Declaration filing extension under PM Garib Kalyan Yojana allows late Form No.1 submission if bank payment was made by March end.
Where taxpayers have paid the tax, surcharge, penalty and deposit under the Scheme but banks have not provided Challan Identification Numbers or deposit reference numbers, preventing upload of Form No.1, taxpayers who made such payments at banks by the closing hours of 31st March, 2017 are permitted to file the declaration in Form No.1 under the Scheme by 10th April, 2017.

Jurisdictional authority for SEZ refunds and demands shifts to customs and GST commissioners, altering refund processing and recovery.
Amendment to Rule 47 of the Special Economic Zone Rules assigns refund, demand, adjudication, review and appeal to jurisdictional Customs, Central Excise, Service Tax or GST authorities prospectively. A prescribed SOP requires refund claims to be filed with jurisdictional DC/AC, with Development Commissioner comments due within two weeks and speaking orders on sanction; draft demands are prepared by Development Commissioner offices and transferred with relied upon documents to jurisdictional DC/AC at least eight weeks before limitation expiry. Pending refunds that meet limitation and merit should be processed by customs officers; interest is calculated from receipt by jurisdictional formations. Exit duty liabilities are subject to SEZ exit provisions, with penal action by the Development Commissioner for specified foreign exchange failures, while duty demands are raised by jurisdictional authorities under the SOP.

Right to Information appeal and complaint procedures clarified, fixing filing requirements, fees, service rules and enforcement mechanisms.
The Right to Information Rules, 2017 establish procedural mechanisms for implementing the Act: definitions and institutional designations; a prescribed application fee and fee structure with exemption for persons below poverty line; multiple payment modes; detailed filing requirements, authentication and formats for appeals, complaints and non-compliance reports; rules for service and proof of service; criteria for return of defective filings and condonation of delay; Commission powers to receive evidence, inspect records, hear parties and third parties; bench allocation and hearing modalities; and language and seal provisions.

Import controls on un-shredded metal scrap require clearance through designated seaports and pre-inspection certificates from country of origin.
Imports of un-shredded metallic scrap must clear through notified designated seaports; ICDs may handle clearance only if consignments pass through those seaports. Import consignments require a pre-inspection certificate from the country of origin, superseding the earlier provision in Public Notice No. 23/2015-20, although the Pre-Shipment Inspection Certification requirement will be reviewed when the mechanism under Public Notice No. 38/2016 is operationalised and risk is assessed.

Deferred payment of customs duty available to certified AEO importers subject to ICEGATE login and nodal OTP authentication.
Deferred payment of customs duty is available only to AEO Tier-Two and Tier-Three importers who obtain ICEGATE login and nominate a nodal person for OTP authentication. Intimation to the Commissioner or AEO Programme Manager is required. The importer must flag the Bill of Entry with "D"; the nodal person authenticates one or multiple Bills via OTP to trigger Customs clearance. Due dates follow Rule 6, and importers may select and pay challans from the deferred period at any time. Reports are available in ICES.

Customs EDI modernization enables electronic filing and automated processing of import Bills and Shipping Bills via centralized ICES and ICEGATE.
Centralized ICES implementation at ICD Kheda mandates electronic filing and automated processing of import Bills of Entry and export Shipping Bills via ICES/ICEGATE, requiring registration of IE/IEC codes, Customs Brokers, shipping agents, DGFT licences and bank accounts; standardized use of currency, unit, country and port codes; checklist verification and job numbering; system driven valuation, duty computation and automated assignment to Appraising Groups; RMS guided facilitation and examination workflows; and integrated modules for licence/bond registration, export promotion scheme debits, drawback and refund disbursal.

PMGKY declarations: designated income-tax field offices remain open until midnight to facilitate late filing of declarations.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes directed that designated field offices of the Income Tax Department remain open until midnight on 31 March 2017 to receive declarations under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, applying to all jurisdictions to facilitate filing after normal office hours.

Purchase of foreign exchange restored to pre temporary limits; authorised persons must follow reinstated operational procedures under FEMA.
The Reserve Bank restores the prior regime for purchase of foreign exchange by authorised persons as set out in paragraph 4.4(e)(iii) of the Annex to A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No.17, reversing temporary amendments that allowed limited weekly exchange for foreign passport holders, and directs authorised persons to follow the reinstated operational procedures; the directions are issued under the Foreign Exchange Management Act and do not affect other statutory permissions.

Export of carpet: use expert panels and nondestructive inspection; market enquiries within 15 days to protect export benefits.
Export of carpets under duty-drawback requires prompt, non-destructive determination of composition and value using expert panels including Carpet Export Promotion Council members or Textiles Committee Mumbai experts; market enquiries should be completed within fifteen days, export benefits may be withheld beyond that only with Commissioner's written approval, and exports must not be stopped. Inspectors must avoid damaging carpets during sampling; public notices and standing orders should be issued and difficulties reported to the Board.

Packaging compliance requirements for imported cigarettes require sale to consumer cooperatives or e auction if compliant, and mandatory destruction if non compliant.
Imported cigarette packs intended for retail must meet COTPA packaging and labelling specifications and Legal Metrology declarations; compliant seized/confiscated stocks may be sold to NCCF/Kendriya Bhandar or via e auction, while packs that do not meet statutory packaging, labelling or metrology requirements must be destroyed in consultation with State Pollution Control Boards. Where seizures involve suspected counterfeiting, Rule 11 of the IPR (Imported Goods) Enforcement Rules, 2007 requires destruction or disposal outside normal commerce only with the right holder's concurrence.

E-payment deadline extension allows electronic tax payments until midnight with temporary extended bank counter hours.
Extension of the e-payment deadline and temporary adjustment of banking hours permit designated agency bank branches to keep counters open later on specified days to assist government business, while all electronic payment channels will remain available until midnight on the final date specified; trade associations are requested to inform their members of these operational arrangements so taxpayers may rely on extended counter availability and the midnight e-payment cutoff for remittances of government dues.

E-payment deadline extension: electronic payments allowed until midnight, with extended banking counter hours for specified dates.
Agency banks handling government business will extend counter hours on specified dates and electronic payment systems will remain available until midnight on the final date, allowing assessees to make e-payments until that midnight for Service Tax and other government receipts.

Rebate of state levies on made-up exports requires selecting the ROSL scheme code on the shipping bill to claim rebate.
ROSL provides rebate of State VAT/CST and related levies accumulated in production of made-ups, calculated on FOB value using notified rates and caps and paid in parallel with drawback to the exporter's registered drawback account. Participation is optional and requires a claim-cum-declaration by selecting specified EDI shipping bill scheme codes at item level; selection of the scheme code is the sole means of claiming ROSL. The ROSL amount and declaration will print on the shipping bill, appear on ICEGATE, and absence of proper scheme code precludes the benefit.

Special Economic Zone approvals conditioned on contiguity, encumbrance clearance, and compliance with SEZ procedural requirements.
The Board approved multiple proposals for new SEZs and FTWZs and numerous co-developer arrangements, subject to conditions including compliance with State legal requirements during land acquisition, demonstration of fulfillment of the contiguity requirement at notification, settlement of specified encumbrances prior to notification, adherence to co-developer agreements, and standard terms under the SEZ Act and Rules. Changes in shareholding were approved on conditions preserving continuity of SEZ activities, compliance with tax and company laws, disclosure to revenue authorities, and eligibility safeguards for fiscal benefits.

Condonation of delay denied for declarant-caused late IDS payments; bank-transfer failures may be reviewed on verification and payment completion.
The Board declined blanket condonation of delay in payment of the IDS 2016 first instalment for declarant-attributable reasons, emphasising the fixed payment schedule, prior publicity and absence of interest provisions; however, Pr.CIT/CITs are authorised to consider case-by-case condonation where bank transfer failures returned or delayed funds beyond the declarant's control, upon verification with bank evidence and provided the instalment obligations are completed by the final date specified.

Know Your Customer obligations for container leasing require identity, IEC verification and documentary checks to curb prohibited exports.
Shipping lines, container operators, agents and freight forwarders leasing or renting containers must follow Know Your Customer norms, retain at least three specified documents including a photo ID, verify IEC details (by email or phone) before delivery, accept payment by account-payee cheque or RTGS, and permit any change of exporter/goods/destination only after due verification. Violations will render the leasing entity responsible for export/attempted export of prohibited goods and liable for penal consequences under the Customs Act.

Deadline extension for exclusively listed companies to submit action plans, enabling further time for listing or shareholder exit.
Exclusively listed companies on the Dissemination Board must submit an action plan to a designated stock exchange to obtain listing on an operational exchange or provide exit to shareholders; the deadline for submission is extended to June 30, 2017, and all other previously prescribed conditions remain unchanged.

24x7 customs clearance enabled for RMS cleared imports and factory stuffed exports at a designated container freight station.
24x7 Customs clearance is authorised at M/S Sanco Trans Ltd CFS for RMS facilitated self assessed import Bills of Entry requiring no assessment or examination and for factory stuffed export containers/Free Shipping Bills. Despite RMS waivers, the Proper Officer must scrutinise documents and grant Out of Charge per statutory procedure. Traders must obtain mandatory pre clearances, register BE/SB with Customs Officers at the CFS in the EDI, and adhere to Compulsory Compliance Requirements. The CFS custodian must provide infrastructure for round the clock operations; officer postings and nodal contact details will be published for coordination.

Indian Customs EDI ICES 1.5 launched: mandatory registrations, electronic filing, automated duty calculation and centralized bond/license ledgers.
ICES 1.5 is launched at ICD Sachana to enable centralized electronic processing of Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills; it mandates prior registrations (IE Code, Customs Brokers, Shipping Lines, DGFT licences, bank accounts), prescribes service centre and ICEGATE remote filing procedures including digital signatures, and automates valuation, duty calculation, licence/debit ledgers and bond management. Workflow assigns B/Es to Appraising Groups, supports first/second check examinations, concurrent audit, RMS risk based facilitation, and integrates DEPB/EPCG/EOU and other scheme ledgers with centralized debiting and Transfer Release Advice handling.

Rebate of State Levies scheme: exporters may opt to claim state-level input levies on made-ups, credited automatically.
The Rebate of State Levies (ROSL) Scheme allows exporters of made-ups to opt in at the item level via specified Shipping Bill scheme codes, thereby making a claim-cum-declaration of eligibility and non-duplication. Rebate is calculated on FOB value using notified rates and caps; disbursal is credited to the exporter's drawback-registered bank account in parallel with drawback and reflected in ICEGATE. Shipping Bills lacking the proper scheme code must be amended before LEO; system changes print ROSL amounts and the declarative checklist.