Sector profile

Leather & footwear

Kanpur, Unnao and Agra make Uttar Pradesh one of India's main centres for tanning, footwear and leather goods. The state notified a new Leather & Footwear Policy in 2025. This page sets out what official data we could verify and the state incentives.

Free eligibility check Ask on WhatsApp

Hides drying on a factory rooftop in Dharavi, Mumbai — Photo: Everhard van Eimeren via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Importance to the Indian economy

Leather and footwear is labour-intensive and MSME-heavy. Leather products of Agra and Kanpur are on Uttar Pradesh's ODOP list.

The Invest UP policy page states that Uttar Pradesh accounts for about 46% of India's leather exports (state government figure; we could not cross-check it against a central source).

The last three years in official data

What is not shown, and why: We could not verify a three-year national series for leather and footwear exports from a Government of India source (PIB, Department of Commerce or DGCI&S) when we checked, so no chart is shown. Figures from industry bodies are not used on this page.

UP incentives for this sector

The Uttar Pradesh policy that applies to this sector, with the main incentives as stated in the policy or on Invest UP. Rates, caps and eligibility conditions are summarised; the policy text and its guidelines decide each case.

In force

Uttar Pradesh Leather & Footwear Policy 2025

Uploaded 10 Sep 2025 (Hindi); five years

Incentive	Support (as per the policy)
Land subsidy	Up to 80% for mega anchors and clusters in Purvanchal, Madhyanchal and Bundelkhand; up to 35% for standalone units
Capital subsidy	Up to 35%; up to ₹1,500 crore for mega anchor units
Duties and power	100% stamp duty; power at ₹2 per unit for 5 years
Employment and IP	100% EPF reimbursement for 5 years; IP support up to 70%

Source: Invest UP policy page

Applicable across sectors. A manufacturing project of ₹50 crore or more can also be evaluated under the UP Industrial Investment & Employment Promotion Policy 2022 (valid to 3 Nov 2027), and an MSME unit under the UP MSME Promotion Policy 2022. As a rule only one state policy can be used for the same investment, so compare the sector policy with these general policies on your own numbers before applying. Central schemes can often be combined with state support: see subsidy stacking.

Sources

Scheme terms change; verify on the official portal; last checked 4 Oct 2026. This page is general information for planning, not a guarantee of eligibility, sanction or disbursement. See our Terms of Use & Disclaimer.

Planning a leather & footwear project in Uttar Pradesh?

Tell us the product, location and project cost. We check which UP and central incentives may fit, and the conditions that decide eligibility, at no charge.