Setting up an SEZ unit in India offers duty and tax incentives but requires approvals, bonding, and ongoing compliance.
SEZ units gain exemptions from customs duty, income tax benefits, and zero-rated GST but must meet eligibility (export focus, permitted activities, positive Net Foreign Exchange), register locally (PAN, IEC), secure developer consent, and apply via Form-F with a project report. After Unit Approval and issuance of a Letter of Approval, units must bond premises with Customs, obtain GST, and execute a Bond-cum-Legal Undertaking (Form-H). Ongoing compliance - Softex filings, performance reports, stock registers, NFE maintenance, and duty payment on DTA sales - is required and LoAs are renewable in five-year blocks. (AI Summary)

Back to Town endorsement shift: gate preventive officers now verify and endorse shipping bills, enabling faster export gate-out.
Authority to endorse Back to Town export consignments at gate-out is transferred from Port Superintendents to Gate Preventive Officers, who must verify Shipping Bill details, make a manual BTT endorsement on the Shipping Bill, and forward a fortnightly list of such containers and Shipping Bills to the Boarding Officer for cross-verification against Export General Manifests, creating an audit trail while other BTT provisions remain unchanged. (AI Summary)

Doctrine of proportionality: restoration of GST registration permitted after taxpayer completes outstanding tax, interest, late fees and compliance.
The court applied the doctrine of proportionality to restore GST registration where the taxpayer had paid all outstanding tax, interest and late fees and made an additional remedial contribution, conditioning restoration on prompt payment of any further liabilities communicated by the revenue and continued compliance, while recognising that cancellation powers remain for conduct meeting established cancellation criteria. (AI Summary)

Special Valuation Branch assessments ensure declared import values reflect true value; provisional deposits and Investigation Reports guide duty adjustments.
SVB assessment examines whether declared transaction value reflects true value for duty where importer and supplier relations or special arrangements may influence price. Upon referral the assessing officer makes provisional assessment and may require an Extra Duty Deposit and bond; SVB issues Annexure B, expects a reply within 60 days, investigates (document review, meetings, inter-agency inputs) and prepares an Investigation Report recommending acceptance or modification of value. IRs are binding across ports for that importer-supplier pairing; acceptance leads to finalisation and refund of EDD, rejection leads to SCN, hearing, and adjudication. (AI Summary)

E invoicing threshold reduced, expanding mandatory electronic invoicing and affecting B2B and export compliance obligations.
Effective 1 October 2025, GST amendments revise rates for selected goods and services, permit ITC on mandated CSR spending while clarifying fit-out treatment, redesign GSTR-3B for mandatory auto-population from GSTR-2B with integrated IFF for quarterly filers, reduce the mandatory e-invoicing turnover threshold for B2B and export supplies, change place-of-supply rules for OIDAR and SaaS to recipient billing address, omit provisional ITC for missing invoices in favour of GSTR-2B validation, and enable e-way bill blocking where returns are pending. (AI Summary)

GST refunds attract mandatory interest if not paid within 60 days, even when delay arises from technical system errors.
Interest under Section 56 of the CGST Act is mandatorily payable where a refund is not made within sixty days of the refund application; the entitlement is compensatory and arises by lapse of the statutory timeline, and administrative or technical system errors do not negate interest unless taxpayer fault is affirmatively established. (AI Summary)

Oppression and mismanagement: defective share allotment procedures can invalidate issuances and prejudice shareholder rights.
Whether share allotments effected without an enabling clause in the Articles or valid amendment by special resolution, and without compliance with pre-emptive offer obligations and reliable service of notices, amount to oppression and mismanagement. The article emphasizes that conflicting EGM notices, sole reliance on certificate of posting, absence of renunciation rights, and backdated or fabricated minutes vitiate corporate approvals and can justify annulment of the allotments and restitution to affected investors. (AI Summary)

STPI registration enables duty-free imports and streamlined foreign exchange compliance after obtaining a Letter of Permission.
STPI registration allows Indian-incorporated software and IT/ITES units to obtain a Letter of Permission authorising export-focused activities with benefits such as duty-free import of eligible capital goods and streamlined foreign exchange compliance. Applicants must be engaged in qualifying activities, predominantly export-oriented, and submit incorporation documents, PAN/GST/IEC, a project report, premises proof, and board resolution to the regional STPI centre. Post-approval steps include executing legal agreements, Customs bonding and a bond instrument for duty-free imports, SOFTEX certification of export invoices, and regular Monthly, Quarterly and Annual reporting to maintain compliance. (AI Summary)

Interest on SEBI penalties accrues from when the adjudication order made the amount payable, not from later recovery notices.
Adjudication orders that fix a period for payment crystallise the liability to pay penalties under the SEBI Act; under Section 28A read with Section 220, interest on unpaid penalties accrues from the date the amount became payable (expiry of the specified compliance period), and subsequent recovery demand notices do not alter that commencement date. (AI Summary)

Balance-sheet entries can extend limitation by constituting an acknowledgement of debt under section 18 of the Limitation Act.
Section 238A of the IBC imports the Limitation Act into insolvency proceedings, and Article 137 supplies a three-year limitation. Entries in audited financial statements can amount to an acknowledgement of debt under section 18 of the Limitation Act where context-continuity across balance sheets, cash flow disclosures, and a dated board-signed statement-demonstrates a subsisting liability, thereby recomputing limitation from the date of that acknowledgement. (AI Summary)

Professionals in litigation should prioritize faith in law and strict adherence to due process over expediency.
Professionals in litigation should adopt faith in law, treating adherence to statutory procedure and due process as a professional and ethical imperative; when legislation prescribes a procedure, authorities must not deviate, and professionals have a duty to question and resist such departures while using available rights and safeguards to enforce procedural compliance. (AI Summary)

GST rate rationalization reshapes tax incidence and credit flows, with transitional input tax and cess set off challenges emerging.
GST reforms 2.0 implement comprehensive rate rationalization favoring lower taxation of essentials and higher taxation of luxuries, intended to boost consumption, manufacturing, services and indirect tax revenues, improve ease of doing business, and benefit sectors like real estate and MSMEs. The reforms raise transitional issues: accumulated input tax credit reversal on unsold inventory, emergence of inverted duty structure, and loss of set off following withdrawal of compensation cess, matters that may require administrative relief and further procedural measures. (AI Summary)

Advance Authorization versus Duty Drawback: duty treatment and compliance determine exporter cash flow and scheme suitability.
The document contrasts Advance Authorization, which allows duty free import of inputs for manufacturers subject to export obligations and value addition requirements, with Duty Drawback, which refunds customs duties paid on imported inputs used in exported goods. Advance Authorization lowers input costs and benefits manufacturers but entails complex documentation and strict export obligations; Duty Drawback is procedurally simpler and available to all exporters but requires upfront duty payment and may refund less than the duty initially paid. (AI Summary)

Stock discrepancy during GST survey: Section 130 not proper; use Sections 73/74 for tax recovery instead.
The Supreme Court held that stock discrepancies found during a survey cannot sustain confiscation and penalty proceedings under Section 130; such matters must be pursued by assessment and recovery under Sections 73 or 74. The Court dismissed the Revenue's SLP upholding the High Court's quashing of Section 130 orders, while noting the Revenue remains free to invoke other remedies if the correct statutory procedures and safeguards under Sections 73/74 are followed. (AI Summary)

GST show cause notices must be issued per tax period; financial years cannot be clubbed into a single notice.
Show cause notices must be issued according to the applicable tax period; where based on annual returns the notice is confined to that financial year, while notices based on monthly returns relate to monthly tax periods. Limitation periods run separately from the last date for filing the annual return for each financial year, so notices cannot be clubbed to cover more than one financial year. (AI Summary)

GST appeals require online filing in GST APL-05, timely pre-deposit, power of attorney, and strict procedural compliance.
Appeals before the GST Appellate Tribunal must be filed online using form GST APL-05 within 90 days with the prescribed pre-deposit, proper state bench selection, and compliance with CGST Rules 109-113 and GSTAT (Procedure) Rules, 2025; separate appeals are required for each order or affected person, power of attorney/authorisation must be filed, appeals must be in English with translations where needed, and drafting must include numbered grounds, facts, indexed documents and simultaneous service of appeal and relied documents to respondents and the Commissioner. (AI Summary)

Pre-GST precedents may guide classification, valuation and input tax credit interpretation but require cautious, context-specific use.
Pre-GST judgments may be instructive for enduring interpretive issues-such as classification, valuation and input tax credit-and for some constitutional or jurisdictional questions, but their applicability is constrained by GST's destination-based model, integrated input tax credit mechanism and novel provisions; reliance on earlier decisions requires context-specific adaptation to GST's statutory text and distinct policy framework. (AI Summary)

Retrospective cancellation of GST registration void when show cause notice is vague; registration must be restored.
Retrospective GST registration cancellation is unlawful where the show cause notice fails to expressly propose retrospective cancellation or to specify the exact allegations, because such vagueness deprives the taxpayer of an effective opportunity to defend; the defect is jurisdictional and incurable on appeal, warranting setting aside of retrospective cancellation, restoration of registration, and reconsideration of related applications in accordance with law. (AI Summary)

Minimum Import Price applies to MOOWR imports regardless of export intent, unless DGFT issues a specific exemption.
MIP restrictions operate as a non tariff entry control imposed by DGFT and therefore apply at import irrespective of customs duty deferment under the MOOWR scheme; without an explicit DGFT exemption, MOOWR users must comply with MIP because the restriction aims to prevent market distortion, diversion risks, and grey market leakage even where goods are intended for export. (AI Summary)

Tax adjudication must balance fairness, legality and efficiency, ensuring natural justice and clear reasoning in decisions.
Tax adjudication requires balancing natural justice, legality, and efficiency: tax and quasi judicial authorities must provide fair hearings, avoid bias, and issue speaking orders; taxation must rest on clear statutory authority to ensure legal certainty and prevent arbitrary or retrospective taxation; res judicata applies with qualification in tax matters, while judicial discipline demands subordinate adherence to higher courts' precedents to preserve finality and predictability. (AI Summary)