An import license is a document issued by a national government authorizing the importation of certain goods into its territory. Import licenses are considered to be non-tariff barriers to trade

Non-tariff barriers to trade

Non-tariff barriers to trade are trade barriers that restrict imports but are not in the usual form of a tariff. Some common examples of NTB's are anti-dumping measures and countervailing duties, which, although they are called "non-tariff" barriers, have the effect of tariffs once they are...

 when used as a way to discriminate against another country's goods in order to protect a domestic industry from foreign competition.
Each license specifies the volume of imports allowed, and the total volume allowed should not exceed the quota

Import quota

An import quota is a type of protectionist trade restriction that sets a physical limit on the quantity of a good that can be imported into a country in a given period of time....

. Licenses can be sold to importing companies at a competitive price, or simply a fee. However, it is argued that this allocation methods provides incentives for political lobbying and bribery. Government may put certain restrictions on what is imported as well as the amount of imported goods and services.Eg if a business wishes to import agricultural products such as vegetables, then the government may be concerned about the impact of such importations of the local market and thus import a restriction.