Vivek Chaturvedi Appointed as CBIC Chief | 02 Dec 2025

Why in News?

Vivek Chaturvedi, a 1990-batch IRS (Customs & Indirect Taxes) officer, has been appointed Chairman of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.

He will succeed Sanjay Kumar Agarwal, who superannuated on 30th November 2025.

He has over three decades of experience in customs administration, intelligence, vigilance, data analytics, and risk management.
He currently serves as a Member (Tax Policy & Legal) on CBIC, and previously joined the Board after succeeding Vivek Ranjan.
He also brings international exposure from his stint as First Secretary in Brussels (2007–2011) with the Ministry of External Affairs, considered valuable for shaping next-generation customs reforms.
As Chairman, he becomes a key figure in preparations for the 2026–27 Union Budget, especially for indirect taxes, amid GST rate changes and the need to maintain revenue buoyancy.
He is expected to lead the next phase of customs modernisation, focusing on digitisation, faster clearances, tighter compliance, and a more technology-driven GST and customs ecosystem.

Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (erstwhile Central Board of Excise & Customs) is a part of the Department of Revenue under the Ministry of Finance, Government of India.
It deals with the tasks of formulation of policy concerning levy and collection of Customs, Central Excise duties, Central Goods & Services Tax and IGST, prevention of smuggling and administration of matters relating to Customs, Central Excise, Central Goods & Services Tax, IGST and Narcotics to the extent under CBIC's purview.
The Board is the administrative authority for its subordinate organisations, including Custom Houses, Central Excise and Central GST Commissionerates and the Central Revenues Control Laboratory.