The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), Department of Commerce, has prohibited the export of Lithium-Ion Battery Black Mass falling under ITC(HS) Code 85491400 through Notification No. 49/2026-27 dated 10 November 2026. The export policy has been amended from 'Free' to 'Prohibited' with immediate effect until further orders, with transitional arrangements under Para 1.05 of the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP), 2023 applying.
ITC(HS) Code 85491400 covers waste and scrap of primary cells, primary batteries and electric accumulators, as well as spent cells, batteries and accumulators that are unsorted and do not contain lead, cadmium or mercury. The notification specifically targets Lithium-Ion Battery Black Mass, which is the powdery material obtained from shredding end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and battery manufacturing waste containing recoverable quantities of critical minerals including lithium, cobalt, nickel and manganese.
The prohibition aims to ensure domestic availability of critical minerals that are essential inputs for electric mobility, advanced chemistry cell batteries, energy storage, electronics and renewable energy. India depends substantially on imports for several of these minerals, and recycling battery waste represents the quickest and most sustainable way to develop domestic supply. While India's capacity to recycle battery waste and refine critical minerals has grown considerably, it has not been fully utilized due to inadequate feedstock availability, with exports diverting valuable secondary resources abroad while domestic recyclers have had to import material.
The measure is expected to assure feedstock availability for domestic recycling and refining units, improve their capacity utilization, and encourage further investment and employment in the sector. It will increase domestic recovery of lithium, cobalt, nickel and other critical minerals, reducing import dependence and associated foreign exchange outgo. The prohibition also supports supply chains for battery manufacturing, electric vehicles, energy storage and clean-energy technologies in line with the Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision, while advancing circular economy and 'urban mining' through environmentally sound recycling of hazardous material within the country.
This measure complements the Government's initiatives under the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM), including the ₹1,500 crore Incentive Scheme approved by the Union Cabinet in September 2025 to develop recycling capacity for separation and production of critical minerals from secondary sources such as battery waste and e-waste. The step aligns with measures adopted by several major economies to retain critical mineral-bearing battery waste and Black Mass for domestic processing.