Rice import licences: applications open 1-7 October 2026

Rice importers can submit quota licence applications under Notice to Traders 72/26 between 1 October 2026 and 5pm on 7 October 2026GOV. Applicants bear responsibility for ensuring that the application and all supporting documentation are correct at the time of submission.

The window operates under Statutory Instrument 2020 No. 1432, under which the rice import tariff quota is administered. The rice quota runs in application rounds through the year, each notice concerning the quota amounts available for its period: the January 2026 round, Notice to Traders 101/25, opened applications between 1 January 2026 and 5pm on 7 January 2026 under the same applicant-responsibility rule, and the April 2026 round, Notice to Traders 20/26, opened applications between 1 April 2026 and 5pm on 7 April 2026. Earlier rounds covered semi milled, wholly milled, husked and broken rice, with the quota amounts available in each application period detailed in an Annex 1 table in those earlier notices: the April 2021 round (Notice to Traders 24/21) and the September 2021 round (Notice to Traders 69/21) each advised the amounts available for those descriptions in their respective periods. First-time applicants in a quota year have faced an additional eligibility condition, having to provide evidence of having imported at least 25 tonnes of rice during the relevant reference period.

The pattern across these rounds is consistent: a seven-day application window opening on the first of the month with a 5pm cut-off on the seventh day, an Annex 1 quantity table for the product descriptions in scope, and each notice placing responsibility for correctness of the application and supporting documentation at submission. The October 2026 notice itself carries only the window and the applicant-responsibility rule, so traders should check the October notice itself, including its Annex quantities and any round-specific eligibility conditions, before applying. An application lodged after 5pm on 7 October 2026 falls outside the window the notice opensGOV.

Legal basis: Statutory Instrument 2020 No. 1432, as applied in Notice to Traders 24/21, Notice to Traders 69/21, Notice to Traders 95/23, Notice to Traders 101/25, Notice to Traders 20/26 and Notice to Traders 72/26.