APTRA President and Group Chief Executive of King Power Group Sunil Tuli.

The Asia Pacific Travel Retail Association (APTRA) has welcomed the Indian government’s decision to raise airport arrivals duty free value allowances, describing the move as a positive step for one of the world’s fastest-growing travel retail markets.

Announced as part of India’s Union Budget and introduced under the revised Baggage Rules 2026, the changes come into effect on 2 February 2026. The allowance for international passengers who are residents or tourists of Indian origin has been increased by 50%, from INR 50,000 to INR 75,000 (approximately US$820). For foreign tourists, the arrivals allowance rises by 66.6%, from INR 15,000 to INR 25,000 (approximately US$270).

APTRA President and Group Chief Executive of King Power Group Sunil Tuli said the announcement reflects years of industry engagement with policymakers.

“For several years, the duty free operators in India have made the case to the federal government to review allowances and APTRA has actively supported them in these efforts,” he said.

While welcoming the increase, APTRA noted that further progress could still be made. “Although we welcome today’s announcement as an encouraging step in the right direction, the industry believes there is further scope to increase allowances to a more realistic level comparable to other markets, simply by reflecting levels of currency devaluation and inflation increases since the last review in April 2016,” Tuli added.

According to APTRA, higher allowances would help unlock the full potential of India as a travel retail market, while also supporting wider aviation and infrastructure ambitions. The association points to the government’s plans to grow the number of airports in India from 147 today to more than 400 by 2047, alongside a target of handling one billion passengers annually by the same date. Over the next decade, India’s airline fleet is also expected to almost triple to around 2,000 aircraft, positioning the country as the world’s third-largest aviation market.

The topic is expected to feature prominently at the APTRA India Conference 2026, which will take place at Bangalore International Airport from 25–27 March 2026.

READ NEXT: Delegate registration now open for APTRA India Conference 2026

READ NEXT: December’s APTRA Northeast Asia Forum to be rescheduled to 2026

READ NEXT: KSI’s Mumbai stop puts Prime Hydration in the TR spotlight