Customs area designation for Inland Container Depot at Ankleshwar; operations commence at the newly notified location.
Designation of an additional area of the Inland Container Depot (ICD) of M/s. Container Corporation of India Ltd. at Ankleshwar as a Customs area, located Near Railway Station, Old National Highway No.8, Ankleshwar, Bharuch, Gujarat, supplementing Notification No.07/2017-Customs; the ICD's operations at the newly notified location commence with effect from 15/06/2017.

Customs area relocation shifts all fresh import and export processing to the new ICD site while enabling a limited transitional clearance window.
A notification under Section 8 designates a new Customs notified area for ICD Ankleshwar; fresh imports and new export filings and carting are to be processed at the new area from the effective date, with limited exceptions allowing completion of processes initiated at the old area within specified cut off windows. The operator will shift pending, seized and bonded containers to the new site at its own cost, Customs will operate both sites temporarily, EDI will be shut down to enable the shift, and the old area will be de notified after the transition period.

Margin trading regulation: revised eligibility, margin methodology and disclosure rules tighten broker prudential and reporting obligations.
SEBI's revised framework permits Margin Trading Facility only in Group I equities, prescribes initial margins as VaR plus specified multiples of applicable ELM with permitted forms of margin and haircuts, and requires separate identification and daily mark-to-market of collateral and funded stocks; brokers must maintain continuous margins, make margin calls, and may liquidate only under conditions set out in a mandatory Rights and Obligations document. Brokers offering the facility must meet a minimum net worth, may borrow only from scheduled commercial banks or regulated NBFCs, observe leverage and per-client exposure caps, maintain detailed records and auditor certifications, and comply with daily disclosure requirements to exchanges which will publish scrip-wise gross outstanding exposures.

Investor Protection Fund rules updated - revised trusteeship, funding sources and claim eligibility for commodity exchange investors.
The circular prescribes IPF Trust composition, funding from designated penalties and turnover fee contributions, claim eligibility and prioritisation where defaulter member assets are inadequate, and procedures where the defaulters' committee assesses legitimate claims and advises the IPF Trust which may disburse upon claim crystallization without awaiting asset realizations. It also mandates establishment and funding of ISF for investor service centers, supervised use of IPF income for investor education, separate bank accounts for IPF and ISF, and requires exchanges to amend bye laws and report implementation.

State code alignment with GSTN requires importers to use revised Census-based codes in ICES declarations.
Alignment of State Codes in ICES with Census-based GSTN codes requires importers and brokers to use revised state codes in Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills; the NIC RES package has been updated and the revised codes are listed in Annexure I. Traders must adopt the new codes for correct capture of State of Origin and State Code for VAT/GST registration, and report implementation difficulties to the System Manager/ADC (EDI) JNCH or the supplied electronic contact.

Use of PAN as IEC simplifies importer exporter identification and requires PAN quoting in trade documents after GST implementation.
PAN will be used as the entity's IEC after GST implementation; GSTIN remains the transaction level identifier where registered. New IEC applicants will have PAN authorized as IEC, residuary categories will use DGFT authorized identifiers, and DGFT will migrate existing IEC records to PAN without action by current IEC holders. Importers and exporters must quote PAN in future trade documentation from the notified date.

Authorized Economic Operator exemption from sample drawal extended to lower-tier holders for drawback, subject to intelligence-based exceptions.
Exemption is granted from the requirement to draw samples for grant of drawback to exporters holding Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) certification, extended to holders of the lower certification tier. The exemption is subject to exception where specific information or intelligence warrants drawal of samples, and stakeholders are invited to report difficulties to the issuing office.

Non applicability of rent withholding on passenger service fees affirmed; tax department to stop pursuing appeals.
Payments characterized as Passenger Service Fee remitted by airlines to airport operators do not constitute "rent" for tax deduction at source purposes because incidental or ancillary use of land or buildings while providing services does not satisfy the primary requirement of payment for use of land or building; the revenue board has accepted this view and directed cessation or withdrawal of appeals on the issue.

Advance tax exclusion from seized-assets adjustment is prospective, so pre-amendment cases should not be appealed.
An amendment excluded advance tax from liabilities against which seized or requisitioned assets may be adjusted; courts have held that exclusion to be prospective, and the Department accepts that seized cash cannot be applied to advance tax for periods before the amendment, so appeals in pre-amendment cases should not be pursued and existing appeals withdrawn.

Trade advances not treated as deemed dividend where bona fide commercial transactions-department instructed to stop filing appeals.
Section 2(22)(e) treats certain payments by closely held companies as deemed dividends to the extent of accumulated profits. Judicial decisions have held that bona fide trade advances and commercial transactions-such as advances adjusted against job-work dues, advances for enabling contract performance, or security deposits in the ordinary course of business-do not constitute an "advance" under section 2(22)(e). Consequently, the tax department will cease filing appeals on this ground and may withdraw or not press existing appeals.

Document and File Management requirement: customs brokers must attach custom copy coupon and deliver dockets to docks at LEO.
Customs Brokers must attach the custom copy of the coupon to each Shipping Bill docket and, at the time of Let Export Order (LEO), hand the complete docket to officers of the Docks section for entry into the Document and File Management System. This modifies paragraph 4 of the earlier public notice; all other procedures in that notice remain unchanged.

GST Council raises composition threshold to Rs.75 lakh, approves targeted GST rate changes and notifications to operationalise GST rules.
The GST Council adopted corrections to earlier minutes, approved amended Accounts and Records Rules (including electronic access and limited logging), authorised bank-based authentication subject to IT Act conformity, raised the Composition Scheme threshold to Rs.75 lakh with a negative list for manufacturers, approved multiple item-specific GST rate adjustments (including insulin at a reduced rate, exemption for children's colouring books, bamboo furniture at a lower rate, and concessional treatment for certain job-work services), approved specified service exemptions where government bears full cost, maintained reverse charge for legal and sponsorship services while exempting individuals from registration, and directed staged notification of multiple CGST and IGST sections to operationalise the Rules and exempt fully reverse-charge suppliers from registration.

Permanent Account Number requirement for GST migration: PAN mandatory for all registrants including government entities to obtain GSTIN.
Migration to the GST framework requires a Permanent Account Number issued under the Income Tax Act for eligibility to register; only PAN-based and PAN-validated Central Excise and Service Tax registrations can be migrated. Government departments, PSUs and local bodies lacking PAN-based CE/ST registrations must obtain PAN and convert their registrations to PAN-based status to receive a Provisional ID/GSTIN from the GST network.

GST Facilitation Cell established to serve as first point of contact for GST-related issues under Foreign Trade Policy.
A GST Facilitation Cell is established in the Regional Office to serve as the first point of contact for addressing GST-related issues arising under the Foreign Trade Policy; the Cell's composition is specified with the Head of Office as Chairman, a Member Secretary, and an FTDO (IEC) as Member to receive and coordinate stakeholder queries and facilitate resolution during GST rollout.

Warehousing procedure: EDI Bills, bond and security requirements, one time lock movement, and Re Warehousing Certificate process enforced.
Revised warehousing procedure requires importers to file EDI Warehousing Bills of Entry, furnish triple duty bonds and applicable additional security, and obtain bond acceptance before computerized and hard copy endorsement permits movement to warehouses. Goods must be forwarded under a One Time Lock and verified on arrival by the warehouse Bond Officer who issues a Re Warehousing Certificate reporting discrepancies to Bond Superintendent. Periodic warehouse reports enable closure of registry and EDI warehousing Bills of Entry; consolidated ex bond EDI Bills of Entry are required for final bond cancellation, with DC/Bond Section monitoring bond entry, closure, and extensions.

Newsprint control amendment updates an indigenous manufacturer's registered name in the Schedule to reflect a new corporate name.
Amendment to the Newsprint Control Order, 2004 substitutes in the Schedule the name at serial number 46, replacing "M/s. V. G. Paper & Boards Limited" with "M/s. Venkatalakshmi Paper and Boards Private Limited," thereby updating the registered name of an indigenous newsprint manufacturer within the regulatory Schedule.

GST Facilitation Cell established to address GST issues under the Foreign Trade Policy and serve as first point of contact.
Constitution of a GST Facilitation Cell in DGFT Headquarter and Regional Offices to act as the first point of contact for addressing GST-related issues under the Foreign Trade Policy; Headquarter Cell led by Addl. DGFT Nikunj Kumar Srivastava with Joint DGFT Rakesh Kumar and Dy. DGFT Kaushlendra Pratap Singh as members and contact details provided; Regional Authorities instructed to establish similar Cells for local stakeholder access.

Rotation Number Generation facility enables registered shipping lines to self-generate vessel rotation identifiers after secure OTP authentication.
An online ICEGATE facility allows registered shipping lines/agents with digital signatures to self-generate vessel Rotation Numbers by completing a web form supplying Customs Location Code, IMO Code, Voyage Number, Master's Name, Shipping Line and Agent Codes, Next Port of Call, and Expected Date of Arrival; the Rotation Number is produced upon submission and one-time password authentication. Users can monitor rotation status under secure login and a public inquiry option is provided for casual trade visitors; operational issues are to be reported to the Deputy Commissioner of Customs (EDI).

Port terminal operator responsibility: containers with pre gate approval must not be shut out; re export arranged without extra cost.
Port terminal operators must ensure containers that enter the Parking Plaza within prescribed timelines and receive pre gate approval in the Terminal Operating System are not shut out unless the trailer fails to enter the terminal within four hours of pre gate approval and all other formalities are not complied with. Exporters must plan to meet cut off times, and if a compliant consignment is shut out, terminal operators and shipping lines must arrange its export at the earliest opportunity without charging the exporter additional costs.

DTA treatment of deemed-export goods: domestic supplies treated as imports and customs duty required on clearance.
Indigenous goods supplied to EOU/EPZ/SEZ/EHTP/STP units after availing deemed export benefits are to be treated as imported goods and subject to applicable customs duty (with depreciation on capital goods) on clearance to DTA or exit. Once customs duty is paid on such clearance, there is no requirement to refund deemed export benefits or to produce a Development Commissioner's certificate regarding refund or non availment. Alternatively, units may opt to clear on payment of excise duty only upon production of the DC certificate confirming refund or non availment.