How to import spices from India: a checklist for buyers

Published 4 October 2026 · BluVira Exports, Kotagiri

India grows and exports more kinds of spice than almost any other country. Buying direct from an exporter at origin can lower costs and give you more control over quality, but a first order goes best when both sides agree the details upfront. This checklist covers what to settle before you place an order.

1. Write down your specification

• Product and form: whole, cut, cracked or ground.
• Grade: for example pepper by density (500, 550 or 570 g/l) or cardamom by size (6–7 mm, 7–8 mm, 8 mm bold).
• Quality limits: moisture, foreign matter, and for some spices volatile oil or curcumin content.
• Your market’s rules: limits for pesticide residues, aflatoxins and microbiology differ between the EU, the US, the Gulf and other markets.

2. Ask for samples

Request samples from the current crop, test them yourself or at a lab, and approve one as the reference for your order. Good exporters send free samples and ask you only to cover the courier.

3. Check the exporter’s registrations

• IEC (Import Export Code) from India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade, required for any export.
• Spices Board CRES (Certificate of Registration as Exporter of Spices), required to export spices from India.
• FSSAI licence, India’s food safety licence.

Ask for copies, and check the names and numbers match the invoice. (Our own Spices Board registration is CRES/SBCB/29758/2026-2027; all our registrations are listed on our home page.)

4. Agree testing

For some spices and destinations, Indian rules require testing before shipment, and many buyers add their own pre-shipment analysis. Agree which tests are needed, which lab will run them, and who pays.

5. Agree price terms and payment

• Incoterms: FOB (you arrange the sea freight), CFR (exporter pays freight) or CIF (exporter pays freight and insurance).
• Payment: advance T/T is common for first orders, or part advance with the balance against documents. A letter of credit at sight suits larger or repeat orders.

6. Know the documents you will receive

• Commercial invoice and packing list
• Bill of lading (sea) or air waybill (air)
• Certificate of origin
• Phytosanitary certificate, where your country requires one
• Lab analysis reports, as agreed

Check with your customs broker which of these your country needs before the goods ship.

7. Plan the shipment

Spices usually travel by sea in full or shared containers. From South India, the main ports are Kochi, Thoothukudi (Tuticorin, V.O. Chidambaranar Port) and Chennai. Packing in lined bags or cartons protects against moisture in transit.

Start with a trial order

A trial order of a few hundred kilos lets you check quality, packing and paperwork before committing to larger volumes. See our spice range or download the spice specification sheet (PDF).