What Is A Packaging License?

An application made under Rule 27 of the Legal Metrology Packaged Commodities Rules, 2011 to the Director or the Controller for all pre-packed commodities which are meant for end customers. Under the above-mentioned rule, every packer / manufacturer / importer of the pre-packed commodity rules does require Packer Registration.

Who requires Packer Registration?

Under Rule 6 of PCR, 2011 it is the responsibility of every packer to make mandatory declarations prescribed under the PCR. Normally when you import the pre-packed commodity, you must ensure that the packaging of the imported commodity must be in compliance with the PCR, 2011 under the Legal Metrology Act, 2009.

How can I get License for Packing in India? Procedure of Obtaining Packer Certificate

The power of granting packer registration is vested with the state government as well as the central government. Packaging License / Registration is granted by the Department of Legal Metrology. You have the option to either obtain the same from the State Government or from the Central Government. If you opt for the State Government’s Packaging Registration then many of the States has the online procedure and some of the States has offline procedure for applying the Packaging Registration wherein it is pertinent to note that the grant procedure does involve the offline activities like inspection of your packaging premises and collection of your packaging labels and designs by the Legal Metrology Inspector.

Difference between the State and Central Packaging Registration

Since the Legal Metrology Law is a consumer law which comes under the concurrent list of the Constitution of India, both the Governments – State & Central has the powers to deal with the Legal Metrology matters. In India, the Legal Metrology Act, 2009 is centrally legislated Act wherein the powers of granting Legal Metrology Certificate / Registrations / Licenses are vested in both State and the Central Government but the power of granting model approvals and the importer registration of the weight and measurement items is exclusively held with the Central Government. In the case of multi-state packaging activity, central registration shall be mandatory.

What is the validity of the Legal Metrology Packaging Certificate?

The validity period of the various Licenses / Registration under Legal Metrology varies. Since every state in India has its own set of Legal Metrology Enforcement Rules under which every state has elected its own rules regarding the validity period of the License, the renewal process of the License etc. The packaging grant by the Central Government has lifetime validity, it will be a one-time process for you until and unless you get the requirement of any amendment in the Certificate.

What are the compliances which need to be done after packer registration?

Under the Legal Metrology prepacked Commodity Rules (LMPCR), 2011 every packer of the pre-packed commodity must comply with the provision of Rule 6 read with other rules of the LMPCR. You must always ensure that the packaging of your products carries the required information as per the LMPCR. Apart from the required information there are certain rules regarding the font size and the numeral size of the information along with the provisions of mentioning of the size of product in the standard unit as prescribed under the Legal Metrology Law. Further the e-commerce websites must also be updated as per the requirements of LMPCR.

What documents are required for packaging registration?

For obtaining valid packaging certificate you will be requiring to support your application along with the required documents which are listed below: –

Copy of the tax registration of the business.
Copy of the local municipal license.
PAN of the Firm.
PAN and AADHAR of the promoters.
Business Address proof.
List of names of Products to be covered under the License.
Samples of the Package of your products.
Inspection may be there by concerned Authorities.

Please note the above list is indicative, each state may have its own specific requirement. In case of difficulty in arranging any documents or any confusion in drafting of application you may contact our legal experts and may avail yourself of professional help as we have one of the best Legal Metrology Consultants on our board.

Information’s to be declared on the label of the packet of the product

Information to be declared on every pre-packed commodity varies from product to product as there are many factors which affect the nature of information to be disclosed. However, for the brief understanding of our readers we are presenting the indicative list of the items to be declared on the packet of each product:

Name & Address of the Manufacturer
Month & Year of the Manufacturer
Generic name of product
Customer Care E-mail Id
Customer Care Address
Customer Care Phone No.
Quantity of the Goods
Maximum Retail Price of the Goods
Size of the Product

Our Legals are advised to take necessary precaution while drafting the information label of the product under the Legal Metrology, as it needs to be done keeping in mind all the provisions of the Law. If in case you are ensure about the labelling information for our product you may avail yourself of the professional label consultation from our ELT experts.

Applicability of Legal Metrology on e-commerce entities

It is the much-debated issue about the Applicability of Legal Metrology on e-commerce entities. Before we go ahead to understand this issue, it is important to know that e-commerce business can be of two kinds- one could be the marketplace-based model of e-commerce wherein the sellers are invited to sell their products on the e-commerce platform, the best example of this can be Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal etc. Another kind of e-commerce website can be where you sell your own products only. Under this kind of e-commerce website, the requirement of packaging license shall be required if you are selling the products under your own brand. Further, the requirements of the Legal Metrology can be chalked out with the as per your case specific requirement by our Legal Experts. Connect Now with our Experts.

Which items are exempted from the provisions of the Pre-Packaged Commodity Rules?

Generally, any product you buy from the market is always a pre-packed commodity, as soon as your product falls under the category of being pre-packed then automatically the packaging rules can apply upon your business. However, on the following items the provision of packaging rules doesn’t apply:

Packages of Commodities containing quantity of more than 25 kilogram or 25 liters.
Cement, Fertilizers and Agricultural Farm produce sold in bags above 50 kilograms.
Packaged Commodities are meant for industrial consumers or institutional consumers.

“Institutional Consumer” means the institution which buys packaged commodities bearing a declaration ‘not for retail sale’, directly from the manufacturer or from the importer or from the wholesale dealer for use by that institution and not for commercial and trade purposes.

Click Here to see a sample copy of the Packer Registration Certificate

Who must register under Legal Metrology Law?

The Legal Metrology Law applies to two types of businesses: –

Industry of Weighing and Measuring Goods: Any producer, dealer, importer, or repairer of any form of weighing and measuring goods is required to register under the terms of the Legal Metrology Act, 2009. Furthermore, it is illegal to manufacture, import, or use any weighing or measuring devices without first obtaining valid model approval under the Legal Metrology Law.

Any industry selling goods in pre-packaged form: Any industry selling goods in pre-packaged form, such as FMCG, cosmetics, food, industrial goods, clothing, etc , must register under the Legal Metrology Pre-Packed Commodities Rules, 2011. (In short known as LMPCR, 2011).

What additional services can be obtained from us after obtaining a Packaging Certificate? What additional services can be obtained from us after obtaining a Packaging Certificate?

We offer a specialized service to our clients upon whom the Legal Metrological Laws do apply. You can avail following services:

Packaging & Labelling Consultations
Legal Metrology Compliance Audit
Director nomination for your company E-commerce compliances for legal metrology perspectives Other Certifications & Compliances – BIS Certifications, EPR plastic waste certifications, EPR e-waste certifications, Pollution Board Certifications, Wireless WPC ETA certifications, Telephone Equipment Certifications (TEC), Medical Device Registrations, Drugs & Cosmetic Licenses, Electronic Vehicle (EV) iCAT Certifications, Central Insecticide Board (CIB) registrations, Plant & Quarantine Registrations
Import & Export Regulatory Requirement Consultancy, Custom Appeals & Litigations, DGFT Consultancy
Intellectual Property – Trademarks, Designs, Patents, Copyrights.

Connect Me Now for Above Services.