Mandatory electronic filing of non-preferential Certificate of Origin now required; paper submissions temporarily permitted during onboarding.
The Common Digital Platform has been expanded to accept Non-Preferential Certificates of Origin and aims to provide an electronic, contactless single-window process. Manual/paper submission and processing of non-preferential CoO applications remain temporarily permitted during the transition. All agencies listed under Appendix-2E must complete onboarding to the platform by the notice deadline and may contact the DGFT onboarding support email for guidance.

IGST on re-imported goods applies to repair, insurance and freight value, as clarified following GST Council recommendation.
Re-imports of goods exported for repair are subject to IGST and compensation cess calculated on the fair cost of repairs, including materials, insurance and freight (both ways), rather than on the full value of the goods. The GST Council affirmed this treatment and recommended a clarificatory amendment after a tribunal decision suggesting IGST exemption; the notifications were amended to remove doubt and implement the Council's position.

Foreign Trade Policy consultation open for stakeholder suggestions; submit responses via designated online form by the stated deadline.
Stakeholders are invited to submit suggestions for the Foreign Trade Policy (2021-26); inputs must be provided exclusively through the designated Google Form link to enable collation and analysis, and alternate channels will not be accepted. The notice supplies the submission portal link, specifies a deadline for receipt of inputs, and identifies the issuing administrative signatory and file reference.

Expected Loss based rating scale introduced for infrastructure instruments; CRAs must standardise scales and report compliance.
An Expected Loss (EL) based Rating Scale of seven categories (EL 1 to EL 7) is introduced for infrastructure instruments, with CRA name as prefix; CRAs must follow Board guidance for existing ratings. CRAs must standardise rating scales by aligning with scales prescribed by the respective financial sector regulator or, if none prescribed, adopt Board prescribed rating scales. Use of rating scales is restricted to those issued by the Board where a regulator has not prescribed a scale. The circular mandates implementation timelines, board reporting, and regulator notification obligations.

Block mechanism in demat accounts enables blocking of securities for sale orders, facilitating EPI benefit and preventing physical transfers.
SEBI adopts an optional Block Mechanism whereby clients may block securities in their demat accounts in favour of the Clearing Corporation when placing sell orders; depositories retain blocks until pay-in day and share transfer details with Clearing Corporations to match client level net delivery obligations. If matched, Clearing Corporations grant Early Pay-In benefit and blocked securities move to TM and then CM pool accounts under restricted pool-transfer and inter-settlement rules. If unmatched, blocks are cancelled on T day and securities are freed. Blocked securities are treated as margins deemed collected, removing margin shortfall penalties.

GST exemption for road access on annuity applies to access services, not to annuity payments for construction services.
Entry 23A exempts annuity-based access services falling under supporting services in transport (heading 9967) but does not extend to general construction services (heading 9954). Therefore annuity or deferred payments received as consideration for construction of roads are not covered by Entry 23A and do not enjoy the exemption.

Direct Port Delivery expands to fully facilitated advance-filed full-container consignments, subject to terminal registration and logistics election.
Direct Port Delivery is available for advance-filed, fully facilitated full-container consignments requiring neither assessment nor examination. Non-AEO importers may avail the facility without a separate permission letter after DPD registration and allotment of a unique DPD code. Registered importers must use the online One Time Default Intimation to select direct port delivery or a preferred Container Freight Station, with changes submitted at least 72 hours before vessel arrival. Electronic cargo-arrival messages identify eligible containers and applicable scanning requirements.

Risk-based selection of shipping bills facilitates quicker processing of drawback claims while routing others for officer scrutiny.
RMS will process shipping bill data after filing of the Export General Manifest and inform ICES whether a shipping bill claiming duty drawback is to be facilitated without intervention or routed to the designated Customs officer for further checks; payment procedures remain unchanged. Documents required under rule 14 may be attached electronically via e-Sanchit. Post-clearance audit of such shipping bills will follow PCA procedures, with an electronic PCA module under development and manual PCA to continue under existing audit guidance.

Faceless customs assessment reforms expedite clearance through higher facilitation, limited queries, specialised assessment groups, and anonymised escalation.
Faceless customs assessment processes are revised to accelerate assessment and clearance while preserving uniformity, anonymity and risk-based interdiction. Facilitation under the Risk Management System is raised to 90%, subject to retained random selection for interdiction. Verification of self-assessment is expedited by limiting an Appraising Officer to three queries for each Bill of Entry and dispensing with prior approval from the Additional or Joint Commissioner for raising them. Queries must be clear, comprehensive and supported by references to relevant valuation, classification or other details.

GST exemption on catering services applies to schools and anganwadis irrespective of government or corporate funding.
Services by way of catering to educational institutions, including mid-day meal schemes and pre-school settings such as Anganwadis, are exempt from GST under Entry 66(b)(ii); this exemption applies irrespective of whether such services are funded by government grants or corporate donations.

AEO T2 and T3 certification moves to portal-based filing, real-time tracking, deficiency response and digital processing.
AEO T2 and AEO T3 certification applications are processed through Version 2.0 of the AEO web application for online annexure filing, real-time monitoring and digital certification. Applicants submit physical documents to the jurisdictional AEO Cell, register on the portal and upload relevant annexures; existing AEO T1 holders applying for T2 may use existing credentials. Portal registration became mandatory for T2 and T3 applicants from 1 August 2021, while applications filed before 7 July 2021 may continue manually unless migrated without delaying certification.

Extension of time for TMA claims allows late filing of refund applications for specified agricultural export assistance.
The filing deadline for Transport and Marketing Assistance (TMA) refund claims for the quarters ending 31 March 2020 and 30 June 2020 is extended until 30 September 2021 by amendment to Chapter 7A of the Handbook of Procedures under powers of the Foreign Trade Policy, permitting eligible exporters to file pending claims within this extended period.

Customs duty exemption review invites stakeholder suggestions to identify outdated entries requiring modification or rescission and reduce structural distortions.
Comprehensive stakeholder consultation is initiated for review of specified customs duty exemption notifications and entries. Older exemptions are being examined to identify provisions that may have become outdated or redundant and may require modification or rescission, with the objective of establishing a revised customs duty structure free from distortions. Importers, exporters, domestic industry, trade associations and the public may submit suggestions and supporting justification through the MyGov Innovate platform in the prescribed format.

Removal of RCMC requirement from Free Sale & Commerce Certificate forms simplifies export application compliance requirements.
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade, under paragraph 2.04 of the Foreign Trade Policy, has amended ANF-2H and ANF-2I of the Handbook of Procedures by deleting the requirement to furnish RCMC details in the application particulars and the RCMC-related declaration in the declaration/undertaking, publishing revised formats as annexures. The change is notified as a step to reduce regulatory compliance burden while retaining other declarations concerning export permissibility under Schedule 2 of ITC (HS), SCOMET compliance, accuracy of statements, adherence to FT(D&R) Act and related rules, and certifications on penal history, denied-entity status, and IEC issuance.

Regulatory compliance burden reduction: deletion of quarterly and monthly export return requirements and ANF-2C format revised.
Paragraph 2.96(b) of Chapter 2 of the Handbook of Procedures, 2015-2020 is deleted, thereby removing the requirement for exporters (and the previously specified requirement for status holders to send quarterly returns to FIEO) to furnish quarterly export returns to the registering authority. Serial No. 9(d) of ANF 2C mandating submission of monthly export returns, including 'NIL' returns by the fifteenth day following the quarter, is also deleted, and a revised ANF 2C format is notified.

Suspension of GST registration: portal notices require taxpayer response; officer may revoke, drop, or cancel registration thereafter.
Procedure permits immediate suspension of GST registration where return comparisons or analysis show significant discrepancies; system generated intimation/notice (FORM GST REG 31 or interim FORM GST REG 17 on dashboard) must state reasons. The taxpayer must reply on the portal (FORM GST REG 18) within the prescribed period and may remedy defects such as filing due returns. The proper officer reviews responses and may drop proceedings (FORM GST REG 20), cancel registration (FORM GST REG 19), revoke suspension while pursuing verification, or reinitiate cancellation via portal notice.

Dynamic QR Code requirement clarified: QR needed on invoices to UIN holders treated as B2C; exceptions and data rules specified.
An invoice issued to a person with a Unique Identity Number is treated as a B2C invoice and must carry a Dynamic QR Code; a UPI ID alone suffices without separate bank/IFSC details. An authorized collector's UPI ID may be used in the QR. Invoices to recipients outside India (with place of supply in India and payment in foreign currency by RBI approved modes) need not include a Dynamic QR Code. Where invoice numbers are unavailable at payment, a unique order ID linked to the invoice may be embedded in the QR. QR should reflect only the remaining payable amount when part payment exists, with full cross reference on the invoice.

Put option valuation: non-exercise requires justification and valuation agencies must ignore remaining puts for pricing.
If a mutual fund does not exercise a put option that would have benefited the scheme, the fund must justify non-exercise to valuation agencies, the AMC board and trustees by the last date of the notice period; valuation agencies must then exclude remaining put options from the security valuation. A put is deemed in favour of the scheme where the yield on the valuation price ignoring the put exceeds the contractual yield or coupon by the prescribed threshold. The circular applies prospectively and is issued to protect investors and regulate valuation.

Extension of time to apply for revocation of cancellation of registration allows administrative officers to grant limited extensions upon sufficient cause.
A delegated extension regime allows the Joint/Additional Commissioner to grant an initial extension and the Commissioner a further extension where sufficient cause is shown and reasons are recorded; until GSTN portal functionality exists, applicants who apply belatedly must request extension through the proper officer, who forwards it for decision; decisions, hearings and communications follow the prescribed interim procedure, and the circular ceases once portal functionality is available.

GST refund scrutiny for mentha oil exporters targets bogus input tax credit and supply-chain verification.
Scrutiny of GST refunds sanctioned to exporters of mentha oil and its products is directed under the refund mechanism for unutilized input tax credit claimed by exporters. The circular is based on reported instances of invoices issued without actual supply of goods and bogus ITC being passed on to exporters. Refunds sanctioned for 2017-18 to 2020-21 are to be examined through scrutiny of the inward supply chain, with officer responsibility, timelines, cross-verification, and monthly reporting prescribed for monitoring compliance.