AD code and ICEGATE: what customs needs before your first shipping bill

This guide is for new goods exporters who have an IEC and GST registration and now need to be set up with customs. It covers the digital signature, ICEGATE registration, AD code registration and the bank account for drawback and IGST refunds, in the order you should do them.

What customs needs before your first shipping bill

• An active IEC, updated for the current year, with every GSTIN you export from added to it.
• Your bank's authorised dealer (AD) code registered against your IEC at customs.
• A bank account registered and validated for duty drawback and IGST refunds, if you will claim them.
• A licensed customs broker authorised to act for you, or your own ICEGATE registration if you file yourself.

Without a registered AD code, a shipping bill cannot be filed. Without a validated bank account, refunds that customs has already approved will not reach you.

Step 1: get a Class 3 digital signature

ICEGATE uses a Class 3 digital signature certificate (DSC) to sign registrations and documents uploaded through e-Sanchit, its paperless document system. Buy one from a licensed certifying authority in the name of the proprietor, partner or director who will sign for the business. The same DSC can be used on the DGFT portal and, where a company or LLP has to sign with a DSC, on the GST portal. Note the expiry date: an expired DSC blocks uploads at the worst moment.

Step 2: register on ICEGATE

1. Before you start, make sure the mobile number and email on your DGFT (IEC) and GST records are the same. ICEGATE sends its OTPs to them.
2. On icegate.gov.in, choose new registration and the user type for an IEC holder.
3. Enter your IEC and GSTIN. ICEGATE checks them live against the DGFT and GST databases.
4. Verify by OTP and note the reference ID.
5. Complete the organisation details, add the authorised user and link your DSC.
6. Upload the documents asked for, sign and submit.

Once approved, you can upload documents on e-Sanchit, register your AD code and bank account, track shipping bills and see IGST refund and drawback status. Even if your customs broker files everything, your own login lets you check what has been filed in your name.

Step 3: register your AD code

The AD code identifies the bank branch that will handle your export proceeds. Your shipping bills are reported to that bank in the RBI's Export Data Processing and Monitoring System (EDPMS), and it is the bank that closes them when payment arrives. Ask your bank for an AD code letter for your account.

1. Log in to ICEGATE and open the AD code registration option.
2. Upload, through e-Sanchit and signed with your DSC, a letter from the bank giving your name, IEC, PAN, account number, account holder name, AD code and IFSC, with the branch's contact details, and a cancelled cheque or a recent bank-endorsed statement.
3. Submit. Under CBIC Instruction 25/2023-Customs, requests filed before 2 pm are to be approved the same day and others by the next working day.

Since June 2022, an AD code registered at one customs location applies at all locations, so you no longer register it port by port.

Step 4: register your bank account for refunds

Duty drawback and IGST refunds are paid into a bank account registered on ICEGATE, often the same account as the AD code. Before money is paid, the account is checked through the Public Financial Management System (PFMS). Under CBIC Circular 24/2025-Customs (October 2025), once an account and IFSC are approved for your IEC at one location, requests to register the same account at other locations are approved automatically and then go for PFMS validation.

PFMS rejections usually come from a difference between the account holder name and the name on your IEC, a wrong IFSC, a closed or dormant account, or a bank merger that changed IFSC codes. Check the validation status on ICEGATE after registering, not when your first refund is due.

Working with your customs broker

Most exporters let a licensed customs broker file shipping bills on ICEGATE. You will give the broker KYC documents and an authorisation. You remain responsible for the declarations made in your name, so check the HS code, value, invoice number, GSTIN and incentive claims in the checklist before the broker files.

Common mistakes

• Leaving AD code registration until the goods reach the port.
• Registering a personal or a different entity's account, which PFMS rejects.
• Changing banks without registering the new AD code and refund account. Speak to both banks about shipping bills still open in EDPMS with the old bank.
• Different contact details on DGFT and GST, so ICEGATE OTPs never arrive.
• Letting the DSC lapse.

Related on Exportsmitra

• IEC: getting, updating and keeping your Importer Exporter Code active
• GST for exporters: LUT, zero-rating and refunds
• Export customs clearance: from shipping bill to let export order
• Export proceeds: realisation deadlines, EDPMS and extensions

Sources

• CBIC: ICEGATE customs portal
• CBIC Instruction 25/2023-Customs on online AD code and bank account registration (circulated by TEXPROCIL)
• CBIC Circular 24/2025-Customs on auto-approval of incentive bank accounts (circulated by EEPC India)
• Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs

Last checked 1 October 2026. Rules change: confirm with your customs broker and your bank before you act.