Upfront margin verification required - exchanges to monitor EOD and peak client margins with phased compliance and penalties
Clearing Corporations shall send multiple intra-day snapshots and client-wise margin files specifying EOD and peak margin obligations; members must report margins collected at EOD and peak during the day. Verification compares EOD obligation against EOD client margin available and peak obligation across snapshots against client peak margin available; the higher shortfall is used for penalty. Exchanges/Clearing Corporations will verify member books weekly. Adoption of peak-margin comparison is phased, and members must show any remaining peak obligation during the phase is funded from their own funds and not from other clients.

Eligibility criteria repeal for selection of underlying commodity futures removes turnover ranking requirement and requires exchanges to amend rules.
The circular repeals the eligibility requirement that underlying futures be among the top five contracts by trading turnover for listing options on commodity futures, while retaining all other prior product-design provisions. The repeal is effective immediately; stock exchanges must amend bye-laws, notify brokers, publish the change, and report implementation to the regulator. The directive is issued under Section 11(1) to protect investors and regulate the market.

Customs custodian renewal preserves CFS responsibility for imported and export cargo, subject to regulatory compliance and review.
Custodian and Customs Cargo Services Provider status for M/s. Central Warehousing Corporation, D' Node Container Freight Station is renewed for five years from 15 March 2020. The custodianship covers imported goods until clearance for home consumption, warehousing or transhipment, and export cargo until exportation after examination and stuffing. The provider must comply with the Customs Act and cargo-area regulations. Approval remains subject to review before expiry for regulatory non-compliance or Government directions.

First-time importer verification: documentary and address checks require submission of registration, bank certification, and payment proof.
First-time importer verification requires submission one week before consignment arrival of GST/VAT/Sales Tax registration, a bank certificate confirming account maintenance and remittance purpose, proof of payment through the importer's account, last year balance sheet, and last tax return; customs brokers must assist and SIIB/ICD/CFS authorities will conduct document and physical address verification, trigger alerts on adverse findings, and supervise examinations, with manufacturer-exporters exempt from SIIB NOC but traders subject to SIIB verification.

Import of livestock products: no customs sealed samples for No Testing lines; clearance on Veterinary Health Certificate via SWS.
Consignments of livestock products classified in the No Testing category will not require customs sealed samples for AQCS clearance; instead AQCS clearance will be granted on the Single Window System based on a Veterinary Health Certificate uploaded with the Bill of Entry, while Customs must ensure physical identification of those consignments under existing laws. This change takes immediate effect for the listed tariff lines mapped under the Risk Management System.

Deemed GST registration approval resumes after lockdown pendency clearance, with verification permitted for applications approved through technical glitches.
Deemed approval of GST registration applications was withheld during the COVID lockdown because the period was treated as having no working days and misuse was apprehended. Pending applications were to be cleared through a special drive before the three-working-day deemed-approval mechanism resumed. Applications remaining pending on the specified date were to receive deemed approval, while cases approved during lockdown because of technical glitches could be subjected to physical verification of business premises where required.

TDS on cash withdrawals: specified pre amendment exemptions remain valid under the amended proviso, subject to conditions.
Three pre-amendment notifications exempted specified entities-cash replenishment agencies and WLATMO franchisees for ATM cash replenishment; APMC commission agents/traders registered under state APMC laws; and authorised dealers/FFMCs and their agents for specified foreign exchange purchases and remittance disbursements-from TDS under section 194N subject to conditions. Following amendment, the proviso became the fourth proviso; the Board clarifies that the three notifications shall be deemed issued under the fourth proviso and the exemptions continue to be subject to their stated conditions.

Refund of Input Tax Credit limited to ITC matching supplier-filed GSTR-1/GSTR-2A; imports and RCM treatment unchanged.
Refund of accumulated Input Tax Credit is restricted to ITC supported by supplier invoices uploaded in FORM GSTR-1 and reflected in the applicant's FORM GSTR-2A, modifying earlier practice that allowed refunds based on applicant-uploaded missing invoices. Treatment of ITC for imports, ISD invoices and inward supplies under Reverse Charge remains unchanged and continues as before.

Refund of Input Tax Credit: clubbing across financial years allowed; ITC refunds limited to GSTR 2A matched invoices.
The circular removes the restriction on clubbing refund claims across financial years, clarifies that accumulated ITC due to a rate reduction on the same goods is not refundable as inverted structure accumulation, mandates proportional refund in original modes of payment with ITC amounts re credited to the electronic credit ledger, restricts ITC refunds to invoices uploaded by suppliers and reflected in GSTR 2A, and requires HSN/SAC codes in Annexure B where provided by suppliers; effective March 31, 2020.

Corporate insolvency GST rules: registration continuity, first-return ITC claims, and cash ledger refunds clarified under special procedure.
Pre-insolvency GST dues are operational debt and must be claimed before the insolvency tribunal; coercive recovery is barred during the moratorium. GST registration of a corporate debtor undergoing CIRP should not be cancelled and may be suspended; revoked cancellations within the revocation period should be restored. IRP/RP need not file pre-insolvency returns but must obtain new registrations where required and file the first return covering their period of liability, during which they may avail input tax credit on invoices bearing the erstwhile GSTIN under the special procedure, subject to general input credit conditions and limited exceptions.

Apportionment of input tax credit: apply state-level asset-value ratio as on appointed date to determine transferable ITC.
Clarification requires apportionment of unutilized input tax credit in reorganisations by applying the asset-value ratio specified in the demerger scheme; "value of assets" means entire business assets. Apportionment is to be performed at each State registration level, applies to the aggregate ITC (CGST, SGST/UTGST and IGST) and cess, and transfers use the ITC balance on the date of filing Form GST ITC-02. The asset ratio is to be taken as on the appointed date of demerger.

Exit option to dissenting unitholders: structured tendering, escrow safeguards, lead manager due diligence, and prescribed exit price benchmarks.
An Acquirer required to provide an exit option must appoint registered lead manager(s) to send a Letter of Offer to all dissenting unitholders, file the LoF and due diligence certificate with the stock exchange(s), create an escrow (cash and/or bank guarantee) before tendering, conduct a five-working-day tender commencing on the seventh working day from Date of Intimation, pay accepted unitholders within three working days of tender close, and determine the exit price as the highest of prescribed benchmarks or a valuation where units are not frequently traded; proportional acceptance is required to maintain minimum public unitholding.

Exit option mechanism for dissenting unitholders under SEBI InvIT Regulations: prescribed process, valuation benchmarks and escrow safeguards.
Regulation 22(5C) and 22(7) require an acquirer to provide an exit option to dissenting unit holders; the circular prescribes appointment of registered lead manager(s) to prepare and disseminate a Letter of Offer, conduct due diligence and file certificates, use stock-exchange tendering and settlement mechanisms, create escrow by cash and/or bank guarantee, follow specified timelines for notice, voting, tendering and payment, compute the exit price by defined market and valuation benchmarks, and ensure proportional acceptance where public unitholding minima would otherwise be breached.

Veterinary Certificate requirement: one-time AQCS clearance allowed for certain milk products with sanitary certification.
The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying permits a one-time administrative AQCS clearance for certain milk products subject to fulfilment of sanitary and hygienic certification, with the relaxation being non-precedential; the Commissionerate has amended the public notice accordingly while leaving other provisions unchanged.

AGMARK certification requirement now mandatory before import of blended edible vegetable oils; non-compliance attracts customs penalties.
Imports of Blended Edible Vegetable Oils are allowed only in sealed, tamper proof packages not exceeding 15 kilograms, labelled as "Blended Edible Vegetable Oil" and bearing AGMARK certification; imports without AGMARK are prohibited. BEVO must comply with the Food Safety and Standards Act and related regulations, and clearance will follow the FSS (Import) Regulations, 2017. Non compliance with certification, labelling, packaging or import procedure may attract penal action under the Customs Act, 1962.

GST audit nodal officer appointment assigns additional duties with immediate effect pending further administrative orders.
Naresh Kumar, Assistant Commissioner, W-62, is appointed as Nodal Officer for GST Audit in addition to his existing official duties. The appointment takes immediate effect and continues until further orders, with prior approval of the competent authority.

Deemed approval of GST registration resumed; pending applications to be cleared before automatic approval by specified dates under revised timeline.
Deemed approval of GST registration under section 25(10) and rule 9 was suspended during the COVID lockdown and has now been restored: deemed approvals were granted for applications pending as on 30 June 2020 unprocessed till 15 July 2020; the three day deemed approval rule resumes from 1 August 2020. A special drive must dispose of pending applications by 30 July 2020, with daily monitoring through 28 July, and jurisdictional officers may perform physical verification for applications technically deemed during lockdown.

Faceless assessment facilitation: Turant Suvidha Kendras centralise bond and document verification for remote customs appraisal.
TSKs are established to facilitate the phased roll-out of faceless assessment by centralising receipt, verification, custody and electronic marking of Bonds, Bank Guarantees and physical documents uploaded to e-Sanchit. Officers have defined roles: senior officers accept Bonds/BGs and perform legal checks; superintendents supervise acceptance/cancellation; inspectors and tax assistants conduct scrutiny, maintain registers, ensure safe custody, scan and cross-reference documents, and mark verified/defaced items in the system. Workflow includes register entry, ICES job generation, dual hard copy and electronic acceptance, and retention/forwarding protocols for warehousing bonds. Single continuity bonds to be accepted only post roll-out.

Turant Customs contactless procedures: nationwide Turant Suvidha Kendras enable faceless assessment and electronic submission of trade documents.
Extension of Turant Suvidha Kendras to all customs formations to act as single point interfaces for electronic document verification under faceless assessment; electronic reliance on e Sanchit for assessment and CCV, limited physical submissions at TSKs with safekeeping procedures, continued verification during physical examination, ICEGATE functionality for online AD code and bank account registration with e Sanchit uploads and status dashboard, and automated ICES debit of bonds when bond details accompany the bill of entry.

Anti-profiteering screening committee nomination appoints an Additional Commissioner as the State Government officer under the Rajasthan GST framework.
The Chief Commissioner, State Tax nominates an Additional Commissioner, State Tax to act as an officer of the State Government on the State-level Screening Committee on Anti-Profiteering. The nomination is made under the Rajasthan Goods and Services Tax framework pursuant to the power to appoint officers and the related Finance Department notification.