At least 50 applications have been pending with the Chinese Commerce Ministry
China is continuing its trickle of rare earth export licences for Indian companies, more than eight months after imposing strict export restrictions, but majority of applicants are still left out in the cold.
According to official sources, a handful of entities — including dealers for M&M and Maruti Suzuki, Honda scooter suppliers, and Bosch — were recently granted approvals.
These follow earlier licences for rare earth magnets (REMs) issued in October to Jay Ushin Ltd, De Diamond Electric India, and the Indian subsidiaries of Continental AG and Hitachi Astemo.
India is largely dependent on China for its REMs which are used mostly by the automobile industry, especially EV manufacturers, the electronics and semiconductor industry as well as producers of sophisticated defence equipment.
“China has not been very prolific in clearing licence applications for rare earth magnet imports for Indian companies. After temporarily stopping issuance of licences in April this year, it resumed in October-end by clearing around 4-5 cases. Since then the pace has not picked up. New licences continue to be issued albeit sluggishly,” an official tracking the matter told businessline.
Awaiting clearance
At least 50 applications have been pending with the Chinese Commerce Ministry, which were piled up with applications from other countries awaiting clearance.
“Indian Embassy officials have been told by Chinese officials that the delay is due to the pile up and clearances will happen on a case-to-case basis,” the source said.
The April restrictions made exports of rare earth contingent upon issuance of export licences. For this, exporters have to secure an end-user certificate from the importer establishing that the imported materials will not be used for weapons of mass destruction or their delivery systems.
The Indian industry has been complaining that even after Indian importers met all the conditions and gave the end-user certificates, export licences were being delayed.
However, with improvement in diplomatic relations between the two countries over the past few months, things may be improving, the source added.
Published on December 24, 2025