What is eBRC, and how can I obtain it?

An eBRC or an Electronic Bank Realisation Certificate is a critically important document required by exporters to complete the cycle of export of goods or services in the records of the government. An exporter may obtain this digital certificate from his bank, hence obtaining certification to the effect that he has received the funds against his exported goods or services as per the declared value. This enables the bank to square off the entry pertaining to the goods or services exported made in the Export Data Processing and Monitoring System (EDPMS). The comprehensive and accurate summation of such squaring off as per records received from all exporters and importers in India, be it in the digital or physical form, is vital in maintaining the accurate figure for the Balance of Trade of the country.

An eBRC (Electronic Bank Realisation Certificate?), being evidence of export and payment having been received against it, is one of the most important documents required to claim benefits offered by the Government of India through its Foreign Trade Policy. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) formulates India’s Foreign Trade Policy, which offers exporters several incentives such as:

• Duty drawback
• Export subsidies
• Service Exports from India Scheme (SEIS)
• Low-cost loans
• Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS)
• Tax exemption on profits from exportsg. Direct payments.

An eBRC (Electronic Bank Realisation Certificate?) contains the following details:

• Exporter details – name and address
• IEC Code of Exporter
• Shipping bill details – date of bill and bill number
• Name of the importer, the overseas party who has purchased the exported goods and services
• The amount as per the invoice
• The date of export
• The date when the payment against the exported goods and services was realised.

An exporter may access his eBRC online by visiting the DGFT site and entering compulsory details such as their IEC and IFSC of the realising bank and additional details such as the date range of issue of the BRC and shipping bill details.

• Also Read: How to Become an Exporter in India?

The eBRC facility was introduced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in 2011 to verify foreign exchange transactions carried out by exporters. The DGFT introduced their eBRC platform in 2012, thereby eliminating the requirement for an exporter to visit his bank to acquire a physical BRC, which he would then physically submit at a regional office of DGFT. The information in the physical BRC would then be manually entered making applying for export incentives both inconvenient as well as time-consuming.

The introduction of the eBRC facility has speeded up the process of verification of transactions in foreign exchange and has at the same time increased the efficiency of the process. The Foreign Exchange Department (FED) of the RBI generates an eBRC basis the information they receive from banks which are Authorised Dealers (ADs) in foreign currency.

The DGFT receives details of shipping bills in an electronic form from Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) ports now operational through the Indian Customs EDI System (ICES) at 19 major customs stations. It receives details of the realisation of export proceeds as they are now integrated with banks and thus is in a position to identify the remittances against individual shipping bills. This helps DGFT to determine and validate the amount as incentives to be received by an exporter as they have the FOB (Freight on Board) value of the shipment as well as the payment received as realisation proceeds against the same shipment. This has made the process of applying for incentives for exporters efficient and less time-consuming.

Following is the process to generate an eBRC:

1. The bank receiving the funds as realisation proceeds of an export transaction creates the eBRC.
2. The bank then generates an XML file digitally with the information from the eBRC.
3. The bank signs the XML file digitally using a digital signer which they have already received from DGFT or have built themselves.
4. This digitally signed XML file is sent to the DGFT server by the bank by logging in to the eBRC application on the DGFT website and then selecting the option to upload the eBRC.
5. Once the file is submitted, the DGFT server checks and validates the user details and the information submitted. Once successfully uploaded, it notifies the bank of the same.
6. The exporter has the option to check the status of the eBRC in real time on the DGFT portal.

An exporter needs to follow the following steps to access their eBRC:

1. An exporter needs to visit the official DGFT site: https://www.dgft.gov.in/CP/ and select the eBRC option from the drop-down menu on the Services tab. The next step is to click on the section – View and Print eBRC.
2. The exporter will be directed to a page for eBRC Details for Trade where the IEC and IFSC of the bank have to be entered as mandatory fields. A captcha needs to be entered and the exporter needs to click on the Show Details button.
3. The screen exhibits details of all the eBRCs uploaded by the bank.
4. The exporter may print the eBRC from this page.

An exporter may claim export incentives by following these steps:

1. Link the relevant electronic shipping bills created using the Indian Customs Electronic Data Interchange Platform (ICEGATE) with the eBRC.
2. While calculating the value of incentives, the DGFT will take the lesser value of the FOB as per the shipping bill or the realisation proceeds as per the eBRC. An exporter needs to submit the data for the expenses on commission, insurance and freight separately, as the eBRC contains FOB data only.
3. In case an eBRC has an error after successfully uploading to the DGFT site, it cannot be changed or edited. The following steps need to be employed next:
4. The exporter needs to contact the bank.
5. The bank will check the status of the eBRC, and if it is found not to be used or utilised, it will cancel the eBRC by uploading the status as “C” or cancel it on the DGFT system.
6. Once DGFT authorises and updates the status as cancelled, the bank will issue a new eBRC with a new certificate number.
7. The bank will upload this new eBRC with an “F” or Fresh status.
8. DGFT will authorise this fresh eBRC, and the exporter may view and utilise it.

The advantage of using eBRC is not only restricted to the convenience it affords an exporter in claiming their incentives from export. They also serve as an accurate record for various regulatory authorities. As of date, the RBI has made it mandatory for all exporters in India to acquire and submit eBRC.