Audit objections: issue SCNs when department admits; contestation, coordination meetings, and strict reply timetables govern adjudication.
The circular prescribes a consolidated procedure for handling CERA/CRA audit objections, including defined lifecycle stages and timeliness for replies (Half Margin, LAR, SoF, DAP, Audit Paragraphs), mandates quarterly coordination meetings to reconcile objections, requires immediate issuance of SCNs where the department admits objections and prohibits transfer of such SCNs to the call-book, and directs that adjudication occur only after departmental or Ministry replies are on record with independent consideration of legal provisions, case law and Board circulars; past objections must be matched against pending ATNs before adjudication.

Pre-shipment inspection recognition: new agencies added to FTP appendix granted limited-term certification under HBP provisions.
Nine Pre Shipment Inspection Agencies have been added to the Foreign Trade Policy list of recognised PSIAs and authorised to issue Pre Shipment Inspection Certificates under the Policy framework. Recognition is granted for a three year period from the date of the Public Notice pursuant to the Handbook of Procedures provision. An annexure specifies approved models of spectrometers and survey meters, with make, model, serial numbers and calibration/purchase dates, linked to the recognised agencies for technical compliance in issuing inspection certificates.

E-payment of refunds: direct bank credit to assessee accounts to expedite refund realisation and reduce cheque-related delays.
The Board has directed that all refunds and rebates of Central Excise and Service Tax be paid by direct electronic transfer into the assessee's bank account, replacing cheque issuance and physical collection; this measure aims to eliminate delays, returned cheques due to address or clerical errors, and the paperwork and manpower burdens on claimants.

Liquid glucose classification as sugar renders it ineligible for Focus Market Scheme duty credit benefits.
Liquid glucose is classified within the Harmonized System sugar heading and is therefore treated as "Sugar"; consequently, exports of liquid glucose are not eligible for Duty Credit Scrip benefits under the Focus Market Scheme of the Foreign Trade Policy. This clarification excludes all items falling under that HS sugar heading from FMS benefits.

Ease of Doing Business measures streamline customs and indirect tax procedures, enhancing trade facilitation and electronic compliance.
Measures comprise tariff revisions, targeted exemptions and anti dumping/safeguard duties to correct duty inversion and support domestic manufacturing, coupled with procedural trade facilitation: 24x7 customs clearance, a Single Window electronic message exchange for regulatory agencies, mandatory Digital Signature filings, reduced mandatory documentation, Customs Clearance Facilitation Committees, and an upgraded CBEC website. Central Excise and Service Tax reforms include expedited registration, electronic records and invoicing, extended CENVAT credit timelines, e refunds, instalment payments of arrears, simplification of reverse charge taxation and expansion of Advance Ruling eligibility.

Ease of Doing Business measures streamline customs procedures and digital filings to expedite clearance and reduce compliance costs.
Measures to improve ease of doing business concentrate on tariff and procedural reforms: targeted Customs Duty and SAD adjustments to correct duty inversion and support domestic industry; imposition of protective duties where necessary; exemptions for specified inputs. Procedural reforms include EDI based online filing with 24x7 clearance for specified consignments, a Single Window electronic message exchange with regulatory agencies, mandatory digital signatures for most stakeholders, reduced mandatory documentation, a Special Notified Zone for rough diamonds, an upgraded CBEC portal and a customs mobile app. Institutional changes include CCFCs at major ports, raised appeal thresholds, penalty rationalisation, Advance Ruling expansion and integrated audits.

Classification of micronutrients and plant growth regulators clarifies tariff headings and fertilizer criteria under excise law.
Classification depends on the product's essential character: chemically defined micronutrients are classifiable under their compound headings (Chapters 28/29/38); PGRs are distinct from nutrients and classifiable under heading 3808; fertilizers fall under Chapter 31 only when N, P or K is an essential constituent; mixtures are classified by the constituent imparting essential character, and predominately trace-element blends without N/P/K fall outside Chapter 31 and may be classed under heading 3824.

Open House meetings: weekly stakeholder forum for office-level procedural issues with advance proforma submission required.
Open House Meetings will be held weekly on Wednesdays (except public holidays) at the CLA office to address procedural issues within the office's jurisdiction. Participation is restricted to one representative per applicant; issues must be submitted in advance by email in the prescribed proforma. Submissions received by Monday 5:00 pm will be considered at the following Wednesday meeting. Delay-in-disposal complaints will be taken up only after the time limit set out in paragraph 9.10 of the Handbook of Procedures (2015-20) has expired.

Textile specification tolerance allows limited flexibility in fabric GSM and blended fabric count, avoiding norm amendments for authorisations.
The amendment authorises tolerances in textile imports/exports by allowing flexibility in fabric GSM and in blended fabric Count, and it provides that where blended fabric Count variation is within the authorised tolerance, existing norms (SION/Ad-hoc) against Advance Authorisation/Duty Free Import Authorisation will not require amendment.

Open house for applicants provides weekly in-person access to officers to address pending trade-related concerns promptly.
An open house session will be held weekly on Wednesdays between 3.00 PM and 4.00 PM in the RA office Conference Room where officers will be physically available to receive and address applicants' concerns; this facility supplements the existing open interview process and is invited for use by trade and industry members.

Zonal unit for taxpayer services established, instituting weekly taxpayer consultations to receive suggestions and improve service delivery.
Creation of a Zonal Unit of the Directorate General of Taxpayer Services is announced for Chennai with jurisdiction over Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh, Puducherry and Telengana, to function from the Central Excise House address provided. Every Wednesday between 10:00 AM and 1:00 PM is designated Tax Payers' Day for in-person suggestions to the Additional Director General; suggestions may also be sent by post and will be considered for improving taxpayer services.

Recording of PD Account and Strong Room balances enables standardized entry and MIS reporting through the new ITBA investigation module.
The first-phase ITBA Investigation Module provides an offline excel utility to record pending investigations (TEP, STR and other non-search matters) with basic validation, pending a later upload feature. It includes functionality to record deposits, withdrawals and balances in PD Accounts and Strong Rooms - including transfers and withdrawals linked to deposits - and requires entry of balances as on the cut-off, deposits after the cut-off, and withdrawals/releases after the cut-off. The Cut off Date for recording is 31.03.2016 and MIS reporting for these records is available within the module.

Cash Reserve Ratio maintenance reduced under Section 42(1), lowering banks' daily compliance burden and easing liquidity management.
Change under Section 42(1) of the Reserve Bank of India Act reduces the daily minimum Cash Reserve Ratio maintenance obligation, lowering the daily compliance threshold banks must hold and thereby easing intrafortnight liquidity requirements; the reduction is communicated by Reserve Bank circular to scheduled commercial banks, regional rural banks and scheduled cooperative banks with a specified effective fortnight.

Bank rate reduction lowers penal interest on reserve shortfalls, changing penalty calculations for banks from the effective date.
Bank rate reduced by seventy-five basis points, changing the reference rate used to compute penal interest on shortfalls in reserve requirements. Penal interest rates linked to the Bank Rate remain expressed as the Bank Rate plus specified margins and are revised downward to reflect the lower Bank Rate; banks must apply the revised structure from the effective date in the circular.

Taxpayer service via Twitter enables trade to register local suggestions and grievances excluding policy matters.
Office of the Chief Commissioner of Central Excise, Delhi Zone has created a Twitter account to enable Trade and Industry, particularly Central Excise assesses and service providers, to register suggestions, queries and grievances related to local operational issues, expressly excluding matters directly related to policy, as a supplementary communication channel for taxpayer service.

Customs area approval enables regulated loading and unloading at the Inland Container Depot, Borkhedi within specified bonded limits.
Approval designates the Inland Container Depot, Borkhedi, as a Customs Area for loading and unloading import and export cargo under customs statutory authority; it specifies a total customs bonded area of 15,750 square meters and describes the site's boundaries by survey numbers and adjoining ownership to delimit the customs-controlled zone.

E filing enabled for ITR 1 and ITR 4S; Form 35 and substituted withholding forms available online with DSC required.
E filing of ITR 1 and ITR 4S for AY 2016 17 has been enabled on the Income Tax Department portal; other ITRs will follow. Electronic filing of appeals using newly notified Form 35 is enabled for taxpayers required to e file with a Digital Signature Certificate, with EVC support to be provided for other categories. Substituted Forms 15CA, 15CB and 15CC (per Notification No. 93/2016) and Forms 9A and 10 (per Notification No. 3/2016) are available for e filing effective 1 April 2016, with DSC required for online submission and EVC to be enabled shortly.

Personal examination of grievances: senior officers to perform designated CPGRAMS reviews weekly with centralized monthly reporting.
Senior officers are required to personally examine a designated number of CPGRAMS grievances weekly according to rank, with monthly monitoring reports forwarded by principal field officers to Zonal Members by the fifth of the succeeding month; Members of the Board will consolidate and forward reports to the Chairman for submission to the Secretary (Revenue). CIT(C&S) will provide CPGRAMS access credentials to Members to enable direct zonal monitoring.

Authorised Dealer Code requirement: AD Code must be declared in the Bill of Entry to validate outward remittance and filing.
Declaration of an Authorised Dealer (AD) Code is mandatory in the Bill of Entry main table (a seven digit code) though prior registration is not required; UCR fields may be left blank pending notification. The Enduse field is converted from free text to a coded value from published directories and must be entered as code only. Payment Method Code is mandatory with a default transaction indicator. Multiple new fields and tables (third party payee, manufacturer/source/transit country, HSS preceding level, INFO_TYPE/INFO_QUALIFIER/INFO_CODE, control codes) are introduced, with several fields permitted to remain blank until agency guidance is issued.

Vehicle registration in EDI system mandatory for handling custom transit cargo to Nepal; registration and approval required.
Registration in the EDI system is mandatory for handling Custom Transit Declaration cargo to Nepal; transporters, CHAs and importers must submit transporter name, address, vehicle number, chassis number, engine number and supporting documents to the designated Preventive Officer of the Nepal & Bhutan Unit, who will enter details in the EDI system for approval by the concerned Deputy/Assistant Commissioner.