Automated customs clearance enabled nationwide where EDI and RMS operate, with electronic clearance after officer CCV and duty payment.
All-India automated clearance for import Bills of Entry will operate at ICES locations with enabled RMS; designated proper officers perform Customs Compliance Verification irrespective of pending duty payment, record CCV completion in the Customs system, and the system issues electronic clearance upon confirmation of duty payment.

Automated customs clearance: electronic clearance of bills of entry on CCV completion and duty payment implemented nationwide.
Automated clearance under the 1st proviso to Section 47(1) enables the customs automated system to electronically clear Bills of Entry after designated proper officers complete Customs Compliance Verification and the system confirms duty payment; RMS-enabled ICES locations only, with DG Systems to implement necessary ICES changes and the facility effective from 05.03.2020.

Automated IGCR compliance requires electronic registration, continuity bonds, monthly statements, goods tracking, and timely duty payment for non-compliance.
Importers using the concessional duty procedure must register goods electronically in form IGCR-1, obtain an IGCR Identification Number, furnish a continuity bond, and quote the IIN and bond details in the bill of entry. Receipt, job-work, inter-unit transfer, re-export, and domestic clearance movements must be recorded through prescribed accounts, invoices or e-way bills, with non-receipt or short-receipt reported in form IGCR-2. Goods must generally be used within six months, while unutilized or defective goods may be re-exported or cleared on payment of differential duty and interest. A monthly statement in form IGCR-3 is due by the tenth day of the following month.

Appellate Authority designations under Rajasthan GST are revised through substitution of Special Commissioner and Additional Commissioner roles.
Appointment designations for the Appellate Authority under the Rajasthan Goods and Services Tax framework are amended by substituting "Special Commissioner" for "Additional Commissioner" and "Additional Commissioner" for "Joint Commissioner" in the earlier departmental order. The revised designations take effect from 20 February 2020.

Independent director liability limited to acts with knowledge, board attribution, consent or connivance; prosecutions require verification and sanction.
Independent directors and other non-promoter, non-KMP non-executive directors are liable only where defaults occurred with their knowledge, are attributable through Board processes, and involve their consent, connivance or lack of diligence. Registrars and investigators must verify records and e-forms to establish involvement, seek Ministry guidance when in doubt, and obtain Ministry sanction before initiating prosecutions; ongoing and already-filed cases not meeting these criteria must be reviewed accordingly.

Networth requirement for IFSC investment advisers revised; existing IFSC entities can register without forming a new company.
The networth threshold for registered Investment Advisers in the IFSC is revised to USD 700,000, and existing recognized entities in IFSC may apply for Investment Adviser registration without forming a separate company or LLP; the clarification is issued under Section 11(1) of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 and published on SEBI's website.

External laboratory testing for specified import samples is temporarily facilitated, with testing costs borne by importers or owners.
Temporary external laboratory testing is facilitated for specified import samples that the DYCC Laboratory cannot presently test. For four months, samples concerning MEK in inks and pigments and animal feeds may be sent to Geo Chem Laboratories Pvt. Ltd., Mumbai. Importers or owners must bear the testing cost under section 145 of the Customs Act, 1962. Implementation difficulties may be placed before the Additional Commissioner in charge of DYCC, and the prescribed action operates as a standing order for officers and staff.

Import/export authorisation under export promotion schemes: ICD Palwal permitted for shipments subject to scheme conditions and procedures.
Permission is granted to permit import and export of permissible goods through Inland Container Depot, Palwal (INPWL6) under the referenced Export Promotion Schemes, subject to fulfilment of conditions in the cited Customs notifications and the Handbook of Procedure/Foreign Trade Policy 2015-2020 and departmental instructions; trade bodies and brokers are requested to publicize the Notice and the permission is time-limited.

Empanelment of Chartered Engineers for valuation of second-hand machinery under CBIC guidelines; certified applications invited.
Invitation for empanelment of chartered engineers to conduct valuation and appraisement of second hand machinery imported through Custom House, Kandla, pursuant to CBIC Circular No. 07/2020; applicants must be certified by the Institute of Chartered Engineers and submit required qualifications and documentation to the Principal Commissioner of Customs by the prescribed deadline.

Interest and penalty waiver scheme directed for outstanding tax demands, with online monitoring and wide trader outreach.
Interest and penalty waiver scheme was directed to be implemented for outstanding demands arising from orders passed up to 31.03.2019 under the Uttar Pradesh Trade Tax Act, Central Sales Tax Act, Entertainment Tax law and rules, Entry Tax Act, VAT Act, and the Cable Television Network regulations. Field officers were required to guide staff, publicise the scheme widely, and encourage trader participation. The circular also required priority record scrutiny, year-wise issue of no-dues certificates by the Assessing Authority, online implementation, and weekly portal-based monitoring and reporting of deposits and waivers.

Automated clearance: electronic release of import entries once CCV is confirmed and duty payment is recorded.
Automated clearance of import Bills of Entry is extended to all Customs EDI locations with RMS enabled; designated officers will perform Customs Compliance Verification which can occur before duty payment is complete. Clearance in the Customs System follows the officer's confirmation of CCV completion and confirmation of duty payment. ICES technical changes will be communicated via DG Systems advisories and field formations must notify trade and report implementation issues to the Board.

Intermediary access in IFSCs permits registered intermediaries and associates to provide services without separate companies, subject to approval.
SEBI amends IFSC guidelines to allow SEBI-registered intermediaries (except trading/clearing members) or their international associates to provide securities-market financial services in IFSCs without forming a separate company, subject to Board approval, with exceptions for services offered exclusively to institutional investors and for recognized foreign entities. Entities issuing or listing debt in IFSCs must prepare accounts under IFRS/US GAAP/Ind AS or home accounting standards; where not using those standards, a quantitative summary of significant differences from IFRS must be included in disclosure documents.

Empanelment of Chartered Engineers for examination and valuation of second hand imported machinery; applicants must meet eligibility and documentation requirements.
Invitation for empanelment of Chartered Engineers for examination/valuation of second hand and used imported machinery and capital goods in the Air Cargo Complex (Import), Mumbai; applicants must be authorised Chartered Engineers, submit prescribed application, undertaking and supporting valuation certificates, undergo credential verification and interview, prepare reports per CBIC Circular No. 07/2020 after on site verification, and submit half yearly self appraisals.

Imported second hand machinery must have chartered engineer inspection reports or appraisal by a local empanelled engineer.
Imported used capital machinery should ordinarily be accompanied by an inspection/appraisement report by a Chartered Engineer in the prescribed Form A; if unavailable, the importer may obtain appraisal from a Chartered Engineer empanelled by the Customs House in Form B. Where Rule 3 cannot be applied due to pre import refurbishment, depreciation and related charges must be considered and, if necessary, the residual method under Rule 9 used to determine value, with declared values compared to engineer reports and depreciated benchmarks and explanations sought under Rule 12 when discrepancies arise.

24x7 customs clearance activated to maintain uninterrupted trade flows; designated nodal officers to receive stakeholder difficulties.
Implementation of 24x7 customs clearance at Custom House, Mundra to maintain uninterrupted import-export handling amid coronavirus-related supply disruptions. Two nodal officers are designated with contact numbers-one for Docks Examination, Docks Preventive and R&I, and one for Import/Export Assessment groups-and stakeholders are directed to report difficulties to the respective nodal officer. The measure is issued with the Commissioner's approval.

Interest and penalty waiver scheme offers graded relief on outstanding tax demands with installment facility and compliance conditions.
Interest and penalty waiver scheme approved for outstanding tax demands created up to 31.03.2019 under multiple Uttar Pradesh tax laws and related rules. The scheme applies to separate orders under those enactments, is effective for three months from the government order, and allows applications through the departmental portal with local assistance for small traders. It provides graded waiver of interest and full waiver of penalty imposed for non-payment, together with payment and no-dues certificates subject to future action if turnover suppression or revenue loss is later detected.

Direct investor access to stock exchange infrastructure allowed for purchasing and redeeming mutual fund units; exchanges to amend byelaws accordingly.
Permits investor access to recognised stock exchange infrastructure to purchase and redeem mutual fund units directly from Mutual Funds/Asset Management Companies; requires recognised stock exchanges, clearing corporations and depositories to amend their byelaws, rules and regulations as necessary to operationalise such access.

EPCG discharge verification governs LUT bond and bank guarantee cancellation through prescribed licence, EODC, and installation certificate submissions.
Cancellation of LUT bonds and bank guarantees under EPCG authorisations requires verification or submission of prescribed records following issuance of an EODC. Sixteen identified licences require verification. For separately identified non-verification cases, importers must submit the original EPCG licence, a DGFT-issued EODC, and a department-accepted installation certificate to the EPCG Monitoring Cell for cancellation processing under the prescribed procedure.

Empanelment of Chartered Engineers for valuation of second hand machinery requires specified professional and valuation experience.
Applications are invited for empanelment of Chartered Engineers to value second hand and used imported/exported machinery and goods; applicants must submit a proforma with proofs of professional registration, industrial and valuation experience (minimum two years industrial and three years valuation experience, five years total). A committee will scrutinize applications and refer eligible candidates to the engineering institute for verification; accreditation with inspection bodies is advantageous. The panel is valid for three years, empanelment requires half yearly self appraisals, and false information may result in cancellation and penal consequences.

PGA e-SANCHIT paperless processing: beneficiary uploads disabled; PGAs must upload recent LPCOs and confirm ICEGATE emails.
Three additional PGAs are onboarded to e SANCHIT, raising total PGAs to fifty; beneficiary self uploading of LPCOs issued by these PGAs will be deactivated from the cut off date. The newly onboarded PGAs must upload LPCOs they issued during the prior 15 days and may upload earlier LPCOs. PGAs will communicate LPCO details and IRNs via ICEGATE e mail addresses; beneficiaries must ensure correct e mail registration under ICEGATE and use the simplified auto registration provision for e SANCHIT communication.