India is not a party to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA). However, the country has been an observer of the agreement since 2010.

In April 2015, the Indian Ministry of Finance issued the Customs Notification imposing this definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of electrical insulators (HS 8546) originating in China. Electrical insulators are used to hold conductors in position, separating them from one another and from surrounding structures. This measure was reviewed and extended in April 2020. The rate of duty is USD 638 or USD 1,383 per tonne, depending on the company. The duty is in force for a period of five years.

As stipulated in Section 5.2.7.2 of the 2020 Consolidated Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Policy Circular, foreign direct investment in broadcasting content services, specifically related to the uploading and streaming of news and current affairs via digital media, is limited to 26% and is subject to government approval.

Under Article 161 of the General Financial Rules, as amended by the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance OM F.12/17/2019-PPD in May 2020, if a Ministry or Department determines that domestically available goods may not meet the required quality or specifications, and there is a need to seek competitive bids from abroad, they may distribute copies of the tender notice to Indian embassies abroad and foreign embassies in India. The selection of relevant embassies is based on the likelihood of sourcing the required goods from the respective countries. However, a Global Tender Enquiry (GTE) is prohibited for tenders valued at or below 200 million rupees (approximately USD 24 million). In cases where a GTE is deemed necessary for tenders below this threshold due to special circumstances, a detailed justification must be provided, and prior approval for an exemption must be sought from the Competent Authority designated by the Department of Expenditure.

Since the implementation of the Consolidated FDI Policy Circular of 2016, last amended by the Consolidated FD) Policy Circular of 2020, India permits fully owned FDI in business-to-business (“marketplace-based”) electronic commerce, i.e. "providing an information technology platform by an e-commerce entity on a digital & electronic network to act as a facilitator between buyer and seller." However, India prohibits foreign investment in business-to-consumer (or “inventory-based”) electronic commerce, also defined as "e-commerce activity where the inventory of goods and services is owned by an e-commerce entity and is sold to the consumers directly".
When a marketplace e-commerce entity exercises ownership or control over the inventory, the business is categorised into the inventory-based model. Additionally, India implemented regulations that expressly prohibit subsidiaries of foreign-owned marketplace-based electronic commerce sites from selling products on their parent companies’ sites. The rules also prohibit exclusivity arrangements by which electronic commerce retailers can offer a product on an exclusive basis.
The only exceptions for FDI in inventory-based electronic commerce are for food-product retailing and single-brand retailers that meet certain conditions, including the operation of physical stores in India. According to Section 5.2.15.3 of the Consolidated FDI Policy Circular of 2020, retail trading through e-commerce can also be undertaken before opening physical stores, subject to the entity opening physical stores within two years from the start of online retail. Overall, it is reported that these narrow exceptions limit the ability of many electronic commerce service suppliers to serve the Indian market.

According to Art. 3B of the Internal Trade (DPIIT) Order No. P-45021/2/2017-B.E, if the procurement authority has determined that sufficient local capacity and competition exist, only 'Class-I Local Suppliers' are eligible to participate, ensuring that all selected suppliers fall within this category. As stipulated in the Order, a 'Class-I Local Supplier' is defined as a supplier whose local content comprises at least 50%.

The Indian government adopted a formal preference for open-source software for e-government procurement opportunities related to its digital agenda. The Policy on Adoption of Open Source Software for the Government of India is reported to be one of the most far-reaching and restrictive preference schemes that has been implemented to date. The Policy calls for a change from using Closed Cloud Software (CSS), which is licensed under the exclusive right of the copyright holder. The Indian government wants all governmental organisations to move towards the use of open-source software, which it argues would ensure strategic control of eGovernance applications and reduce the cost of ownership of projects. The Framework for adoption of Open Source Software in eGovernance applications provides a set of procedures and recommendations for promoting, adopting and managing OSS in e-Governance systems. The framework provides guidance on the selection of software and the induction of the OSS software.

There is a requirement to make patents available on a royalty-free basis for those open standards identified as "Identified Standards" under the Policy on Open Standards for e-Governance. Per Clause 4.1.2: "The Patent claims necessary to implement the Identified Standard shall be made available on a Royalty-Free basis for the lifetime of the Standard". Open standards refer to the freedom to encode and decode data and network protocols.

Pursuant to Art. 13A of the Internal Trade (DPIIT) Order No. P-45021/2/2017-B.E, for goods, services, or works subject to substantial public procurement, where the Nodal Ministry has not determined the existence of sufficient local capacity and competition, the Ministry must establish an upper threshold value beyond which foreign companies are required to form joint ventures with Indian companies to participate in tenders. Procuring entities must incorporate this requirement into their tenders and include provisions exempting such joint ventures from the stipulated minimum local content requirements, with a framework for the gradual increase of these requirements over time.

Under Rule 151 of the General Financial Rules, the Central Government may, through notification, mandate the procurement of specific goods or services from certain categories of bidders or grant preferential treatment to bidders to promote locally manufactured goods or locally provided services.

India is a signatory of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) of 1996, but it is not a signatory of its 2015 expansion (ITA II).

In July 2020, the Indian authorities imposed a definitive duty on imports of digital offset printing plates (an input good to manufacture printers) from China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Chinese Taipei and Vietnam. The rate of duty on imports from China is between USD 0.55 and USD 0.77 per square metre, depending on the company. The rate of duty on imports from the Republic of Korea is USD 0.15 or USD 0.37 per square metre, depending on the company. The rate of duty on imports from Japan is USD 0.13 or USD 0.27 per square metre, depending on the company. The rate of duty on imports from Vietnam is USD 0.60 per square metre. The rate of duty on imports from Chinese Taipei is USD 0.41 per square metre. The duty is in force for a period of five years, starting on 30 January 2020.

Hong Kong has not signed the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts.