Deposit of specified bank notes on arrival: declaration, Customs verification and RBI submission are required under the Ordinance.
An Ordinance rendered certain high denomination bank notes non legal tender and created penal liabilities while allowing a limited grace period for tendering by residents and non residents subject to Foreign Exchange import restrictions. Arriving passengers carrying such notes must complete a prescribed declaration form, have Customs strictly count and stamp the form, and submit it to specified Reserve Bank offices for deposit; Customs are to retain records, facilitate the process at entry points and coordinate publicity and staffing.

Pending drawback claims require EDI query responses and documents, failing which matters may be finalised on departmental records.
Pending drawback claims require exporters to answer EDI/ICEGATE queries and submit required physical documents before processing. Claims are to be finalised through the normal procedure. If an exporter or customs broker fails to provide EDI replies and documents, a show-cause notice setting out the grounds and a personal-hearing date will be issued. Failure to reply within 15 days of receipt permits finalisation of the drawback matter on available departmental records.

Tariff rate quota allocation for raw sugar to USA permits export subject to export duty and certification requirements.
A quantity of raw sugar from the non-levy (Free Sale) quota is allocated for export to the USA under the Tariff Rate Quota for the US fiscal year 2017, available up to 30 September 2017; such exports are 'Free' under the governing notification but subject to the 20% export duty effective 16 June 2016, with Certificate of Origin issued by the Additional Director General of Foreign Trade, Mumbai, and applicable reporting requirements to be followed.

EU GSP REX: exporters must register to self certify origin; consignments over 6000 require REX statements.
The Public Notice notifies implementation of the Registered Exporter (REX) system for EU GSP self certification from 1 January 2017. Exporters may register without fee; registered exporters may self issue statements on origin on commercial documents to claim GSP preferences. A twelve month transition allows competent authorities to issue Form A until 31 December 2017; from 1 January 2018 consignments above EUR 6,000 require a REX statement by a registered exporter for preferential treatment. Competent authorities will register exporters, assign REX numbers, maintain records and perform verifications.

Pre-shipment inspection agency recognition: National Marine Consultants added to Appendix 2G, authorised to issue PSICs under policy.
National Marine Consultants Inc., USA is included in Appendix 2G as a Pre-Shipment Inspection Agency under Para 2.55(d) of HBP 2015-20, authorised to issue Pre-Shipment Inspection Certificates with immediate effect for listed territories. The recognition is for a fixed term from the date of the public notice. An annexure records the agency's approved spectrometers and survey meters with calibration and purchase documentation required for PSIC issuance.

MEIS benefit extension for onion exports under specified HS code extends incentive eligibility through end of March.
Extension of the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) benefit for Onions Fresh or Chilled under ITC (HS) code 07031010 maintains the notified FOB-based incentive rate for an additional three-month period ending 31 March 2017, preserving exporter eligibility to claim the MEIS incentive for shipments of the specified commodity made within that extended period.

Continuous disclosures by REITs: mandated financial, audit, manager fee and investor protection reporting obligations to exchanges.
REITs must make ongoing disclosures of financial and non financial information to stock exchanges: half yearly and annual financials prepared on accrual basis under Ind AS (standalone and consolidated) with specified timelines and comparative periods; key condensed financial statements, statements of Net Distributable Cash Flows, manager fee disclosures, auditor qualified impact statements, and auditor review/audit requirements. Non financial obligations include simplified listing agreements, periodic unit holding patterns, annual credit rating reviews, a timely updated website, investor grievance reporting, and quarterly statements of deviations in use of issue proceeds until full utilisation.

Duty Credit Scrips eligibility: LEO date governs export incentive claims, treating LEO as Date of Export for Chapter 3 benefits.
Claims for Chapter 3 Duty Credit Scrips are permitted where the LEO date is on or prior to 31.03.2015 even if the Date of Export is on or after 01.04.2015, with the LEO date to be treated as the Date of Export; this follows para 9.12 HBP 2009-14's protection for consignments handed to Customs, and the online module has been updated. Applications filed within the prescribed period will be exempt from the HBP late fee, while later filings will attract the applicable late fee.

Harmonized System update: new tariff nomenclature enters force and contact channels set for trade queries.
Update of the Harmonized System nomenclature will take effect on 1 January 2017 and the ICES BCD directory has been revised; a control room is established to receive trade queries, with EDI Section handling system issues and Appraising Main (Import/Export) handling tariff interpretation, and designated Groups/Sections and officers identified for sector-specific tariff queries.

WCO Harmonized System 2017 adoption: customs classifications must follow HSN2017 for all import and export filings from 01-01-2017.
Amendments in the Finance Act 2016 require adoption of the WCO Harmonized System (HSN) 2017 nomenclature in place of the 2012 version from 01 January 2017, comprising 233 tariff-line amendments across key sectors. Importers, exporters, customs brokers and other stakeholders must ensure classifications follow HSN 2017 when filing customs declarations for goods to be imported or exported on and after that date. Customs RES software providers must update their systems in line with HSN 2017; links to the Finance Act and the correlation table are provided for reference.

Call Book inclusion for show cause notices: transfer by revenue intelligence and preventive customs officers pending final Supreme Court disposal.
The Board directs that the Supreme Court's interim stay on the Delhi High Court judgment does not change administrative practice: all show cause notices covered by that judgment must remain in the Call Book until final disposal of the Department's SLP. Further, all SCNs issued by revenue intelligence, customs investigation and preventive formations seeking duty for prior-period claims and pending adjudication must be transferred to the Call Book irrespective of the SCN issuance date, pending final disposal of the SLP.

Combined annual return suspension: 2015 16 filing for Central Excise and Service Tax not required pending GST.
Combined filing obligations for Central Excise and Service Tax annual returns have been suspended for the financial year 2015 16; the Board declared that the combined Annual Return due for that year need not be filed in view of impending GST implementation, and indicated a post GST Annual Return may be required only for non GST goods pending consultations with trade.

Position limits for brokers and FPIs in stock derivatives revised to a set share of market-wide limit; exchanges to implement.
Combined futures and options positions for Stock Brokers, Category I & II FPIs, and Mutual Funds are limited to 20% of the applicable Market Wide Position Limit (MWPL); MWPL and client-level limits remain unchanged. Stock exchanges must amend systems and bye-laws, notify brokers, publish the change, and report implementation status to the regulator under its statutory market-regulation and investor-protection powers.

Income Disclosure Scheme, 2016: e Filing validates tax/TDS claims and requires numeric reconciliation before issuing Form 4.
Portal enhancements allow jurisdictional Commissioners to view MIS for Forms 1-4 and display dynamic mismatch reports from OLTAS and e Filing/26AS. Form 3 uploads validate challan and TAN/PAN data against OLTAS and TAN/PAN records; the latest cumulative Form 3 auto populates tax details for Form 4. "Issue Form 4" is enabled only when [(IDS tax per OLTAS) + (allowed TDS/TCS claim)] minus (tax liability per Form 2) is greater than -101 and less than 101, and issuance requires a digitally or manually signed PDF.

Voluntary disclosure scheme requires specified tax, surcharge, penalty and a locked deposit to regularise undisclosed income.
The circular explains a voluntary disclosure scheme permitting declaration of undisclosed cash or bank/post office account income chargeable to tax up to assessment years commencing on or before 1 April 2017. No deductions or set-offs are allowed against declared income. Declared taxpayers must pay tax at thirty per cent, a surcharge called Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Cess calculated at thirty-three per cent of that tax, penalty at ten per cent, and deposit at least twenty-five per cent into the PMGKY Deposit Scheme (no interest, four-year lock-in); payments and deposit must accompany the declaration.

Foreign Portfolio Investor access to non-convertible debentures permitted; direct transactions allowed under FEMA regulatory framework.
Eligible overseas investors may acquire non-convertible debentures/bonds either directly or in accordance with prevailing market practice on a repatriation basis, subject to existing regulatory terms and any specifications issued by the financial regulator and securities regulator. Category I authorised dealers must inform constituents, and the directions are issued under the foreign exchange statute without prejudice to other required permissions.

Empanelment of chartered engineers for valuation of imported second-hand machinery; advisory reports, one-year panel, applicant certification required.
Empanelment of Chartered Engineers for valuation of imported second-hand machinery and equipment requires affiliation to the Institution of Engineers (India), documented specialization and experience, submission of supporting certificates, and adherence to CBEC Circular No. 25/2015; empanelled engineers provide advisory certificates, bear service charges by importers, serve on a one-year reviewable panel, must submit periodic self-appraisals, and face removal or penalties for false information.

Disclosure of financial information requires REITs to include audited historical financials, interim updates, projections, NDCF and auditor certification.
Offer documents must present audited REIT financials for the last three completed years and, if required, interim statements not older than six months, prepared under Indian Accounting Standards and including balance sheet, profit and loss/income and expenditure, changes in unit holders' equity, cash flows, net assets at fair value, total returns at fair value and notes. Disclosures must cover property-wise rental income, earnings per unit, contingent liabilities, commitments, related party transactions, capitalisation statement, debt payment history, adjustments for errors or policy changes, and material-item disclosure under manager-determined materiality.

Removal of company names: e Form STK unavailable on portal, deployment pending and stakeholders notified of delay
The removal provisions of the Companies Act have been commenced and relevant rules notified to permit applications to the Registrar for striking off company names. The prescribed electronic filing medium, e Form STK 2, required for such applications is currently under development and not yet available on the MCA-21 portal; deployment is pending and stakeholders are asked to bear the inconvenience.

Private placement filing requirement: companies must submit PAS-4 and PAS-5 to SEBI as PDF on compact disc.
Companies issuing debt securities on private placement must use Form PAS-4 for the offer letter and maintain records in Form PAS-5; where listed, a copy of PAS-5 together with PAS-4 must be filed with the securities regulator within thirty days of circulation. Forms PAS-4 and PAS-5 shall be filed in PDF format only, submitted on a compact disc, pursuant to the regulator's powers under securities law and applicable issue-and-listing regulations.