Overview
- The government notified the Transition Facilitation (Quality Control) Order, 2026 on Thursday, creating a formal mechanism that lets eligible firms temporarily source products covered by selected QCOs from otherwise ineligible manufacturers.
- The framework applies to products under ten QCOs, including toys, footwear, air conditioners and components, furniture, domestic water heaters, washing machines, household electrical appliances and hinges.
- Permissions will be granted after a risk assessment by an inter‑ministerial implementation committee made up of DPIIT, the Department of Consumer Affairs, the Department of Commerce, DGFT and BIS, which will evaluate technical capability, quality systems and compliance history.
- Only companies incorporated under the Companies Act, 2013 may apply and manufacturers with at least three years of continuous compliance can qualify; BIS and DPIIT will run market surveillance and the Centre can suspend or withdraw permissions for breaches.
- The order is temporary: applications will be accepted for 24 months and the framework will remain in force for five years, a step intended to reduce repeated exemption requests, ease supply‑chain disruptions and encourage domestic technology and design upgrades.