Shipping Bill Status Check: LEO, EGM and Transmission
A shipping bill does not have a status. It has a position in a queue, and then three separate onward journeys, to GST, to DGFT and to RBI. Read the screen that way and every answer it gives you becomes actionable.
Where to check, and what comes back
ICEGATE's public enquiry services track the status of shipping bills, bills of entry, manifests and other customs documents without logging in. Three inputs do the work, and they are the part worth remembering when a menu gets rearranged: the customs location, the shipping bill number and the shipping bill date. If you are unsure which location code the bill was filed at, our Indian port code list has every sea port, airport, ICD, CFS and land station.
What comes back is not one status line. It is a set of panels, and each answers a different question: Shipping Bill Details, Item Wise Reward Details, Current Status, EGM Status, Drawback Query Details, Other Govt. Agencies Details, IGST Invoice Details, Gateway EGM Status Enquiry, Payment Details and eDocument Validity. Reading only "Current Status" is how people conclude a bill is fine when its onward transmission has failed.
Two more public enquiries sit beside it, and between them they answer what "status" usually turns out to mean. SB in RBI- EDPMS shows the bill with the date it was transmitted to RBI and its status there. DGFT Shipping Bill Status Enquiry, under the DGFT heading, takes a port code, bill number and bill date and shows the status of bills sent to DGFT. From the DGFT side, the same question is asked under Services, View IEC Related Details, where Shipping Bills Received IEC wise lists the bills DGFT has actually received from customs.
The sequence a shipping bill moves through
- Filed. Under Section 50 of the Customs Act 1962, the exporter makes entry by presenting a shipping bill electronically on the customs automated system, and subscribes to a declaration as to the truth of its contents. The same section puts the accuracy, the authenticity of every supporting document, and compliance with any restriction or prohibition squarely on the exporter.
- Assessed. Customs assesses the bill. This is a real milestone, not a formality: ICEGATE issues a downloadable copy of the shipping bill after assessment, separately from the one it issues after the next stage.
- Let Export Order. Under Section 51, where the proper officer is satisfied that the goods are not prohibited and that any duty and charges have been paid, they make an order permitting clearance and loading of the goods for exportation. That order is the LEO, and the copy of the bill issued after it, what it is used for and why its date matters, has its own guide.
- Departure, then the EGM. The conveyance leaves, and the carrier files the Export General Manifest. It is the stage exporters control least and depend on most, which is why checking EGM status, and what to do at each answer it gives, is its own guide.
- Transmitted onward. The bill and its data go to GSTN for the IGST refund, to DGFT, and to RBI's EDPMS. Three journeys, three ways to fail, one bill.
Why a bill can read filed but not transmitted
Because "transmitted" is three different things, and a bill can pass one and fail another. Check all three before you conclude anything.
- To GSTN, for the IGST refund. ICEGATE publishes the response codes: SB000 successfully validated, SB001 invalid SB details, SB002 EGM not filed, SB003 GSTIN mismatch, SB004 record already received and validated, SB005 invalid invoice number, SB006 gateway EGM not available. For SB002 and SB006 the remedy ICEGATE states is to approach your shipping line, airline or carrier to file the EGM immediately. For invoice level mismatches, the correction is made through Table 9A of GSTR-1, not on the customs side.
- To DGFT. The DGFT shipping bill status enquiry returns an integration error code: 0 means the bill integrated successfully at DGFT's end, 3 means the table could not be added due to some error, 9 a duplicate record, 10 a data error in some other related table, 16 a missing parent record, 21 an invalid LEO or an LEO earlier than the shipping bill date, and 23 a FOB value in INR that is missing or invalid. Codes 21 and 23 are data problems on the bill itself, which means they are fixable at the customs location rather than by waiting.
- To RBI, into EDPMS. The SB in RBI- EDPMS enquiry shows the bill's details with the date of transmission to RBI and its status there. ICEGATE's own note on that screen is that rectification of an incorrect SB EDPMS status, and foreign exchange realisation details, are post login work, and where there is a discrepancy its guidance is to contact your bank. That is the correct instinct in general: the EDPMS entry is your AD bank's to close.
What you can actually do at each stage
- Filed, not assessed. Nothing to chase yet. Check the bill's own data now, while a correction is cheap, rather than after DGFT rejects it for a missing FOB value.
- Assessed, no LEO. This is a port floor question, so it is the customs location and your broker, not the portal. The enquiry will tell you which stage the bill is sitting at.
- LEO granted, no EGM. Your carrier's job, your problem. Approach the shipping line, airline or carrier and ask for the EGM to be filed. The positions the EGM panel can show, and the move that fits each, are in the EGM status guide.
- EGM filed, refund not received. Read the SB response code before escalating. SB003 is a GSTIN mismatch and SB005 an invalid invoice number, and neither is fixed by waiting.
- Everything green at customs, nothing at DGFT. Run the DGFT shipping bill status enquiry and read the integration code. Then check from the DGFT end whether the bill has been received IEC wise.
- All transmitted, money not home. The bill has done its job and the clock is now FEMA's, not customs'. That story is in the FEMA realisation period, explained, and the ledger it lives in is in how shipping bills actually close in EDPMS.
The last stage is the one this desk lives in. Once the money lands, the remittance has to be tied back to this shipping bill, and that mapping is what becomes your eBRC and, in turn, what your RoDTEP and drawback claims rest on. Keeping that ledger current is the whole job of the eBRC exporter app: remittances arrive with their statuses, map to their bills in minutes, and export whenever an auditor asks.
Frequently asked questions
How do I check my shipping bill status?
Open ICEGATE, go to Services, Enquiry, and the service listed as Public Enquiries 2.0. Choose Document Status and then Shipping Bill. Select the customs location, enter the shipping bill number and date, and search. No login is needed.
Do I need an ICEGATE login to check shipping bill status?
No. The shipping bill enquiry, the DGFT shipping bill status enquiry and the SB in RBI- EDPMS enquiry are all public enquiries on ICEGATE and run without a login. What does need a login is the customs copy of the shipping bill as a PDF, and the GST validation status view that shows the IGST response code for each bill.
Why is my shipping bill not transmitted to DGFT?
Run the DGFT shipping bill status enquiry and read the integration error code. Code 0 means it integrated successfully. Code 21 means an invalid LEO or an LEO date earlier than the shipping bill date, code 23 means the FOB value in INR is missing or invalid, and codes 3, 9, 10 and 16 point at record level problems. The codes name the defect, so the fix goes to the customs location that holds the record.
What does the shipping bill status screen show apart from the current status?
The shipping bill enquiry on ICEGATE returns a set of panels rather than one line: Shipping Bill Details, Item Wise Reward Details, Current Status, EGM Status, Drawback Query Details, Other Govt. Agencies Details, IGST Invoice Details, Gateway EGM Status Enquiry, Payment Details and eDocument Validity. Reading only Current Status is how a bill looks fine while its onward transmission has failed.