Post-sale discounts under GST determine supply valuation, service taxability, and input tax credit treatment for dealers.
Post-sales discounts without further dealer obligations may be excluded from the supplier's value of supply where conditions for post-sale discount exclusion are met. Discounts linked to dealer promotional activities constitute consideration for services supplied by the dealer and attract GST, with corresponding input tax credit for the supplier. Discounts enabling reduced customer prices form part of the dealer's supply consideration. Where discounts are reflected through financial or commercial credit notes without a reduction in supplier tax liability, the dealer need not reverse input tax credit if the reduced supply value and original tax are paid.

Composition levy option requires eligible suppliers to file CMP-02 intimation and ITC-03 statement within the revised period.
Eligible registered persons opting to pay State tax at 3% under the composition levy must file an intimation in FORM GST CMP-02, selecting the category "Any other supplier eligible for composition levy". The filing deadline is corrected to 31 July 2019. Such persons must also furnish the prescribed statement in FORM GST ITC-03 under the applicable composition-levy procedure.

Airport retail tax refunds allow qualifying outlets to recover taxes on indigenous goods sold tax-free to eligible international tourists.
Registered airport retail outlets beyond immigration counters may claim invoice-based refunds of applicable taxes paid on indigenous goods sold tax-free, against foreign exchange, to eligible outgoing international tourists. The outlets must reverse input tax credit on such goods, cannot claim refund of input-service taxes, and must maintain auditable electronic records linking inward supplies to passenger sales. Claims require prescribed passenger documentation, undertakings, return details and inward-supply statements, with invoices required where they are not reflected in the relevant statement. Improper refunds are recoverable with interest.

Administrative mapping errors in GST portal: mis mapped refund applications can be processed by the authority receiving them.
Where the common portal forwards a refund application to a tax authority that is not the taxpayer's administratively assigned jurisdiction and the portal's facility to reassign refund applications is unavailable, the receiving tax authority must proceed with the processing of the refund claim and thereafter notify the portal of the incorrect mapping so subsequent applications transfer to the correct jurisdiction.

Place of supply: port cargo handling ancillary and determined by contract; processing of temporarily imported goods treated as export.
Port-related services that are ancillary to cargo handling are not tied to immovable property and their place of supply is determined by contract-based IGST provisions applicable to such services. Services on goods temporarily imported for processing and exported without being used in India (for example, cutting and polishing of diamonds) fall under the exception and their place of supply is determined by the IGST rules for services on temporarily imported goods subsequently exported.

GST on Penal Interest: taxable when included in supply value of goods; lender charged loan interest may be exempt.
The circular clarifies that penal interest for delayed EMIs must be included in the value of supply under s.15(2)(d) of the TNGST Act and is taxable when charged by the seller as part of a sale transaction; interest charged by a third party lender falls within the loan interest exemption and is not subject to GST. Penal interest satisfying the notification definition of interest is not treated as a separate Schedule II service of agreeing to tolerate or refrain, while non interest fees charged by lenders remain taxable.

Deemed adoption of central GST circulars ensures uniform state implementation unless the state issues its own circular.
The Commissioner invokes statutory power to deem CBIC Circulars as issued by the Commissioner of State Tax for implementing the Maharashtra Goods and Services Tax Act, making CBIC directions applicable to the State unless the Commissioner issues a separate Circular on the same issue; the Trade Circular is clarificatory and implementation difficulties may be reported to the Commissioner's office.

Reversal of Cenvat credit may not be required for certain services unless dual input restrictions apply.
Reversal of Cenvat credit is required only where the twin conditions of restrictions on both inputs and input services are met; services listed in the notification do not automatically become exempted services. For service activity involving supply of food or drink, valuation restrictions under the Service Tax determination rules apply and no further reversal under the Cenvat Credit Rules is required beyond those valuation restrictions.

Partial discharge of bonds enabled, allowing proportional crediting of bonds and bank guarantees as export obligations are fulfilled.
Partial discharge of bonds and corresponding bank guarantees for imported gold will be effected by proportionate online crediting in ICES 1.5 as export obligations are met, based on prescribed documentation submitted to jurisdictional customs authorities; the existing standard operating procedure and timelines for bond discharge apply mutatis mutandis, and a system advisory will provide details of the new functionality.

Standard Input-Output Norms for walnut kernels set conversion requirements for shell walnuts used to justify exports under trade policy.
Fixation of Standard Input Output Norms under Para 1.03 of the Foreign Trade Policy establishes SION entry E-134 for the Food Product Group governing exports of Walnut Kernels (Chandler variety), specifying the conversion ratio between exportable kernels and importable walnut in shell and prescribing the allowed input quantity to justify the declared export quantity for export authorization and compliance.

GST taxpayer distribution follows cross-empowerment guidelines for single interface and allocation between Central and State tax offices.
Distribution of taxpayers under GST was made in Assam on the basis of guidelines issued by the GST Council Secretariat to secure a single interface between the Central Government and the State Government. A State Level Committee comprising the Central GST Commissioner and the Commissioner of State Tax, Assam assigned taxpayers registered in the State in accordance with the prescribed cross-empowerment framework. Pending allocation of 20 migrated taxpayers was completed by placing the dealers in the same strata below 1.5 crore turnover and distributing them between the Central Tax Office and the State Tax Office in the 90:10 ratio.

Mandatory digital submission: exporters must upload digitally signed supporting documents on e-SANCHIT when filing shipping bills.
Exporters and customs brokers must upload all supporting documents as digitally signed files on e-SANCHIT when filing Shipping Bills under the Shipping Bill (Electronic Integrated Declaration and Paperless Processing) Regulations, 2019; hard copy supporting documents will not be accepted and implementation issues must be reported to the Commissioner.

Jurisdiction of reorganized customs formations: offences allocated where export Shipping Bills or import Bills of Entry are not filed.
Amendments to Annexure A reallocate jurisdiction for cases of offence and other matters where required export or import filings are absent: the export entry is amended to cover goods in the port area or already exported when Shipping Bills have not been filed, and a new preventive-commissionerate point addresses goods landed by import where Bills of Entry have not been filed. The changes apply to trade stakeholders and are effective from the notice date until further orders.

Restriction on Advance Authorisations: issuance barred for imports of pulses and peas falling under restricted or STE categories.
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade directs that Advance Authorisations shall not be issued where the import item is pulses and peas of any kind that fall within restricted, prohibited, quota, or State Trading Enterprise (STE) categories, effective immediately.

Track and Trace system for pharmaceutical exports: compliance deadline deferred, extending implementation and parent child packaging obligations.
Implementation of the Track and Trace system for export consignments of pharmaceutical drug formulations is amended to defer the compliance timeline for maintaining the Parent-Child relationship across packaging levels and for uploading such data to the Central Portal, substituting the previously notified implementation date with a later date and applying the extension to both small scale and non-small scale manufacturers.

Foreign Trade Policy consultation invites stakeholder suggestions via an online form, with submissions required within the prescribed period.
Invitation for stakeholder input on a proposed new Foreign Trade Policy requiring submissions through a designated online form; all trade stakeholders and export promotion councils must submit suggestions via that form within the prescribed response period, replacing the earlier email-based solicitation, as part of the department's public consultation mechanism to aggregate feedback for policy drafting.

Timely response to dock queries required to prevent escalation to system queries and ensure faster cargo clearance.
Goods must be presented for examination at CFS on the day of online bill of entry registration. Docks officers shall record document queries on the physical docket, hand the docket to the authorised CHA/CB pass holder or authorised importer representative with acknowledgement, retain a photocopy for records, and obtain endorsation of replies with date and time. If a docketed query is not answered within the prescribed period, the officer will raise it in the EDI system and report to the Deputy Commissioner/Assistant Commissioner (Docks).

Composition taxable person declaration required under GST rules; failure to display prescribed wording may invite enforcement action and penalties.
Bills of supply issued by composition taxable persons must state "COMPOSITION TAXABLE PERSON, NOT ELIGIBLE TO COLLECT TAX ON SUPPLIES" in bold capital letters, and every principal or additional place of business must display "COMPOSITION TAXABLE PERSON" in bold capital letters; non compliance may invite action under GST law including penalties, fines or prosecution.

Permanent Trade Facilitation Committee reconstituted to coordinate stakeholders and resolve import export clearance and infrastructure issues.
Permanent Trade Facilitation Committee for Shillong Customs is reconstituted under CBIC guidance to include customs, trade associations, logistics operators and brokers; members listed will meet periodically to identify and attempt to resolve import-export clearance problems and infrastructural bottlenecks, and must submit agenda points with background notes so concerned agencies can attend.

Sea cargo manifest rules change: stakeholders face new filing duties and customs officers must attend mandated training on revised procedures.
The Sea Cargo Manifest and Transhipment Regulations, 2018 take effect 01.08.2019, altering manifest filing and advance-declaration obligations and reallocating responsibilities among shipping lines, agents, freight forwarders, custodians and terminal operators; Customs requires training for officers and stakeholders, with a compulsory session for Customs officials on 04.07.2019 at New Custom House, Mumbai to cover revised procedures and compliance duties.