The global trade ecosystem is evolving rapidly, and compliance leaders are increasingly turning to automation to keep pace. In our recent COVORO webinar on “Simplifying MOOWR & eBRC Operations,” industry experts explored how Agentic AI and automation are addressing long-standing inefficiencies in EXIM processes.

In this session, finance and compliance experts came together to explore two critical elements of EXIM operations, the Electronic Bank Realisation Certificates (eBRCs) and the Manufacturing and Other Operations in Warehouse Regulations (MOOWR) scheme, and how automation is transforming them.

Below are the key takeaways for EXIM Heads and business leaders.

Understanding eBRC and Its Evolution

An eBRC (Electronic Bank Realisation Certificate) is an official DGFT document confirming receipt of export payments, critical for exporters to claim incentives, GST refunds, and FEMA compliance.

Traditionally, the export process required coordination with banks, manual reconciliation, and delays waiting for the export benefits. Exporters had to wait for Forward Inward Remittance Certificates (FIRCs), take time to reconcile shipping bills, and depended on bankers, often creating bottlenecks and missing opportunities!

What Changed Post-2024?

The DGFT changed the process to create the Inward Remittance Message (IRM), a cumulation notification generated by the bank when it has received funds, which changed the point of ownership to exporters. Enabling further transparency and quicker reconciliation.

The revamped flow now looks like this:

1. Filing of Shipping Bill in the EDPMS system. 

2. Received payment from the overseas buyer. 

3. The bank issued the IRM. 

4. The IRM auto-flows to the DGFT portal. 

5. Exporter logs into the DGFT portal, reconciles the IRM with the Shipping Bills, prepares a report, and bulk uploads. 

6. eBRC is generated and downloaded.

While more streamlined, this still leaves exporters with manual portal work, reconciliation challenges, and administrative overhead.

eBRC Automation: A Game Changer

During the webinar, we demonstrated how COVORO and AVA Network have created a centralized dashboard that eliminates the need for manual portal interaction.

Four-Step Automated Process

1. Automated imports of IRMs from the DGFT.

2. Retrieval of shipping bill + SOFTEX data.

3. Setting relationships among IRMs and shipping bills.

4. Auto-linking for the one-to-many and many-to-one scenarios.

Benefits for EXIM Heads

• Efficiency: 1,000 eBRCs completed in half a day.

• Reliability / Accuracy: 100% clean, validated data.

• Visibility: Easily track pending IRMs and pending shipping bills.

• Compliance Monitoring: Effortlessly track RODTEP, ROSCTL, and AIR DBK schemes.

• Scalability: Bulk uploads and automated reconciliations.

For organizations managing high export volumes, this translates into faster claim cycles, reduced dependence on manual staff, and improved working capital efficiency.

Decoding the MOOWR Scheme

The MOOWR (Manufacturing and Other Operations in Warehouse Regulations) scheme is a powerful incentive under the Customs Act, allowing manufacturers to import raw materials and capital goods without upfront duty payment. Unlike EPCG or EOU, MOOWR does not mandate export obligations, offering unparalleled flexibility.

Key Benefits Featured in the Webinar

• Duty Deferment: Only pay duties at the time of domestic sale.

• No Export Obligation: You can sell your goods domestically or export them with no restrictions.

• Capital Goods Flexibility: Pay duties only when you sell the goods domestically.

• Waste Management: If you export finished goods or destroy waste, there is no duty to charge.

However, while MOOWR offers significant financial benefits, its compliance requirements are notoriously complex.

MOOWR Challenges in Daily Operations

All the respondents identified that there were pain points that matched really well with our expert panel:

• Short Timeframes: Prep work in dispatch must be done within hours, which requires consumption reports, ex-bond BoEs, and duty payments. 

• Error-Prone Processes: Preparing consumption reports and duty payments manually has a high probability of errors.

• Complex Monthly Reporting: 200+ columns for operations period reports take 5+ days to prepare manually.

MOOWR Automation: From Burden to Advantage

The webinar showcased how automation transforms MOOWR compliance from a manual nightmare into a streamlined process.

Core Automation Capabilities

• Bill of Entry Data Extraction: Document digitization powered by AI.

• Real-Time Consumption Working: Accurate daily calculations for DTA sales.

• Automated Ex-Bond BoE Creation: More rapid clearance and obligation payment.

• Export Consumption Working: Automated reconciliations against shipping bills.

• Report Compliance: Monthly Reports of 200+ column compliances created in a few hours.

• Triple Duty Bond Watch: Continual tracking and alerting.

• Inventory Management: Visibility on ongoing inventory with FIFO-based consumption tracking.

Benefits for EXIM Heads

• Time Savings: From weeks of manual labor to compliance in hours.

• Risk Mitigation: Proactive error-flagging reduces penalties.

• Higher Incentive Gains: No missed claims due to missing data.

• Operational Efficiency: Redeploy teams from time-bound efforts to value-added work.

• Strategic Visibility: Dashboards and analytics give leaders real-time insights.

The Role of Agentic AI

Possibly the most exciting aspect of the session was our deep dive into Agentic AI. Unlike more traditional RPA or semi-automated tools, Agentic AI comes with self-learning, corrective intelligence, and proactive recommendation capabilities.

The key capabilities discussed today include:

- Self-learning from historical data to enhance consumption accuracy. 

- Detecting mismatches between imports, exports, and wastage.

- Making corrective suggestions so that we can act before an error ramps up.

- Presenting leadership dashboards for efficiency measurement.

Agentic AI hints at a transition from automation as a support tool to automation as a guiding strategy in EXIM work.

Manual vs Automated: The Bigger Picture

One stark fact shared during the webinar:

₹16,000 crores of duty belongs to exporters, who have been held up in unclaimed duty due to inefficient manual processes.

Automation is about creating efficiency as much as it is about timeliness. It is an access to working capital. It is about compliance accuracy and resiliency in global trading operations.

Final Thoughts & Next Steps

Thank you all for joining us during this session. The questions related to API integration, inventory control, and document digitalization demonstrated the actual challenges that EXIM Heads face regularly. COVORO stands firmly committed to producing intelligent, responsive solutions for regulatory compliance, while offering you a strategic advantage.

Contact our team today to book a consultation or demo to see how eBRC and MOOWR automation can create change in your organization’s EXIM activity.