RELIEF Export Cover Now Runs to 31 March 2027: What Is Still Open for Exporters

The government has extended one part of the RELIEF scheme for exporters. DGFT Notification No. 37/2026-27, dated 30 September 2026, moves the end date of Component II to 31 March 2027. The New Indian Express reported the extension on 26 October 2026, and other outlets covered the notification in early October.

This is an explainer on what is still open and what is not. It is written from the notification text and press coverage, it is not an official government communication, and it does not replace the notification or ECGC's own guidance.

What RELIEF is

RELIEF stands for Resilience and Logistics Intervention for Export Facilitation. It sits under the Export Promotion Mission and is administered by ECGC Ltd, according to Insurance Business Asia, which says it was approved on 19 March 2026. DGFT's stated purpose for the latest extension is to enhance utilisation and facilitate trade resilience, and to help exporters manage logistics challenges linked to the West Asia Crisis.

The scheme has three components:

• Component I: up to 100% risk cover above standard ECGC terms, for shipments dispatched from 14 February to 15 March 2026. That window is in the past.
• Component II: enhanced credit-risk cover on upcoming shipments. This is the part that was extended.
• Component III: reimbursement of additional freight and insurance costs for MSME exporters who had no ECGC insurance during the disruption period. This was not extended.

What the extension changes

The notification amends the eligibility and validity period under Component II. Shipments meant for delivery or transshipment under the intervention are now eligible up to 31 March 2027. DGFT says all other provisions of Notification No. 65/2025-26 remain unchanged.

SetIndiaBiz makes the same point: the extension changes only the eligibility timeline.

What Component II gives an exporter

Press coverage describes it this way:

• The New Indian Express says it provides 95% risk coverage through ECGC for upcoming shipments to specified regions.
• Insurance Business Asia says it is up to 95% credit-risk cover on qualifying new shipments, compared with ECGC's standard 80-90%. It adds that the government covers the extra premium and reimburses ECGC directly for claims above its normal policy limits.
• SetIndiaBiz says cover is up to 95% of eligible loss, subject to policy terms, verification and exclusions, and describes it as enhanced ECGC credit insurance against war-related and associated political risks.

Read "up to 95%" as a ceiling, not a promise on every shipment. Policy terms and verification still apply.

Which countries are covered

The notification's own text names no countries, no cover percentage and no exclusions. Insurance Business Asia lists ten destinations for delivery or transshipment: the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Israel, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Iraq, Iran and Yemen. Other coverage of the extension may list countries differently, so check the notification and ECGC for the current list before you rely on any one article.

What is not covered

• Energy shipments are not covered under Component II, according to an ECGC public notice addendum on claim submission.
• Air shipments are not covered under Component III, according to the same notice. That matters only if Component III applies to you, and it is not part of this extension.

The sources we reviewed do not say how a "qualifying new shipment" is defined. They also do not give premium rates, the application or claim process, or the full detail of eligibility criteria. None of that has been confirmed here, so we are not going to guess.

Component III is the gap

The New Indian Express reports that Component III is not part of this extension. For a business with no credit insurance, that is the difference that matters. Insurance Business Asia describes Component III as reimbursing up to 50% of eligible additional freight and insurance costs, capped at ₹50 lakh per exporter, for MSME exporters without ECGC insurance during the disruption period. It also notes that the article does not state the deadline for Component III claims.

MSME exporters are asking for more. The India SME Forum, quoted by the New Indian Express, says thousands of micro and small enterprises operating without credit insurance are left to absorb freight hikes and war-risk surcharges on their own. Exporters have asked for temporary fiscal relief, including some form of freight subsidy beyond ports, and say large corporates have more bargaining power on rates than MSMEs.

The same report says some states, including Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, provide freight subsidies, and exporters want similar support nationally. They have also called for a 24-month rolling RELIEF scheme under the Foreign Trade Policy, arguing that production and shipping cycles of six to nine months make long-term contracts risky when logistics costs swing. They warn that the March 2027 deadline could leave delayed shipments exposed to sharp increases in freight premiums.

These are requests from exporters. The government has not announced any of them.

What this means for you

• Shipping to the covered region? Component II is open for eligible shipments up to 31 March 2027. Ask ECGC whether your destination and your policy qualify.
• Have delayed shipments? The exporters' concern about the March 2027 deadline is worth noting. If a shipment could slip past the end date, check with ECGC and your policy terms before committing to it.
• Shipping energy goods? Component II does not cover them, per the ECGC notice.
• An MSME with no ECGC insurance? Component II is credit insurance, and Component III is not part of this extension. Do not budget on an assumption that freight costs will be reimbursed.
• Looking for the rules? Read Notification No. 37/2026-27 and Notification No. 65/2025-26 together, and confirm current details with ECGC. How to apply and what to submit have not been covered in the sources we reviewed.

Sources: DGFT Notification No. 37/2026-27 (text reproduced by TaxGuru); ECGC public notice addendum on claim submission under RELIEF; Insurance Business Asia; SetIndiaBiz; The New Indian Express.

Cover photo: Kingsley Jebaraj on Unsplash