AEO Programme decentralisation enables direct application to jurisdictional commissioner with designated Programme Manager and CRM.
The circular amends the AEO Programme to allow AEO exporters to seek Advance Authorisation on self declaration where standard norms are unavailable, decentralises application processing to jurisdictional Chief Commissioners with the Directorate Commissioner as AEO Programme Manager, tightens solvency and SCN disclosure requirements with specified auditor certificates for different AEO tiers, mandates posting of legal compliance details online with field responses to zonal AEO cells, revises certificate validity and Annexure disclosures, and requires nomination of a Client Relationship Manager by jurisdictional AEO cells.

Composite supply determination: principal supply rule classifies printing as service for publications but goods for printed articles.
Clarification treats printing contracts with recipient-supplied content as composite supplies decided by the principal supply: where the printer supplies physical inputs and printing predominates for books and similar publications, the supply is a service; where the physical article is the predominant element for ordinarily good-like items (envelopes, boxes, tissues, wallpaper), the supply is goods and printing is ancillary.

Supply on approval basis: transport on delivery challan and invoice on acceptance; interstate supplies attract integrated tax.
Goods moved for supply on approval may be transported on a delivery challan (and e way bill where applicable), with the supplier issuing the tax invoice upon delivery/acceptance; supplies made in a State other than the supplier's State of registration are treated as interstate supplies and attract integrated tax.

Export under Letter of Undertaking extended to all registered persons, subject to prosecution exceptions and bond safeguards.
The circular extends the facility of export under Letter of Undertaking (LUT) to all registered persons except those prosecuted for significant tax evasion, permits bonds with bank guarantees where LUT is inapplicable, and makes an LUT valid for the financial year subject to withdrawal if specified tax is not paid within prescribed time; payment restores the facility. It prescribes provisional filing of FORM GST RFD-11 to the jurisdictional Deputy Commissioner, accepts exporter self-declaration subject to post-facto verification, mandates three working day processing (deemed accepted if not acted upon), and requires running bonds, maintenance of liability records, and supervised sealing until self-sealing is operational.

Reconciliation of GST returns: system-matching of GSTR-1/GSTR-2 with GSTR-3B triggers ledger adjustments and tax payments.
Systemised reconciliation compares figures in FORM GSTR-3B with details in FORM GSTR-1 and FORM GSTR-2. The portal auto-drafts FORM GSTR-3 using FORM GSTR-1/2 data; discrepancies trigger additional payments debiting electronic cash or credit ledgers with interest, or crediting excess eligible input tax credit to the electronic credit ledger. Corrections to FORM GSTR-3B are to be made via FORM GSTR-1 or FORM GSTR-2 and reflected in the reconciled FORM GSTR-3; a return is valid when the tax payable in the reconciled FORM GSTR-3 is paid in full.

Classification of lottery tickets as goods clarified; tax to be applied per customs tariff chapter at prescribed GST rates.
Supply of lottery tickets is to be treated as goods and classified as 'Any Chapter' of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 for Goa GST, IGST and CGST notifications. Taxpayers must use this classification when filing returns and depositing tax so that returns process correctly, and tax on lottery supplies should be paid at the prescribed GST rates (12% or 28% as applicable).

Shipping Bill transmission status: exporters must verify ICEGATE then DGFT and report missing data to designated helpdesks.
Exporters must verify Shipping Bill transmission status on ICEGATE before checking DGFT when Shipping Bill data is missing for MEIS or other FTP claims; Shipping Bills are transmitted from Customs to ICEGATE and then to DGFT, and propagation delays can impede benefit claims. If data is not available on ICEGATE or DGFT after the integration period, exporters should report the issue via DGFT's Contact@DGFT service and email the DGFT EDI helpdesk quoting the Contact@DGFT reference number. The notice specifies the ICEGATE and DGFT website navigation paths for checking integration/status.

Authorized Economic Operator status enables streamlined customs clearance, deferred duty payment, export facilitation, and recognition for compliant traders.
Authorized Economic Operator status provides compliant importers and exporters with Direct Port Delivery and Direct Port Entry, deferred duty payment, expedited drawback, refunds and adjudications, and paperless customs declarations. Benefits also include self-certified clearance certificates, request-based examination, mutual-recognition facilitation, and recognition by partner agencies. Eligible AEO exporters may seek Advance Authorisation through self-declaration and self-ratification where applicable norms are unavailable or additional inputs are required. Existing certified entities retain AEO-T2 or AEO-LO status subject to prescribed standards and guidelines.

Social Welfare Surcharge applies to aggregate customs duties; Road and Infrastructure Cess added on scheduled fuels, automated in systems.
A Social Welfare Surcharge replaces the previous education cesses and is levied on the aggregate of all customs duties using the same assessable base, with system default application and notification-based exemptions claimable via item-level entries; a Road and Infrastructure Cess is introduced as an additional duty on scheduled fuels, applied automatically by the customs system, with corresponding excise adjustments and specified exemptions.

Fair market value determinations for startup shares: recovery measures stayed where valuation under rule was disputed
For companies qualifying as Start Ups under the cited DIPP notification, where an Assessing Officer has modified or rejected a valuation furnished under Rule 11UA(2) and made additions under Section 56(2)(viib), no coercive measures to recover the outstanding demand shall be taken, and pending appeals before the Commissioner (Appeals) should be administratively expedited for disposal.

Drawback of taxes under GST is prohibited when claiming refund of accumulated ITC under section 54(3)(ii) CGST Act.
The corrigendum substitutes the CGST Act and clarifies that drawback of any taxes under GST must not have been availed when claiming refund of accumulated ITC under section 54(3)(ii) of the CGST Act; a declaration to this effect forms part of FORM GST RFD-01A.

E-way bill compliance restored as earlier Rule 138 regime revives and transport forms remain mandatory during movement of goods.
Implementation of the e-way bill system for movement of goods was clarified after changes to Rule 138 of the GST framework. The earlier e-way bill regime was stated to have become automatically effective again, and the forms required for transport or transit storage were e-way bill forms 01, 02, 03, TDF-1 and TDF-2, to be downloaded from the departmental website.

GST refund procedure: manual filing allowed for inverted duty, deemed export and cash ledger refunds with prescribed statements and undertakings.
Manual processing of refunds for inverted duty structure, deemed exports and excess electronic cash ledger balances is authorised; claims are to be filed in FORM GST RFD-01A with prescribed statements (Statement 1 and 1A for inverted duty, Statement 5B for deemed exports), after filing the relevant FORM GSTR-1 and a valid FORM GSTR-3B for the preceding period. Applicants must provide a manual undertaking to repay provisionally sanctioned amounts with interest if compliance is later found lacking. Central and State authorities shall nominate nodal officers to exchange sanction orders, applications and ARNs by e-mail and coordinate payment through FORM GST RFD-05 and DDO/PAO mechanisms, observing statutory sanction timelines.

IGST refund bank account validation required to match Customs EDI and GSTN to enable PFMS disbursement.
Bank account details in Customs EDI must match those in GSTN to enable PFMS crediting of IGST export refunds. Exporters or their authorized representatives should approach the Drawback Section to validate or update accounts, submitting the bank account number and bank name as declared for drawback, the GSTN-uploaded bank details, an authorization letter for agents where applicable, a request letter with valid IEC and a cancelled cheque for the GSTN-declared account and the account to be updated. EGM errors and other compliance failures can block refund migration and must be rectified with customs officials.

Carriage of undeclared goods liable to tax, penalty and seizure when transported beyond declared documents.
Vehicles carrying consignments must carry prescribed tax and transport documents and allow inspection on interception. Goods transported in excess of quantities declared in invoices, e-waybills, permits or challans are treated as unaccounted and as intended supply within the State, liable to tax, penalty and cess. Goods, conveyances and related documents moved or stored in contravention of the Act or rules are liable to detention or seizure and will be released only after realisation of tax and penalty or payment of security.

Waybill system reinstatement restores prior electronic entry requirements, reverting to pre-existing online waybill procedure for state compliance.
Reinstatement of the prior waybill system restores the online procedure for issuance of waybills for entry of taxable goods into the State by rescinding the later electronic waybill notification and placing the earlier online issuance process back in force, directing stakeholders to comply with that system until further order.

Total Expense Ratio disclosure: AMCs must publish daily TER and notify investors three working days before base TER increases.
AMCs must publish daily TER of all schemes in a downloadable spreadsheet and update the website at least three working days before any increase in the base TER; investors must be notified by email or SMS at least three working days prior, while decreases due to increased daily net assets need no prior notice but must be communicated immediately. Changes must be recorded with written rationale, intimated to the AMC Board, and placed before trustees quarterly. The circular also requires AMCs to provide the exact weblink to the TER disclosure and applies to new schemes immediately and existing schemes from the stated effective date.

Social Welfare Surcharge replaces education cess and is applied automatically; exemptions claimed through BE message fields.
Social Welfare Surcharge replaces the Education cesses and is levied on the aggregate of customs duties, applied automatically by ICES 1.5 with exemptions claimable via prescribed bill of entry message fields; Road and Infrastructure Cess replaces the earlier road cess and is levied as an additional customs duty on scheduled goods (per litre on Motor Spirit and High Speed Diesel) with corresponding excise adjustments and automatic ICES application.

All Industry Rates of Duty Drawback amended to adjust rates, delete a tariff entry, and direct reporting of implementation issues.
Amendments to the All Industry Rates (AIRS) of Duty Drawback revise drawback rates and caps: enhancements for specified marine products, rubber articles (including automobile and bicycle tyres/tubes), leather articles, wool yarns/fabrics, glass handicrafts, bicycles, and certain man made textile nets; reductions for specified chemical tariff items; deletion of the polypropylene mats tariff entry from the Drawback Schedule with reclassification under the existing customs tariff entry and continuation of the existing rate/cap. Implementation difficulties are to be reported to the designated Drawback authority.

Social Welfare Surcharge introduced on imports; ICES applies default rate and allows notification-based exemptions.
A Social Welfare Surcharge replaces education cesses and is levied on the aggregate of customs duties using the same assessable base, with a default surcharge rate configured in ICES and exemptions claimable via notification entries in specified Bill of Entry item fields. A new Road and Infrastructure Cess is imposed as an additional duty of customs on scheduled goods (including motor spirit and high speed diesel), applied automatically by ICES, with corresponding excise duty adjustments to keep overall duty unchanged; rate changes effective from 01.02.2018.