What is the Make in India Certificate?
It is a declaration, either self-certified by the supplier or verified by a statutory auditor, cost auditor, or practicing chartered/cost accountant, confirming the percentage of local (Indian) content in the goods, services, or works being offered, used specifically to establish preference eligibility in government procurement under the PPP-MII Order, 2017.
The important clarification we give every client: the government does not issue you a certificate simply because you manufacture in India. What exists instead is a compliance document you or your professional prepares, following a government-prescribed formula and format, to submit as part of a specific tender or GeM listing.
The Legal Framework: PPP-MII Order, 2017
The Public Procurement (Preference to Make in India) Order, 2017, issued by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), requires procuring government entities to give preference to suppliers meeting a prescribed minimum local content threshold and mandates that bidders declare their local content percentage as a pre-qualification requirement in most tenders. The order works alongside the General Financial Rules (GFR) 2017 and has been amended several times since 2017 to tighten local-content verification and penalties for misrepresentation, and various sector-specific ministries (electronics, telecom, and defence) layer additional procurement rules on top of the general PPP-MII framework.
Local Content Calculation
How is local content percentage calculated for Make in India certification?
Local Content Percentage is calculated as the value of Indian-sourced parts, labor, and services divided by the total product or service cost, multiplied by 100, expressed as: Local Content = (Value of Indian Content ÷ Total Cost) × 100.
“Value of Indian content” includes raw materials sourced within India, labor and processing done in India, and Indian-origin components used in the final product or service. Imported components, even if assembled in India, count toward the non-local portion of the calculation unless further domestic value addition is documented.
Supplier Categories: Class-I, Class-II, Non-Local
| Category | Local Content Threshold | Procurement Treatment |
|---|---|---|
| Class-I Local Supplier | 50% or more local content | Highest procurement preference; eligible to bid in tenders restricted to Class-I suppliers |
| Class-II Local Supplier | 20% to below 50% local content | Partial procurement preference; eligible where tenders allow Class-II participation |
| Non-Local Supplier | Below 20% local content | Not eligible for preference under PPP-MII tenders; may still bid in open, unrestricted tenders |
Many public sector procurement processes are restricted to Class-I suppliers only, which means a business under 50% local content can be shut out of a meaningful share of government tenders entirely; this is exactly why local content strategy (sourcing more components domestically) is a genuine competitive decision for MSMEs targeting government business, not just a paperwork exercise.
Self-Certification vs. CA/Auditor Certification
When can a supplier self-certify local content instead of getting it audited?
For procurement values up to ₹10 crore, a supplier can submit a self-certification on official letterhead declaring the local content percentage; for procurement values exceeding ₹10 crore, the declaration must be certified by a statutory auditor, cost auditor, or practicing cost accountant.
A recent relaxation under the PPP-MII framework also allows bidders to initially submit self-certification even for high-value bids at the time of bidding, followed by the formal auditor certificate after contract execution, within a timeline set by the procuring entity, though the bidder remains liable to penalty if the self-certified figures are later found to be misstated.
Step-by-Step: How to Get Your Make in India Certificate
- Identify the specific tender or GeM listing requirement, and check whether it demands self-certification or auditor certification based on the procurement value
- Gather documentation on your bill of materials, cost of Indian-sourced raw materials, labour, processing, and any imported components separately identified
- Calculate local content percentage using the DPIIT-prescribed formula: (Value of Indian Content ÷ Total Cost) × 100.
- Determine your supplier category; Class-I (50%+), Class-II (20–50%), or Non-Local (below 20%).
- Prepare the declaration on company letterhead, including company details, product/service description, local content percentage, and the GeM bid/tender reference number.
- For procurement above ₹10 crore, engage a practicing chartered accountant, cost accountant, or statutory auditor to certify the declaration
- Submit the certificate along with your tender bid or upload it to your GeM seller profile as required.
Common Rejection Reasons in Tenders
- The local content percentage claimed does not match the documented bill of materials when scrutinized.
- Missing or incorrectly formatted declaration; tenders often specify an exact format that must be followed. not a free-text letter.
- Imported sub-assemblies were wrongly counted as local content because final assembly happened in India, without genuine domestic value addition
- Self-certification submitted where the procurement value actually required auditor certification, leading to disqualification on a technicality
Key Takeaways
- There is no separate government-issued “Make in India Certificate” it is a self-declaration or professional certificate of local content percentage under the PPP-MII Order, 2017.
- Local content is calculated as (Value of Indian Content ÷ Total Cost) × 100.
- Suppliers with 50%+ local content qualify as Class-I, unlocking the highest procurement preference; below 20% gets no PPP-MII preference at all.
- Self-certification is allowed for procurement up to ₹10 crore; above that, a statutory auditor, cost auditor, or practicing cost accountant must certify the declaration.
- Misrepresenting local content percentage can lead to penalty, blacklisting, or contract cancellation.
FAQs
Is the Make in India Certificate issued by the government?
No. There is no separate certificate issued by the government under that name, it is a self-declaration or professional certificate of local content percentage submitted by the bidder under the Public Procurement (Preference to Make in India) Order, 2017.
What percentage of local content is needed to qualify as Class-I supplier?
A supplier needs local content of 50% or more to qualify as a Class-I local supplier, which is eligible for the highest level of procurement preference in government tenders.
When is self-certification allowed for Make in India certification?
Self-certification on the bidder’s letterhead is allowed for procurement values up to ₹10 crore; for higher-value procurement, the declaration must be certified by a statutory auditor, cost auditor, or practicing cost accountant.
Can imported components count toward local content percentage?
No, imported components generally count against local content unless there is documented, genuine domestic value addition beyond mere final assembly, simply assembling imported parts in India does not by itself raise the local content percentage.
What happens if a company misstates its local content percentage?
Misrepresenting local content in a Make in India declaration can lead to penalties, disqualification from the tender, blacklisting from future procurement, or cancellation of an already-awarded contract.
Is a Make in India certificate required for all GeM listings?
It’s required wherever the specific tender or GeM procurement process mandates local content declaration under the PPP-MII framework; not every open-market GeM listing requires it, but most public sector tenders with a Class-I/Class-II preference structure do.
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