On July 17, 2023, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Dairy Products of India issued an official memorandum (L- 11/1/2019-Trade (E-11542), requiring imported milk and milk products to comply with the new comprehensive regulations on veterinary health certificates, which will come into force on December 31, 2023. The main contents include:

1. If the relevant product bill of lading and the veterinary health certificate issued by the exporting country are issued after December 31, 2023, a new comprehensive veterinary health certificate should be provided during customs clearance;

2. The provisions of Part 4 of the official memorandum issued on March 31, 2023 are still valid, and exporting countries should comply with the relevant professional regulations of their respective countries. The exporting country may issue a single veterinary health certificate certified by an official veterinarian or a certificate specified in an appendix;

3. Relevant sanitation items should be certified by official veterinarians, and food safety items should be certified by food safety officials. If the exporting country issues a single certificate attested by a single agency concerning hygiene and food safety provisions, the relevant certificate should be attested by an official veterinarian;

4. The certificate of sanitation and food safety clauses should comply with the format requirements of the Indian Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Dairy Products and the Indian Food Safety Standards Agency, and the issued certificate is valid for 90 days from the date of issuance.