What is STPI?
STPI stands for Software Technology Parks of India, a society set up under the central government (generally understood to sit under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology) to promote software and IT-enabled exports. For years, STPI was where many software companies filed SOFTEX forms and obtained certification of their software exports. Units registered under the STPI scheme also used it for approvals and related compliance.
Why it matters for exporters
Under the 2026 export regulations, SOFTEX has gone and software exports are declared on the EDF. If you are a software exporter outside an SEZ, you can submit that EDF to either your AD bank or STPI. AD banks are now "specified authorities" on par with STPI, and STPI certification is no longer mandatory. That gives software companies a choice: stay with the STPI route they know, or move filing to the bank that already receives their payments.
Things to weigh include where your payments land, how your bank's EDF channel works (each bank publishes its own policy), and any obligations tied to an existing STPI unit registration. Those scheme obligations are outside the scope of this site, so check them with STPI or your CA. Read STPI after SOFTEX for more.
Example
Vertex Systems Pvt Ltd, an STPI-registered unit in Pune, raises ₹26,50,000 of software invoices in November 2026. It decides to file the EDF with its AD bank, because the bank also closes the EDPMS entries when payment arrives, and keeps its STPI unit compliance running separately. The EDF is due by 30 December 2026.
Common confusion
STPI is not an SEZ. Software units inside an SEZ file their EDF with the SEZ Development Commissioner, not with STPI or the AD bank. If you are unsure which applies, the complete EDF guide sets out who files where.