Service tax reporting: monthly deposit notifications required to jurisdictional superintendent and central authority by prescribed deadline.
Assessees liable to Service Tax must intimate the amount of Service Tax deposited into the Government Account to the jurisdictional Superintendent of the Service Tax Cell on or before the fifteenth day of the month following the month to which the deposit relates, and monthly revenue collection reports are to be sent to the Director General of Service Tax as directed by the Ministry.

Licence validity extension and procedural amendments change import/export licence terms, revalidation, fees and benefit claim procedures.
Handbook amendments extend licence validity to 18 months and reclassify Special Import Licence as Special Imprest Licence with coterminous validity for projects; require original applications with TR/Demand Draft to regional licensing authorities and copies to DGFT for revalidation; correct benefit base from customs to excise duty saved; mandate additional EPCG fee where actual CIF exceeds licence CIF; permit extension requests subject to penalty on unfulfilled FOB measured against CIF of related imports; and modify SIL eligibility and numerous appendix and declaration requirements.

FOB value determination: include domestic transport to the land customs station, exclude international transport beyond it for drawback and DEPB.
FOB value for exports through land customs stations must include the cost of domestic transportation from the point of loading anywhere in India up to the Land Customs Station from which export is effected, while excluding the cost of international transportation beyond the Indian Land Customs Station; this rule applies for calculation of drawback and DEPB entitlements.

Import liberalisation from SAARC: designated ITC(HS) goods allowed freely subject to origin and new/prime condition.
The notice makes specified ITC(HS) classified goods freely importable from SAARC countries provided the goods are in new/prime condition and are of origin of those countries in accordance with the Customs Tariff (Determination of Origin under the Agreement on SAARC Preferential Trading Arrangement) Rules, 1995; Exim Codes refer to ITC(HS) Classification of Export and Import Items, 1997-2002.

Export restrictions on sandalwood oil require procurement certificates and DGFT authorisation before shipment completion.
Authorisation to export Sandalwood Oil is issued by the DGFT only after prospective exporters apply in the prescribed form and submit a confirmed export order or irrevocable letter of credit, valid RCMC and I.E. Code, and original Certificate(s) of Origin or Legal Procurement Certificate(s) in the prescribed format; physical verification of stocks by designated wildlife or forest officers and endorsement of the procurement certificates are required prior to issuance, and export must be completed by the prescribed year-end deadline.

Tax deduction at source quarterly reporting by foreign firms discontinued; payments to Indian residents remain subject to verification.
The administrative requirement that foreign companies and foreign law and accountancy firms without presence in India send quarterly statements of payments made to Indian residents is discontinued; the withholding obligation for payments for professional services remains, and payment details may be verified or collected as required.

One-time extension of export obligation allows regularisation of bonafide defaults upon payment of a composition fee.
One-time arrangements allow limited extensions of export obligation periods for Advance Licences to regularise bonafide defaults: Quantity Based licences with exports partly outside the obligation period may be regularised on payment of a composition fee on the F.O.B. value falling outside the period; licences with at least half obligation fulfilled may receive a final one-time extension on payment of a composition fee on the unfulfilled F.O.B. value, with yearly reckoning from expiry. Extensions are denied for cases involving fraud, enforcement action, or adjudication; Regional Licensing Authorities grant extensions upon prescribed submissions.

Bonded warehouse scheme: permits private/public bonded storage for diamond and gemstone import, re export and regulated DTA sale.
Private/public bonded warehouses in DTA/EPZ may hold imported diamonds and gemstones for import, re export and permitted DTA sale under REP/GEM REP/Diamond Imprest Licences subject to customs duty. Rough diamonds are treated as dutiable for regulatory control. REP/GEM REP/Diamond Imprest Licence holders and EOUs/EPZ units may clear goods on filing ex bond Bills of Entry; Diamond Imprest Licence holders must execute bonds equal to duty leviable and may maintain running bond accounts. Warehouse licence holders are responsible for custody, delivery, record keeping and maintaining Bond/Stock registers per prescribed Annexures.

Export quota release allows sugar shipments to EEC and USA under preferential terms with sole authorised agency and inspection.
Release of a specified export ceiling from the free sale quota authorises export of white and raw sugar to the EEC and the USA under a preferential arrangement with destination-specific allocations. A single entity is appointed as the sole authorised agency to execute exports against that ceiling, and all shipments under the arrangement are subject to prescribed pre-shipment certification and inspection prior to export.

Service tax collection procedures: nominated public sector banks must collect, account and refund service tax under existing CBEC/RBI banking rules.
The RBI Revised Memorandum of Instructions for collection, reporting, accounting and payment of refunds by public sector bank branches applies mutatis mutandis to service tax receipts credited to Head of Account 0044-Service Tax. Assessees must deposit service tax using the prescribed Form TR 6 challan in quadruplicate by the monthly deadline, and banks nominated under the CBEC collection scheme shall accept and process these deposits under CBEC accounting and reporting procedures.

Applicability of DTAA: India-China tax treaty does not extend to Hong Kong due to HKSAR autonomy.
The DTAA between India and the People's Republic of China does not automatically extend to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; the Sino British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law recognise HKSAR authority to conclude economic and financial agreements and financial autonomy, and the Central People's Government decides whether Chinese international agreements apply to Hong Kong after consulting the region, therefore the India-China treaty is not applicable to Hong Kong.

Anti-dumping duty extended to Acrylic Tow and Acrylic Top, enabling review of prior clearances and ensuring duty collection.
Acrylic Tow and Acrylic Top are declared subject to anti-dumping duty as extensions of the existing levy on acrylic fibre; the Board, with the Ministry of Commerce, clarified these product forms fall within the scope of that levy. Past clearances may be reviewed and departmental measures should ensure anti-dumping duty is collected where applicable.

Provisional DEPB shipments allowed by Customs for qualifying perishable exports pending formal rate notification.
Customs may allow provisional exports under the DEPB scheme for perishable marine products pending notification of DEPB rates, provided the exports fall within the relevant Standard Input Output Norms. The forthcoming public notice setting DEPB rates will also cover shipments effected during the interim period prior to that notice, regularizing their treatment under the scheme.

Depreciation rules for computers allow increased cumulative allowance and prescribe accelerated quarterly rates for debonded capital goods.
Depreciation for debonded capital goods distinguishes computers and other capital goods with prescribed quarterly rates and cumulative limits-computers subject to a 90% overall cap and other capital goods to a 75% cap. The depreciation period runs from commissioning in the EOU/EPZ/EHTP/STP until clearance to DTA. Depreciation is computed by the straight line method; second hand imported goods use the assessed import value as the base. If sale proceeds on partial debonding exceed the depreciated value, the transaction value may be taken as the assessable value for duty.

Duty exemption for hanger size tabs permitted, enabling duty-free import when used with hangers for export.
Size-identification tabs affixed to garment hangers qualify as hanger labels and are covered by the hanger-accessories exemption; such size tabs imported for use with hangers destined for export may be allowed duty-free under the same notification permitting bona fide importers to import hangers without duty. Implementation difficulties should be reported to the Board.

Non availment of Modvat certificates: documentary and self declaration rules govern acceptance for duty drawback claims processing.
Guidelines require documentary proof of non availment of Modvat for duty drawback claims: certified AR 4 or factory Superintendent certificates for bonded or rebate exports; biannual Assistant Commissioner certificates for dutiable exports without AR 4; self declarations for unconditionally exempt goods or manufacturers outside excise control with possible annual certification; Trade Notices listing exempt goods to relieve certificate requirements; association certificates for unregistered cottage manufacturers; and limitations for merchant exporters sourcing from the open market.

Import procedure for nominated agencies: bonded vault storage with bond security, exporter registration, monthly reporting and duty safeguards.
Nominated Agencies may import gold, silver and platinum into licensed bonded vaults on furnishing a bond to account for warehoused metal and to meet duty liability if export obligations are unmet. Agencies may use general or revolving bonds, are exempt from separate bank guarantees and double lock requirements, must segregate duty free and duty paid stocks, permit co storage with segregation, and remain subject to random audits. Exporters must register and produce a certificate or declaration; agencies submit consolidated monthly exporter wise statements and must deposit duty for unexported quantities promptly and report failures to the Customs Commissioner.

Taxation of foreign telecasting companies: guidelines extended to apply to all pending cases until further orders.
Circular No. 765 extends the guidelines for the taxation and computation of income of foreign telecasting companies issued earlier in Circular No. 742, directing that those guidelines apply to all pending cases irrespective of the assessment year until further orders.

DEPB credit rates notified for specified export product groups, replacing earlier rates and effective from the notification date.
Notification under delegated authority consolidates and replaces prior DEPB credit rates by incorporating an Annexure into Appendix 28A (Handbook of Procedures Vol. I, RE 98) effective for exports on or after the notification date. The Annexure sets product specific DEPB percentages and, where applicable, value caps for entitlement calculation across product groups (Engineering/Plastic, Food, Miscellaneous, Textiles, Electronics, Leather, Handicraft, Sports Goods), and the notice includes a corrigendum amending descriptions, rates, additions and deletions applicable to listed items.

Standard Input Output Norms update prescribes targeted substitutions, additions and quantity rules for export input entitlement.
The Public Notice amends the Handbook of Procedure Vol. II by deleting, substituting and adding specified SION entries and notes. It prescribes corrected import input descriptions, alternative inputs, amended input quantities, net to net provisions and value based limits, organized across Chemicals, Electronics, Engineering, Food, Plastics, Textiles and Miscellaneous product categories. Annexures A-G enumerate the detailed operative changes and new SION entries with their constituent inputs, quantities and explanatory notes for implementation.