Customs duty on all drugs and food imported for personal use for treatment of all rare diseases will be cut to zero with effect from April 1, 2023 from the current around 10 per cent, the Union finance ministry said on Thursday.
“The Central government has given full exemption from basic customs duty on all drugs and food for special medical purposes imported for personal use for treatment of all rare diseases listed under the National Policy for Rare Diseases 2021,” the ministry said.
A notification has been issued in this regard by the Department of Revenue dated March 29, 2023.
At present, drugs required for the treatment of rare diseases attract a customs duty of 10 per cent. Some categories of life-saving drugs/vaccines attract a concessional rate of 5 per cent or Nil.
It is estimated that for a child weighing 10 kg, the annual cost of treatment for some rare diseases, may vary from Rs 10 lakh to more than Rs 1 crore per year with treatment being lifelong and drug dose and cost, increasing with age and weight.
“This exemption will result in substantial cost savings and provide much needed relief to the patients,” the finance ministry said.
The government has also fully exempted Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) used in treatment of various cancers from basic customs duty.
In order to avail these exemptions, the individual importers would be required to produce a certificate from the central or state director health services or district medical officer/civil surgeon of the respective districts.