How to read scheme status
A scheme’s headline outlay says little about whether a new investor can use it. Before planning around any scheme, check three things:
- Is the window open? Several schemes ran fixed application windows that have closed.
- Are beneficiaries already chosen? PLI schemes in 14 sectors (outlay ₹1.97 lakh crore) now pay only approved applicants. By 31 December 2025 they had drawn investment of over ₹2.16 lakh crore and production and sales of over ₹20.41 lakh crore.
- Is the scheme operational? Schemes announced in Budget 2026-27 often await guidelines.
Incentives are usually paid after claims are verified, not upfront. ECMS incentives, for example, are paid over the scheme tenure (FY2025-26 to FY2031-32). The full list with statuses is on the incentive tracker.
The central framework at a glance
The eleven scheme groups below make up the central framework as of 1 October 2026. Amounts are outlays or results as officially stated, and the status is shown as the sources print it. Sector pages give scheme-by-scheme detail.
| Scheme | What it gives | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Production Linked Incentive (PLI), 14 sectors | Incentives on production for approved manufacturers; outlay ₹1.97 lakh crore. By 31 Dec 2025: investment over ₹2.16 lakh crore, production and sales over ₹20.41 lakh crore; about ₹15,554 crore paid in electronics alone | Approved applicants only |
| Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme (ECMS) | Turnover-linked, capex and hybrid incentives for electronic components, sub-assemblies and their supply chain; outlay ₹22,919 crore, with an increase to ₹40,000 crore announced in Budget 2026-27. Applications opened on 1 May 2025: three months for components, two years for supply-chain items and capital equipment | Components closed; equipment to Apr 2027 |
| India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 and chip-design support | Semicon 2.0, approved on 15 July 2026 with ₹1.275 lakh crore and notified on 31 August 2026, covers six pillars, from design, machines and materials to fabs, ATMP/OSAT, R&D and talent. Under ISM 1.0: 12 units approved (over ₹1.64 lakh crore) and 24 design projects of start-ups and MSMEs supported | Notified 31 Aug 2026; open for 3 years |
| Special Economic Zone (SEZ) units | Budget 2026-27: a one-time facility for eligible SEZ manufacturers to sell into the domestic tariff area at concessional duty, capped at a prescribed share of their exports | Announced in Budget, 1 Feb 2026 |
| GIFT City IFSC | 100% deduction for IFSC units (s.147) for 20 consecutive years out of 25; a 15% rate after that was proposed in Budget 2026-27 but not enacted. Offshore banking units: 20 consecutive years | Open from tax year 2026-27 |
| Bonded manufacturing (MOOWR, s.65 Customs Act) | Production in a customs-bonded warehouse. Foreign suppliers of tooling and of stocked components to electronics contract manufacturers there are income-tax exempt, subject to conditions (to tax year 2040-41 and to 31 March 2041). Warehousing moves to self-declaration and e-tracking | Open; exemptions to March 2041 |
| Export schemes under the Foreign Trade Policy 2023 | RoDTEP (Remission of Duties and Taxes on Export Products) continues to 31 December 2026 under DGFT Notification 41/2026-27 of 30 September 2026. EPCG: capital goods imported at zero duty against an export obligation of 6 times the duties, within 6 years | RoDTEP notified to 31 Dec 2026 |
| Start-up India | DPIIT recognition up to ₹200 crore turnover (deep tech ₹300 crore). Tax holiday (s.140, formerly s.80-IAC): 100% of profits for 3 consecutive years out of 10, for companies or LLPs incorporated before 1 April 2030 with an Inter-Ministerial Board certificate; turnover cap ₹300 crore from 1 April 2026 | Incorporation before 1 Apr 2030 |
| Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) Scheme | ₹1 lakh crore corpus over six years for long-term, low- or nil-interest financing of private-sector R&D through second-level fund managers such as AIFs and DFIs, plus a Deep-Tech Fund of Funds; ₹20,000 crore allocated in FY2025-26 | Approved Jul 2025; fund launched Nov 2025 |
| Employment Linked Incentive (PM Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana) | Employers get up to ₹3,000 a month for each additional employee kept at least six months; first-time employees get one month’s EPF wage, up to ₹15,000. Outlay ₹99,446 crore | For jobs created by 31 Jul 2027 |
| New schemes in Budget 2026-27 | Biopharma SHAKTI (₹10,000 crore over five years), a Container Manufacturing Scheme (₹10,000 crore over five years), rare-earth corridors in Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, and three chemical parks | Announced 1 Feb 2026 |
Status labels: open means available or accepting applications; closing means a stated window or period ends on the date shown; closed means no new applicants; announced means announced or approved, so check the operating guidelines. The sections below regroup these and the sector schemes by what a new entrant can still use.
Open to new applicants
| Scheme | What it offers | Status as of 1 Oct 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 (₹1.275 lakh crore) | 40% of eligible capex, pari passu, for silicon fabs; 35% for compound, sensor and discrete fabs and advanced packaging; 25% for legacy packaging; 30% for equipment and component makers | Notified 31 Aug 2026; open for 3 years |
| ECMS (outlay ₹22,919 crore, increase to ₹40,000 crore announced) | Turnover-linked, capex or hybrid incentives over six years, with a one-year gestation period | Components closed; supply-chain items and capital equipment to April 2027 |
| ELI (PM Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana, ₹99,446 crore) | Up to ₹3,000 a month per additional employee (pay up to ₹1 lakh) for two years; first-time employees get one month’s EPF wage, up to ₹15,000 | Jobs created 1 Aug 2025 to 31 Jul 2027 |
| PM E-DRIVE (₹11,900 crore) | Demand incentives for e-2W, e-3W, e-trucks and e-ambulances; e-buses; public charging; testing | To 31 Mar 2028; claims by 31 Dec 2027; fund-limited |
| PM Surya Ghar (₹75,021 crore) | Rooftop solar on 10 million homes | Open; household target FY2026-27 |
| Bonded manufacturing (MOOWR, s.65 Customs Act) | Import duty deferred; income-tax exemptions for foreign suppliers to electronics contract manufacturers | Open; exemptions to March 2041 |
| RoDTEP (FTP 2023) | Remission of duties and taxes on exported products at notified rates | Notified to 31 Dec 2026 |
| EPCG (FTP 2023) | Capital goods imported at zero duty against an export obligation of six times the duties, within six years | Under FTP 2023 |
Semicon 2.0 qualification includes minimum investment and capacity tests, for example ₹20,000 crore and 40,000 wafer starts a month for a silicon fab. Its chip-design support is limited to companies owned and controlled by Indian citizens (or OCIs, for commercial design); foreign firms can take part as partners.
Tax-based incentives
| Measure | Terms | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Data-centre exemption | Notified foreign company’s income from cloud services using an Indian data centre is exempt; Indian users served only through an Indian reseller; the foreign company may not own or operate the data centre | Enacted; to tax year ending 31 Mar 2047 |
| IT services safe harbour | Single 15.5% operating margin on cost for software, ITeS, KPO and contract R&D; threshold ₹2,000 crore; automated approval; five-year option | Rules notified 2026 |
| GIFT City IFSC deduction (s.147) | 100% of eligible income for 20 consecutive years out of 25; offshore banking units 20 consecutive years | Open from tax year 2026-27 |
| Start-up tax holiday (s.140) | 100% of profits for 3 consecutive years out of 10; turnover up to ₹300 crore; needs an Inter-Ministerial Board certificate | Incorporation before 1 Apr 2030 |
| Electronics supply-chain exemptions | Foreign suppliers of tooling or capital goods to bonded contract manufacturers exempt to tax year 2040-41; bonded-warehouse components sold to such makers exempt 1 Oct 2026 to 31 Mar 2041 | In force, subject to conditions |
GCC operators should read the safe harbour together with the fast-track APA on GCC tax and transfer pricing.
Finance for R&D and start-ups
- RDI Scheme: ₹1 lakh crore corpus over six years for long-term, low- or nil-interest R&D financing through second-level fund managers (AIFs, DFIs) and a Deep-Tech Fund of Funds; ₹20,000 crore allocated in FY2025-26. Approved July 2025; fund launched November 2025.
- IndiaAI Mission (₹10,372 crore): more than 38,000 GPUs offered through a compute portal; eligible users are Indian start-ups, academia, researchers and government.
- Startup India Fund of Funds 2.0: ₹10,000 crore corpus approved 14 February 2026; operational guidelines issued April 2026.
Approved applicants only
These schemes have selected their beneficiaries. A new entrant cannot apply, though suppliers to beneficiaries may benefit indirectly.
| Scheme | Status |
|---|---|
| PLI for large-scale electronics, IT hardware 2.0 | Approved applicants only; about ₹15,554 crore paid by 31 Dec 2025 |
| PLI Automobile and Auto Components (₹25,938 crore) | Approved applicants only, to FY2027-28; at least 50% domestic value addition |
| PLI ACC batteries (₹18,100 crore) | 40 GWh awarded; 1 GWh built (January 2026) |
| PLI Pharma (₹15,000 crore) | 55 selected; incentives end FY2027-28 |
| PLI Bulk drugs (₹6,940 crore) | 48 approved; incentives end FY2028-29 |
| PLI Medical devices (₹3,420 crore) | Selection done; incentives to FY2026-27 |
| PLI Food processing (₹10,900 crore) | Runs to FY2026-27 |
| Green hydrogen (SIGHT) | Incentives awarded for 450,000 tonnes a year |
Closed
| Scheme | Status |
|---|---|
| PLI solar PV modules (₹24,000 crore) | Closed; all 48,337 MW awarded |
| PLI textiles | Window ended 31 Mar 2026 |
| PLI white goods | Fourth-round window closed 14 Oct 2025 |
| SPMEPCI (electric passenger cars) | Closed October 2025; no applications received |
| Rare-earth permanent magnets (₹7,280 crore) | Bids closed 12 Aug 2026; 20 received |
| PRIP pharma research call (₹5,000 crore) | Call closed 19 Nov 2025 |
| RPTUAS pharma upgrade | Period FY2024-25 to FY2025-26 |
| Offshore wind VGF | Both tenders cancelled August 2025 (no bids) |
| 15% regime for new manufacturers (s.201) | Closed to companies starting production after 31 Mar 2024 |
Announced, awaiting rules
Budget 2026-27 (1 February 2026) announced Biopharma SHAKTI (₹10,000 crore over five years), a Container Manufacturing Scheme (₹10,000 crore over five years), a scheme for construction and infrastructure equipment, three chemical parks, rare-earth corridors in Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, and a one-time facility for SEZ manufacturers to sell into the domestic tariff area at concessional duty. A 15% cost-plus safe harbour for related-party data-centre services was also announced; confirm it has been notified before relying on it. The proposed 15% rate on IFSC income after the holiday was not enacted in the Finance Act 2026.
Sequencing
Central and state incentives depend on when investment starts and when applications are filed. File scheme applications before committing capital, and plan working capital on the basis that payments follow verification. State packages are covered on state incentives.
What to check next
- Confirm the scheme’s current window and any outlay or fund limit with the administering ministry before modelling it.
- For ECMS equipment and Semicon 2.0, check ownership conditions, including any land-border owner.
- Check whether ELI hiring targets fit your headcount plan before 31 July 2027.
- For Budget 2026-27 schemes, wait for guidelines before assuming eligibility.
- Pair central support with the relevant state policy; see the sector pages such as manufacturing and engineering.