steel Products Quality Control Order keep getting conflated with PSIC requirements – even by freight forwarders who should know better.
Here’s the clear answer. They are two completely separate requirements, covering different types of material, issued by different authorities, for completely different reasons.
The Short Answer First
If you’re exporting melting scrap – HMS 1, HMS 2, shredded scrap, cast iron, turning scrap – to India, you need a PSIC, or you qualify for the PSIC exemption. You don’t need BIS certification.
If you’re exporting finished or semi-finished steel products – billets, bars, plates, coils, re-rollable seconds – you need BIS certification under the Quality Control Order. PSIC does not apply to these.
The confusion happens because both requirements cover materials under Chapter 72 of the ITC-HS code. But PSIC covers waste and scrap specifically under HSN 7204. BIS certification covers manufactured steel products – not waste and scrap going into a melting furnace. One document, one material type. Every time.
What PSIC Covers
PSIC is a safety and contamination check for metallic waste and scrap. It confirms the consignment is free from radioactive materials, explosives, and arms. Every form of metallic scrap – shredded, unshredded, compressed, baled, or loose – requires PSIC before import into India unless the exporter qualifies for the six-country exemption covered in the India scrap import PSIC exemption guide.
The certificate is issued by a DGFT-approved pre-shipment inspection agency in the country of origin – not by BIS, not by any Indian government body. It’s an origin-country document. Exporters from the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the EU can replace it with a self-declaration radiation-free certificate. Everyone else needs a full PSIC from an approved agency, regardless of which Indian port the vessel is heading to.
What BIS Certification Covers
BIS – Bureau of Indian Standards – certification is a product quality standard under the Steel and Steel Products Quality Control Order 2024. It applies to manufactured steel products used in construction, fabrication, or further processing in India.
Under the QCO notified by India’s Ministry of Steel, 151 specified steel product categories under Chapters 72 and 73 require mandatory BIS certification and carry the ISI mark. This covers TMT bars, structural steel sections, plates, coils, wire rods, and re-rollable billets. What it explicitly does not include is ferrous waste and scrap classified under HSN 7204 destined for melting. Scrap going into an induction furnace is raw feedstock – not a manufactured product being sold for structural use. The QCO framework simply wasn’t designed for it.
The Re-Rollable Scrap Grey Area
This is where it genuinely gets complicated – and where most of the confusion originates.
Re-rollable scrap – steel that’s technically scrap but structurally intact enough to be reprocessed through a rolling mill rather than melted – sits in a grey zone. Indian customs may classify it as melting scrap (PSIC required, BIS not required) or as a semi-finished steel product (BIS required, PSIC not applicable) depending on condition, form, and declared end use.
If your material is ship plates, structural sections, or rail sections in sound condition intended for re-rolling, expect BIS requirements to apply. If it’s genuinely degraded, contaminated, or mixed material for melting, PSIC applies. Clean, cut, sorted HMS 1 going to an induction furnace falls squarely in the PSIC category – BIS doesn’t enter the picture.
The safest move: confirm with your Indian buyer how they plan to declare the material at customs before the vessel sails. Their declaration determines which regulatory track it follows. Mismatched documentation between your invoice description and the buyer’s customs declaration is one of the most common causes of port holds on borderline consignments.
The IS 2549:2023 Question
Some exporters have been told their scrap needs to comply with IS 2549:2023 – India’s updated Indian Standard for processed ferrous scrap classification. This adds another layer of confusion worth clearing up.
IS 2549:2023 defines processed scrap grades – Shredded Scrap, HMS 1, HMS 2, Turning Scrap – in Indian terms. It’s increasingly referenced in Indian buyer purchase orders and LC terms for larger volume contracts with organised mills. But it’s not a mandatory import requirement in the same way BIS certification is for finished products. No customs authority at an Indian port will hold your consignment for failing IS 2549:2023 compliance.
What it does affect is the contractual relationship with your buyer – and whether your material passes grade inspection at the mill gate. Understanding how Indian grade definitions compare with ISRI codes matters before you pack a container, and the HMS 1 and HMS 2 specifications guide for Indian mills covers that in detail.
Non-Ferrous Scrap – A Separate Track
Non-ferrous scrap has its own compliance track, different from ferrous scrap in a few important ways.
From late 2025, BIS certification became mandatory for refined nickel, tin ingots, primary lead, and refined zinc imports under new Quality Control Orders from India’s Ministry of Mines. These are refined metals – not scrap grades – but the rule change affects some high-purity non-ferrous consignments. For standard non-ferrous scrap – copper under HSN 7404, aluminum under HSN 7602, brass under HSN 7402 – PSIC applies in the same way it does for ferrous scrap. BIS certification is not required for non-ferrous scrap going to a smelter.
Quick Reference – Which Requirement Applies
| Material Type | HSN Code | PSIC Required? | BIS Required? |
|---|---|---|---|
| HMS 1, HMS 2 (melting) | 7204 | Yes (or exemption) | No |
| Shredded scrap (melting) | 7204 | Yes (or exemption) | No |
| Cast iron scrap (melting) | 7204 | Yes (or exemption) | No |
| Turning and boring scrap | 7204 29 | Yes (or exemption) | No |
| Re-rollable scrap (borderline) | 7204 / 7207 | Depends on declaration | Possibly |
| Billets, blooms, slabs | 7207 | No | Yes |
| TMT bars, structural sections | 7213 / 7214 | No | Yes |
| Steel plates and coils | 7208 / 7209 | No | Yes |
| Copper scrap | 7404 | Yes (or exemption) | No |
| Aluminum scrap | 7602 | Yes (or exemption) | No |
Print this. Share it with your freight forwarder before they prepare any documentation.
What Your Freight Forwarder Should Be Telling You
A good freight forwarder handling Indian scrap imports confirms the correct HSN sub-heading before the commercial invoice is prepared, asks whether material is for melting or re-rolling before deciding which regulatory track applies, and confirms PSIC agency booking or exemption status before vessel departure.
If your forwarder is quoting BIS certification costs for standard HMS melting scrap heading to an Indian induction furnace, ask them to re-confirm. That’s the wrong requirement for that material type. It wastes money on a document Indian customs won’t ask for – while potentially missing the PSIC document they will.
The Cost Difference Is Significant
Getting clarity on which requirement actually applies saves real money upfront.
| Compliance Route | Cost | Timeframe |
|---|---|---|
| Full PSIC from approved agency | USD 300 – 800 per consignment | 3 – 7 days |
| Self-declaration (exempt countries) | Zero | Same day |
| BIS Foreign Manufacturer Certification | USD 5,000 – 15,000 + annual fees | 3 – 6 months |
| BIS NOC for specific consignment | USD 500 – 2,000 | 2 – 4 weeks |
An exporter from the UK paying for BIS certification on HMS melting scrap is spending USD 5,000 – 15,000 on a document Indian customs cannot process for that material category. That’s the real cost of getting the BIS vs PSIC question wrong.
The full landed cost picture – customs duties, IGST, surcharges, and compliance costs combined – is covered in the India scrap import duty and customs guide for 2026 so you can build an accurate cost model before committing to any shipment.
The Bottom Line
PSIC is a safety document for scrap going to a furnace. BIS is a quality standard for steel going into construction. They operate on parallel tracks that rarely intersect for genuine melting scrap.
Know which track your material is on before preparing a single document. And before confirming any deal with a new Indian buyer, run through the due diligence checklist for verifying Indian scrap buyers – the compliance question and the buyer trust question need to be answered together, not separately.
BIS Quality Control Order requirements and PSIC rules are subject to amendment. Always verify the current status of exemptions and applicable standards on the Bureau of Indian Standards portal and the DGFT portal before confirming any shipment.
