Limited Scrutiny scope expanded to permit examination of law enforcement information with prior administrative approval, with assessee notification.
Assessing Officers in Limited Scrutiny cases from CASS 2017 and 2018 may examine issues arising from credible information provided by law enforcement, intelligence or regulatory agencies with prior administrative approval of the Principal CIT/CIT. The expansion is limited to those specific issues and does not convert the case into Complete Scrutiny. The AO must record reasons, obtain Pr. CIT/CIT approval, intimate the assessee, and may invoke Section 144A and ensure Review/Inspection to prevent fishing and roving enquiries.

Mandatory e-Sanchit uploads required for import and export; failure may trigger rejection of clearance documents and penalties.
Mandatory electronic submission of digitally signed supporting documents through e-SANCHIT is required for importers, exporters, customs brokers and trade members at Visakhapatnam Custom House to enable assessment and clearance of imported and export cargo. Failure to upload required documents in e-SANCHIT will result in rejection of Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills and imposition of fines or penalties.

FINnet access continuity: require transfer of user IDs, registered emails and operational briefing to ensure uninterrupted FINnet operations.
Require inclusion of FINnet operation details in handing over notes when designated FINnet users change or transfer, ensuring both nodes/accounts' credentials and operational information are recorded and the predecessor briefs the incoming user. Changes must be intimated to the CBDT per SOP for new-user registration, and requests for FINnet training should be notified to the undersigned for coordination with the FIU.

Refund documentation requirements: GSTR 2A and Annexure support refund claims; ledger debits follow prescribed tax head order.
Claimants may submit a print out of FORM GSTR 2A for the relevant period instead of hard invoices; the proper officer will rely on GSTR 2A but may call for missing invoice copies. Claimants must also file an invoice statement (Annexure A) declaring ITC eligibility. Refund of unutilized ITC is limited to the least of the statutory formula, period end ledger balance, and ledger balance at filing; ledger debits must follow integrated tax first, then central and state tax equally. Rejections trigger re credit and recovery procedures, and disbursing authorities must not withhold sanctioned refunds except as statutorily permitted.

Interoperability among clearing corporations mandates linked risk frameworks, segregated inter CCP collateral and multilateral netting for settlement.
Interoperability among clearing corporations requires recognised CCPs (excluding IFSCs) to enable consolidation of clearing across trading venues via peer-to-peer links under bilaterally approved risk frameworks or, where directed, participant links subject to host CCP rules. Inter-CCP collateral must cover exposures through prescribed margins and additional capital held in segregated accounts, settlement shall occur through multilateral netting on the rolling T+2 schedule, and default handling will follow the prescribed default waterfall. Multipartite agreements must address risk, settlement, surveillance, data sharing and dispute resolution.

Extended Producers Responsibility Authorization code corrected to update document classification and ensure accurate PGA LPCO processing.
Correction to administrative classification: the Circular amends the document code assigned to Extended Producers Responsibility Authorization used in PGA eSANCHIT LPCO uploads, replacing the previously published code with the correct code to ensure accurate electronic filing and processing and directing stakeholders to use the corrected code for PGA uploading under the paperless processing framework.

Electronic nicotine delivery systems prohibited unless approved under Drugs and Cosmetics Act, restricting sale, manufacture, import and advertising.
ENDS (e-cigarettes, heat-not-burn devices, vapes, e-sheesha and the like) pose health risks and are not approved as NRTs under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act; States are advised to prohibit their sale, manufacture, distribution, import and advertisement except where expressly approved under the Act, and customs officers must refer import consignments to Assistant/Deputy Drugs Controllers and deny clearance of non-compliant goods.

Alternative Investment Funds in IFSC: registration, investor eligibility, permissible investment routes and prescribed corpus and investor minima clarified.
SEBI's operating guidelines permit AIFs established in an IFSC to register under the AIF Regulations subject to Chapter II application procedures and prescribed fees. AIFs may accept eligible IFSC investors and invest in India via permitted routes including FPI, FVCI or FDI consistent with applicable FDI/RBI policy. Schemes must meet minimum corpus and investor subscription thresholds, sponsors/managers must maintain a continuing interest (not via fee waiver), custodians are required in specified cases, and angel funds face distinct corpus, investor and investee eligibility constraints; reporting is in USD million.

Mandatory debt issuance requirement for large corporates to fund a portion of incremental borrowings, with disclosures and penalties.
Large listed entities that meet specified listing, borrowing and credit rating thresholds must source a mandated portion of their incremental long term borrowings by issuing debt securities. The framework defines incremental borrowings, sets phased effective dates, requires annual disclosures certified by the company secretary and CFO and included in audited results, establishes initial annual compliance transitioning to a two year block compliance with a monetary fine for unremedied shortfalls, and assigns stock exchanges duties to collate disclosures, collect fines and remit proceeds to the regulator.

Paperless upload of export supporting documents enabled, allowing digital submission, review period, and eventual mandatory adoption.
A pan India facility allows authorised persons to upload digitally signed export supporting documents on eSANCHIT via ICEGATE on a voluntary basis, while original supporting documents must be retained for five years under the Shipping Bill (Electronic Integrated Declaration) Regulation, 2011. Documents can be uploaded before submission or after Shipping Bill generation by obtaining an Image Reference Number (IRN) and linking via an amendment; customs will access uploaded documents during assessment and queries, and goods registration, document verification and Let Export Order procedures will be conducted with online records of examinations. The facility will be reviewed and may become mandatory.

Anti-dumping duty review: saccharin consignments may be cleared if importers are notified of pending litigation.
High Court directions permit clearance of saccharin consignments while requiring importers to be notified that litigation challenging the DGTR's finding on anti-dumping duty continuation is pending; customs must record accounting and follow the tariff unit letter, with stakeholders reporting implementation difficulties.

Disposal of unclaimed cargo: mandated e auction process with departmental NOC, valuation, inventory and duty assessment.
Prescribed steps for disposal under Section 48: custodians must issue two notices, log actions in UCC software, seek Disposal Section permission when consignees fail to respond, obtain Group scrutiny and NOC including CCR checks, conduct Dock Examination inventory and tests, and upon AC/DC approval proceed to e-auction-cum-e-tender with reserve price fixed by government-approved valuers; bids are cum-duty, duty is back-calculated from sale price, duty must be paid before out-of-charge, and sale proceeds are shared per Section 150.

Paperless LPCO uploads by PGAs enable electronic linkage of licenses to customs declarations, streamlining clearance under eSANCHIT.
PGAs must upload digitally signed LPCOs to eSANCHIT, enabling Customs to view them as supporting documents linked to Bills of Entry or Shipping Bills; beneficiaries must register on ICEGATE so PGAs can link LPCOs to their IEC/GSTN and the generated Image Reference Number (IRN) is used to tag or amend the BE/SB, with offline amendment at the Service Centre permitted where tagging is not made online.

Electronic Customs Processing enables end-to-end ICES 1.5 filings, digital document upload and automated duty assessment for trade.
Launch of ICES 1.5 implements comprehensive electronic processing for import Bills of Entry and export Shipping Bills at the ICD, MMLP Raipur, requiring registration of IE Codes, Customs Brokers, shipping agents and DGFT licences; enabling remote filing via ICEGATE with digital signatures and electronic upload of supporting documents (e-SANCHIT). The system validates declarations against directories (duties, exchange rates, tariff, anti-dumping and tariff value), routes submissions to Appraising Groups, automates bond debiting/crediting in a centralized Bond Management System, and integrates GST/IGST, drawback, rebate and RMS-driven risk-based routing and compulsory compliance checks for assessment, examination and clearance.

Cancellation of Registration procedures updated; applications in Form GST REG-16 to be processed per new circular.
Processing of applications for cancellation of GST registration submitted in Form GST REG-16 is to follow the procedural guidance of CBIC Circular No. 69/43/2018, and Public and Trade Associations are requested to circulate these instructions among their members.

IGST refund procedure: exports from non-EDI sites processed after offline data upload and ICES verification enabling disbursement.
Refunds of IGST for exports from Non-EDI sites require offline capture of export data and email transmission to DG(Systems), upload and final submission by Customs officers at the nearest EDI site, verification in ICES, matching with GST returns from GSTN, and generation of refund scrolls; ICEGATE offers enquiry access and importer/broker login to check SB status and IGST mismatches.

Drafting New Direct Tax Legislation: reconstituted task force authorised to co-opt members and report recommendations.
Reconstitution of a Task Force to draft a new Direct Tax Legislation and review the Income-tax Act, 1961, naming a Convenor and five additional members, authorising the Convenor to co-opt additional persons, retaining earlier terms and conditions, and requiring submission of a report to the Government within the prescribed timeframe with Finance Minister approval.

Commercial Tax Department at Your Doorstep scheme calls for daily monitoring, field verification, and faster completion of trader updates.
Daily monitoring and expedited implementation of the "Commercial Tax Department at Your Doorstep" scheme were directed to ensure completion of the field exercise for small traders. Commercial Tax Officers and Assistant Commissioners were to visit business premises of traders below one crore turnover, update contact details, upload photographs through the Abhyuthan app, resolve technical difficulties in return filing, and organise fortnightly workshops.

CSD refund procedure requires quarterly invoice-based claims, portal validation, and coordinated tax-authority sanction and payment processing.
CSD refund claims are invoice-based and must be filed quarterly, manually in FORM GST RFD-10A until the online utility is available, with an undertaking of receipt, declaration of no prior claim, copies of GSTR-3B, GSTR-2A and attested invoices, and bank details. Proper officers shall acknowledge complete applications within fifteen days or issue a single deficiency memo within fifteen days, validate GSTIN and returns on the portal, rely on GSTR-2A for supplier accountal, and sanction and issue orders and payment advice separately for each tax head in prescribed forms. Refund orders must be communicated to the counterpart tax authority within seven days for payment coordination.

Import quota allocation for pet coke limited by court order; DGFT sets application, environmental consent and reporting rules.
Import quota allocation for Calcined Pet Coke and Raw Pet Coke is implemented under a Supreme Court limit, with half the annual ceiling available for the current fiscal year. Eligible industrial users must apply to DGFT using ANF 2M and ANF-1, provide unit capacity and SPCB/PCC consent, pay the fee and submit documents by email. The Exim Facilitation Committee will allot quota and Regional Authorities will issue time-limited import authorizations; licensees must report consignments, return unutilised quota for redistribution, and submit a consolidated post-import report.