The centre is likely to introduce taxes and customs duties totalling as much as 50 percent on goods ordered from Chinese e-tailers, The Economic Times reported, citing people familiar with the development.

The tax department may impose integrated goods and services tax and customs duties that would be levied on the buyers at the payment stage, the report said, adding that e-tailers like Club Factory, AliExpress and Shein could be affected by the move.

The tax authorities have been seizing consignments ordered from Chinese e-commerce platforms, which were shipping goods ordered by Indians claiming they were gifts, the report claimed. Gifts with a value of less than Rs 5,000 are exempt from customs duty.

“The government is looking to bring in payment gateways on board on the scheme and when the consumer pays the money, IGST and customs duty will be included in the price,” one of the sources told ET.