High seas sale transaction value: actual last buyer contract price governs assessment; importer must prove chain of sales.
The actual high seas sale contract price paid by the last buyer constitutes the transaction value under Rule 4 of the Customs Valuation Rules, 1988 when the immediate sale was intended as an export to the country of importation; notional additions of standard high seas charges are inappropriate. The importer must prove the chain of high seas sales by producing original invoice, sale contracts and details of service charges/commissions; if declared value is doubtful, the Department may reject it and apply sequential valuation methods.

Standard letter of offer disclosures strengthened; companies and merchant bankers must use approved format and file as required.
Prescribes a mandatory standardized standard letter of offer consolidating Schedule III disclosures and additional material information authorized under clause 25 of Schedule III, and requires companies and merchant bankers to prepare and file draft letters of offer in the approved format in accordance with the Regulations; the format and guidelines are available on SEBI's website.

Notification amendment: corporate name replaced, requiring transmission to registrars and administrative acknowledgement.
Amendment to a prior Gazette notification substitutes the corporate name State Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra Limited with SICOM Limited; the circular transmits the Gazette notification to Regional Directors and Registrars of Companies for information and action and requests acknowledgement of receipt.

High-seas sale valuation: actual high-seas contract price governs customs assessment when it exceeds CIF plus sales charges.
For high-seas sales the transaction on the high seas is the relevant transaction and the last buyer is the importer; declared high-seas sales charges are added to CIF (generally treated as two percent of CIF unless actual charges are higher), and where the actual high-seas sale contract price is known and exceeds CIF plus sales charges, that actual contract price is to be taken as the customs value for assessment.

ESOP acquisition liberalisation: residents may buy and sell foreign ESOP shares subject to repatriation of sale proceeds.
Resident individuals employed by Indian offices or branches of majority foreign owned companies may acquire foreign securities under ESOPs without a concessional price condition, and may sell those shares without prior permission so long as the sale proceeds are repatriated to India; Authorised Dealers must permit remittances for acquisition per the offer and allow repatriation of proceeds, with implementing regulatory amendments to follow under FEMA authority.

Service tax TR-6 challan compliance: mandated data fields, preprinted yellow forms, and bank screening to ensure valid payments.
Assessees must complete TR-6 Challans exactly as prescribed: enter the PAN-based STC and, if allotted, the 10-digit ECC (updating earlier ECC prefixes), bank branch name and code, reduced accounting code for the relevant minor head, running serial number for the year, and tenderer's date, name and signature. Use only preprinted yellow TR-6s and the prescribed minor/sub-heads; do not enter Service Tax Registration numbers in the PAN-based STC field. Focal point banks shall preliminarily screen and refuse incomplete or improperly filled challans; assessees bear responsibility for non-acceptance and resultant non-payment or delays.

CENVAT credit on light diesel oil: department to file SLP and keep show cause notices pending to safeguard revenue.
CENVAT credit on stock of Light Diesel Oil is under challenge after a departmental circular was set aside by the High Court; the Department will file a Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court. Pending that appeal, unadjudicated show cause notices are to be kept pending, and other show cause notices may be issued to safeguard revenue but kept pending.

Import exemption for drugs under advance licensing allows bulk drug imports without manufacturing site registration or import licence.
Imports of approved and unapproved drugs under the Advance Licensing Scheme are exempt from the Drugs and Cosmetics registration procedure. The circular clarifies that bulk drugs imported under Para 4.2.7 of the EXIM Policy, 2002-07 may be imported without manufacturing site registration and without the import licence required by the cited Ministry of Health notification.

CENVAT credit year end treatment risks double benefit when unutilized credits are expensed yet retained for future excise use.
The circular warns that unutilized CENVAT credit debited as expenditure in Profit and Loss accounts, yet retained in CENVAT accounts for later use, can create unintended double benefits under Central Excise and Income Tax laws. It notes this risk arises particularly with inverted duty structures and instructs field formations to inform Income Tax authorities where such credits have not been written off and for audit parties to monitor year end CENVAT balances.

Straight Through Processing: mandatory digitally signed trade instructions with centralized hub routing and verified acknowledgments.
STP requires STP users to digitally sign instructions; sending STP service providers verify signatures and either forward to a co provider or encapsulate and sign messages for the STP centralized hub. The centralized hub verifies the provider's signature, acknowledges receipt, signs and forwards messages to recipient providers, which verify signatures, confirm recipient association and return signed acknowledgments via the hub. The recipient provider delivers the message to the user, who verifies provider and originator signatures. The hub will supply utility/client software for interface; PKI implementation is planned for a later stage.

Import prohibition of hazardous wastes mandates verification, testing, and re-export, destruction or regulated recycling under supervision.
Imports of listed banned hazardous items are prohibited and Notification under the Customs Act has been issued. Port and Customs authorities must verify consignments against authenticated Form 7 from the exporter before clearance and ensure laboratory testing follows criteria prescribed by the pollution control authority. Importers of used oil, furnace oil and zinc wastes must furnish bank guarantees released only after conformity is established. Banned wastes must be re-exported or destroyed at importer's risk; regulated wastes may be released or auctioned to registered recyclers only with Monitoring Committee clearance and supervision.

Acceptance of NRI deposits restricted to NRO-account debits for non-authorised entities; remittance-origin or NRE/FCNR(B) debits barred.
Non-authorised persons may accept NRI deposits only by debit to NRO accounts provided such amounts are not inward remittances or transfers from NRE/FCNR(B) accounts; deposits from inward remittances or by debit to NRE/FCNR(B) accounts are prohibited. Existing NRI deposits with non-authorised entities may be held and renewed, and interest on those deposits remains repatriable.

Dividend payout ratio cap limits bank dividend distributions; payouts within the cap require prudential compliance, higher sums need approval.
Regulatory guidance shifts focus to a dividend payout ratio, allowing banks that satisfy minimum prudential criteria-sustained capital adequacy, limited net NPA, statutory and regulatory compliance, adequate provisioning and no explicit RBI restrictions-to declare dividends without prior approval provided payouts are from current profits and within the prudential cap; extraordinary items and adverse auditor qualifications must be excluded or adjusted when computing the ratio. Higher dividends or declarations by non eligible banks require prior RBI approval. Reporting to the Reserve Bank within a fortnight is mandatory.

Digitally signed circulars required for regulatory amendments; registered intermediaries must provide email ids to receive electronic issuance.
Circulars amending the SEBI (Disclosure and Investor Protection) Guidelines, 2000 will be issued only as digitally signed circulars in conformity with the Information Technology Act, 2000; registered intermediaries must provide email ids for mailing-list registration, physical dispatch will be discontinued, electronic versions will be posted on the website, and original physical circulars will be retained for inspection or copying.

Export controls on plants require no-objection and cultivation certificates to accompany export documentation for wild and cultivated consignments.
Export consignments of plants, plant parts, derivatives and extracts must be accompanied by a No Objection Certificate from the appropriate wildlife or forest authority; cultivated material from non-forest areas may be exported on production of a Cultivation Certificate from the District Agriculture or Horticulture Officer, with forest/wildlife authorities still issuing transport and CITES permits where applicable. Required certificates must accompany export documentation in strict compliance with the Exim Policy and DGFT notification.

Special currency basket revision for deferred payments updates rupee conversion and directs authorised dealers to implement changes.
Revision of the rupee valuation mechanism for payments under the Deferred Payment Protocols with the erstwhile USSR by administrative circular; Authorised Dealers are directed to apply the revised rupee value of the special currency basket from the stated effective date, notify constituents, and implement the change under statutory foreign exchange powers.

Settlement sequencing: rules require sequential clearing, rapid inter-depository transfers, and prompt client payout after exchange holidays.
Stock Exchanges must clear and settle trades sequentially so that pay-in and pay-out of an earlier settlement are completed before commencing the next; cash and securities from the first settlement must be made available to members for subsequent pay-ins. Depositories shall facilitate inter-depository transfers within one hour and before pay-in for the subsequent settlement begins. Clearing Corporations shall execute an Auto DO facility to make funds and securities available on the same day. Brokers/clearing members must transfer securities from CM pool accounts to client beneficiary accounts within one working day after pay-out, with a weekly penalty for delays.

Amendment to Handbook updates recognized ISO 9000 certification and inspection agencies, adding and correcting agency listings.
The Director General of Foreign Trade amends the Handbook of Procedures (Vol. I) to add Germanischer Lloyd Certification GmbH and its Indian representative to Appendix 28A of recognized IS/ISO 9000 certification agencies, amends the address/contact details of International Certifications Services (Asia) Pvt Ltd in Appendix 28A, and updates Appendix 28 by providing contact information for BSI Inspectorate Ltd.

Extension of procedural time limit implemented affecting prescribed days in Handbook of Procedure provisions to align export import timelines.
The Public Notice amends the Handbook of Procedure (Vol. I) by changing the period specified in paragraphs 4.69, 4.76.1, 4.77.2 and 4.78.1 from 120 days to 180 days, effecting a procedural modification to the timelines referenced under the Export and Import Policy.

Trade credit rules: short maturities for general imports, extended terms allowed only for capital goods with reporting obligations.
ADs may approve trade credits (suppliers' or buyers' credit) with original maturity up to one year for all EXIM-permissible imports; maturities exceeding one year and less than three years are permitted only for imports of capital goods. Trade credits of three years or more fall under External Commercial Borrowings. ADs may not approve credits beyond the per-transaction ceiling, may not roll-over beyond permissible maturity, and must observe prescribed all-in-cost ceilings. ADs must submit monthly consolidated Form TC reports with unique identification numbers and follow specified data formats.