Archive · 24 Sep 2026
India's New BIS Rule May Raise Smartphone Protector Prices
India will soon require smartphone screen protectors to meet official quality rules.
The new requirement begins on April 1, 2027.
Products will need to be tested before they are sold.
Their packaging must include details such as the maker, batch number and thickness.
The rules are meant to reduce protectors that break easily, distort colors or make false claims.
Companies will have to spend money on testing and paperwork.
This may cause some very cheap products to disappear or become more expensive.
Larger companies may find it easier to follow the rules than small sellers.
The government also expects the change to encourage more organized production in India.
Smartphone screen protectors will require compulsory Bureau of Indian Standards registration from April 1, 2027.
The rule makes screen protectors the 66th product category covered by the mandate.
Standard IS 19348:2025 sets requirements for strength, surface quality, light transmission, defects and added features.
Testing, documentation and traceability requirements may push small importers and unbranded sellers out of the market.
Low-cost protectors priced at Rs. 100–200 could become more expensive or be replaced by certified alternatives.
- Who
- India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, manufacturers, importers and sellers of smartphone screen protectors.
- What
- The government has added smartphone screen protectors to compulsory BIS registration requirements under the Electronics and Information Technology Goods (Requirement of Compulsory Registration) Order, 2021.
- When
- The requirement takes effect on April 1, 2027; the relevant notification was issued on September 21.
- Where
- India, including products manufactured domestically or imported for sale in the country.
- Why
- The stated goals are consumer protection, improved quality control and greater domestic manufacturing, amid a large market for low-cost unbranded protectors.
Quality and Consumer Protection
Affordability and Market Access
Reason for the rule
Quality and Consumer Protection
The government says certification can reduce protectors that shatter, distort colors or misrepresent their specifications.
Affordability and Market Access
Critics are not directly quoted in the article, but the reported compliance costs could make inexpensive products less available to buyers.
Effect on sellers
Quality and Consumer Protection
Testing, documentation and traceability could favor certified, organized suppliers and encourage domestic manufacturing.
Affordability and Market Access
Small importers, assemblers and unbranded sellers may struggle to absorb the costs and could leave the market.
Effect on prices
Quality and Consumer Protection
Certified products would have a defined quality baseline and required product information.
Affordability and Market Access
Laboratory testing, compliance work and possible retooling are likely to raise prices, especially for Rs. 100–200 protectors.
- Effective date
- April 1, 2027
- Applicable standard
- IS 19348:2025, “Glass Screen Protector — Specification”
- Product category position
- The 66th category under the compulsory registration mandate
- Annual market volume
- Approximately 500 million screen protectors
- Estimated retail market value
- Rs. 20,000 crore by 2025
- Current low-end price
- Rs. 100–200 for many unbranded tempered-glass protectors
- Required disclosures
- Manufacturer name, batch number, protector thickness and traceability details