Prohibition on PABA in health supplements: imported products containing PABA will be refused clearance immediately.
Imported health supplements and nutraceutical products containing PABA (Para Amino Benzoic Acid) are banned and shall not be cleared for import; affected manufactured or imported products must be withdrawn from the market. Customs directs importers, brokers and trade associations to publicise the ban; the notice is to be treated as a Standing Order and queries are to be referred to the Additional Commissioner (Technical).

Mandatory Testing and Certification of Telecommunications Equipment requires certification before import or sale, effective from October.
Mandatory testing and certification under MTCTE Phase II requires testing and certification of specified telecommunications equipment (Transmission Terminal Equipment, PON family broadband equipment, and feedback devices) via the MTCTE portal; applications accepted from 25 June 2020 and certification mandatory for import, sale or use with effect from 1 October 2020.

Customs duty exemption review: public invited to submit suggestions online; departmental officers to promote participation.
An online public consultation has been launched to solicit suggestions for review of Customs duty exemption notifications and Customs laws and procedures via the MyGov Innovate portal. Stakeholders including importers, exporters, brokers, shipping agents, custodians, trade associations and the public are invited to submit inputs within the prescribed submission window. The notice directs departmental officers to promote the initiative and treats the Public Notice as a Standing Order for creating awareness and facilitating participation; difficulties may be reported to the Commissioner.

Refund application mapping: process by the authority receiving the electronic transfer when portal reassignment is unavailable.
Where a refund FORM GST RFD-01A is electronically transferred by the common portal to a tax authority that does not match the taxpayer's administrative assignment, and portal reassignment to the correct jurisdiction is not possible, the authority receiving the electronic transfer should process the refund claim. After processing, the authority should notify the common portal of the incorrect mapping and request an update so that subsequent refund applications are routed to the correct jurisdictional tax authority.

SCMTR stakeholder registration requires timely onboarding, bond compliance where applicable, and approval before Sea Cargo Manifest obligations commence.
SCMTR registration is mandatory for authorised custodians, carriers, sea agents, terminal operators, e-seal authorisees and transhippers before their Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment obligations commence. Unregistered stakeholders must complete onboarding immediately. A dedicated SCMTR Cell facilitates registration, and stakeholders required to furnish a bond or bank guarantee must submit the relevant security to the Cell for system registration and approval by the concerned officer.

Relaxation of takeover and buy-back procedures extended to cover open offers and tender buy-backs opening through year-end.
SEBI extended one-time procedural relaxations for open offers under the Takeovers framework and for buy-back by tender offer, maintaining the same scope of eased enforcement for open offers and tender-offer buy-backs that open through December 31, 2020, in response to market representations and issued under SEBI's regulatory powers.

Intermediary classification determines whether ITeS suppliers qualify as export of services under GST and export conditions.
Clarifies that an intermediary arranges or facilitates supplies but excludes persons supplying services on their own account; suppliers of ITeS providing services on their own account are not intermediaries, while suppliers who only arrange or facilitate pre delivery, delivery, or post delivery support are intermediaries. Mixed supplies require a facts and circumstances inquiry to identify the principal supply. Suppliers who are not intermediaries may qualify as export of services if the supplier and recipient locations, place of supply, convertible foreign exchange receipt, and distinct establishment conditions are satisfied.

Non-filing of GST returns: notice followed by best-judgement assessment and potential recovery if returns remain unfiled.
Non-filing of GST returns triggers issuance of FORM GSTR-3A requiring return filing within fifteen days; if not filed the proper officer may assess tax liability by best judgement under section 62 and issue FORM GST ASMT-13, relying on available data such as GSTR-1, GSTR-2A, e way bills and inspection information, with the assessment summary uploaded in FORM GST DRC-07; a valid return filed within thirty days of the assessment order leads to deemed withdrawal of the assessment, otherwise recovery and enforcement measures may follow.

Recording of encumbrances required in depository system; participants subject to concurrent audit and off system encumbrances prohibited.
Depositories must implement a system to capture and record all types of encumbrances specified under Regulation 28(3) of the SEBI Takeover Regulations, adopting processes similar to those for NDUs; freeze and unfreeze instructions by Participants will be subject to 100% concurrent audit, and Depository Participants must not facilitate or be party to any encumbrance outside the depository system.

Relaxations for rights issue timelines extended, providing one time procedural relief under securities regulations for eligible issues.
SEBI extended previously granted one time procedural relaxations under the ICDR Regulations for rights issues, making those relaxations applicable to rights issues opening within the newly specified extended period; the relief is procedural, directed to listed entities, issuers proposing to list specified securities and market intermediaries, and issued under SEBI's statutory market regulation powers.

Health supplements containing PABA banned; immediate prohibition on manufacture, sale and import clearance of such products.
The instruction mandates an immediate prohibition on the use of PABA (Para Amino Benzoic Acid) in health supplements and nutraceuticals, prohibits further manufacturing with PABA, requires withdrawal of products already manufactured or imported, directs e commerce operators to de list such products immediately, and instructs Authorized Officers and Customs to prevent clearance of imported products containing banned ingredients and to ensure mandatory compliance.

Telecommunications equipment: testing and certification for specified Phase II devices mandatory from 1 October 2020; applications accepted online.
Mandatory testing and certification under phase II of the MTCTE regime makes testing and certification compulsory for Transmission Terminal Equipment (SDH, multiplexing), PON family broadband equipment (PON ONT, PON ONU, PON OLT) and Feedback Devices from 1 October 2020; applications were acceptable on the MTCTE portal from 25 June 2020, and certification is required for sale, import or use in India. Customs and departmental officers must issue instructions to ensure trade compliance and report implementation issues to the Board.

Reporting of Code of Conduct violations to stock exchanges required; revised format and remittance to investor protection fund mandated.
Listed companies, intermediaries and fiduciaries must promptly inform the stock exchange(s) of any violations of the Code of Conduct under the PIT Regulations using the revised Annexure A reporting format, which collects details of the reporting entity, designated person or immediate relative, transaction particulars, dates of Regulation 7 intimations (where applicable), observed violations, actions taken, reasons recorded and prior instances. Any amounts collected for such violations must be remitted to SEBI for credit to the Investor Protection and Education Fund by online transfer or demand draft, with transfer particulars reported in the Annexure A.

Trading window exemptions extended to Offer for Sale and Rights Entitlements when conducted under board-specified framework.
SEBI clarified that trading window restrictions under the Prohibition of Insider Trading regime shall not apply to Offer for Sale (OFS) and Rights Entitlements (RE) transactions when conducted in accordance with the framework specified by the Board. The amendment supplements existing exemptions under Schedule B and Regulation 9. Stock exchanges must notify listed companies and publish the circular; the directive is issued under SEBI's regulatory powers and is effective immediately.

Deemed GST registration approval resumes after COVID suspension, requiring expedited disposal of pending applications and verification of irregular approvals.
GST registration applications are deemed approved if no action is taken within three working days. During the COVID lockdown, portal-based deemed approvals were withheld because offices were closed or functioning with skeletal staff. The deemed approval mechanism was restored for specified pending applications, and the three-working-day process resumed from 1 August 2020. Proper officers were required to clear pending applications before resumption, while approvals generated during lockdown through technical glitches could be subjected to physical verification of business premises.

Adoption of e-Office encourages PDF electronic communications with contact details for immediate acknowledgement and diary reference.
Launch of e-Office in the Audit Commissionerate, Kochi implements a transition to a paperless environment to improve efficiency, transparency, accountability and service delivery. Taxpayers are encouraged to use electronic communications in PDF, preferably searchable, and to provide mobile and email details to receive immediate acknowledgements and a Diary Number for future reference.

RFQ platform usage requirement increases exchange liquidity by mandating mutual funds to route a portion of corporate bond trades via RFQ.
Mutual funds must route a prescribed portion of secondary market corporate bond trades through the stock exchange RFQ platform in one to many mode (with a rolling three month average calculation); trades where a mutual fund is on both sides must use RFQ one to one mode, and inter mutual fund executions on RFQ one to many count toward the requirement. Debt scheme disclosures must be made fortnightly within five days of each fortnight and additionally include the yield of each instrument in the prescribed format.

Sovereign Wealth Fund tax exemption requires notification, application, audited return and quarterly investment reporting for compliance.
The Finance Act, 2020 provides an exemption under section 10(23FE) for dividend, interest and long term capital gains on investments by specified sovereign and pension funds in specified infrastructure businesses held for at least three years. Notified Sovereign Wealth Funds must apply using Form I (certifying government ownership, non commercial status and appropriation of earnings), file income tax returns with an audit report, and submit electronic quarterly investment intimations in Form II within one month of each quarter end, with verification and supporting documentation.

Mandatory e-payment of non-GST taxes shifts to the department portal as bank portal payment options are discontinued.
Mandatory e-payment of taxes other than GST must be made through the department's portal integrated with GRAS. Registered taxpayers are required to use the Assam taxation portal for electronic payment, with access through existing credentials, an online dealer profile, or the jurisdictional officer. The earlier facility of payment through the banks' portals of specified banks is discontinued from 1 October 2020, and taxpayers must shift to the department's portal. A helpdesk is available for guidance and payment-related issues.

Export of PPE medical coverall samples permitted under limited quantity with online licence procedure and three month validity.
Permission to export samples of PPE medical coveralls for COVID-19 is authorized up to 50 units per IEC per country through online DGFT ECOM applications for non SCOMET restricted items. Applications must specify "PPE medical coveralls for COVID-19 Samples," include a copy of the IEC, documentary proof of manufacturing of textile/medical textile products or medical devices, and be self attested by an authorised person. Licences are valid for three months; incomplete applications, hard copy submissions, or email applications will not be considered.