US grants zero-tariff exemption to India for select specialty medicines under Section 232 pharma tariffs

Key facts

• The US Department of Commerce named India among 20 jurisdictions eligible for exemption from the new Section 232 pharmaceutical tariffs, granting zero ad valorem tariff on specified specialty pharmaceutical products and their ingredients.
• The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published the notice in the Federal Register on September 23, 2026, with the exemption effective from 12:01 am US Eastern Daylight Time on September 29, 2026.
• Covered categories include orphan drugs, nuclear medicines, plasma-derived therapies, fertility treatments, cell and gene therapies, antibody-drug conjugates, certain medical countermeasures and animal-health products.
• The European Union, Japan, the UK, South Korea, Switzerland and Liechtenstein are among the other eligible jurisdictions.
• The US began imposing a 100 per cent tariff on covered patented pharmaceutical products and ingredients from September 29, 2026, while generic medicines and their ingredients remain outside the scope of the Section 232 tariffs.
• Namit Joshi, Chairman of the Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil), said the share of Indian exports qualifying for the exemption cannot yet be determined without product-level data against the notified US tariff classifications.