Qualified Stock Broker obligations strengthened to mandate enhanced governance, risk controls, cybersecurity and investor service mechanisms.
Designation of certain stock brokers as Qualified Stock Brokers (QSBs) triggers enhanced obligations: board-level oversight and dedicated committees, documented risk management policies covering KYC, operational, technology and outsourcing risks, surveillance of client behaviour, scalable IT capacity, and frameworks for orderly wind-down. QSBs must implement robust cybersecurity programs with dedicated security teams, regular VAPT and penetration testing, Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery procedures, investor service centers and online complaint redressal, periodic CERT IN audits, and submit prescribed reports to stock exchanges for enhanced monitoring.

Green debt securities disclosure obligations updated requiring enhanced initial and ongoing disclosures and third party review to prevent greenwashing
The circular replaces Chapter IX to require issuers of green debt securities to disclose environmental objectives, project eligibility criteria and alignment with taxonomies, systems for tracking deployment of proceeds, intended allocation between financing and refinancing, temporary placement of unutilised proceeds, and social and environmental risk mitigation. Listed issuers must provide annual verified utilisation reports, disclose unutilised proceeds, list financed projects with qualitative and, where feasible, quantitative impact metrics and methodologies, and include specified Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting elements. Third party review is required on a comply or explain transitional basis.

Late fee waiver for delayed Bills of Entry due to ICES system updation; one day waiver for affected advance filings allowed.
Waiver of late fees is provided for Bills of Entry filed belatedly due to ICES/ICEGATE shutdown during system updation for the budget; this waiver, under the Bill of Entry (Electronic Integration Declaration and Paperless Processing) Regulations, 2018, covers entry inwards on 02.02.2023 and grants a one day late fee exemption for advance Bills of Entry that could not be filed earlier because of the service unavailability, with implementation issues to be reported to the Additional Commissioner and the notice treated as a standing order.

Discharge certificate compliance: update withdrawn-appeal statuses and pursue unpaid voluntary disclosures under SVLDRS to protect revenue.
The Board directs jurisdictional officers to pursue cases where declarants filed under Voluntary Disclosure but did not discharge liabilities, to update appellate records so discharge certificates correspond to withdrawn appeals under section 127, and to coordinate with the Office of the Pr. DG Systems & Data Management to publish a watch list of non-SVLDRS challans and resolve technical issues preventing issuance of discharge certificates.

Assessment year reference revised to permit any assessment year preceding the relevant assessment year, replacing prior limited phrasing.
Corrigendum to Circular No. 23 of 2022 amends the explanatory notes to the Finance Act, 2022 by providing that, in sub point (iii) of point (I) of sub paragraph (A) of paragraph 28.5, the phrase "two assessment years preceding such assessment year" shall be read as "any assessment year preceding such assessment year", replacing the prior limited temporal wording with an open reference to any prior assessment year.

GST exemption on government-supplied accommodation affirmed; subsidies to banks for digital payments treated as non-taxable.
Accommodation services supplied by Air Force and similar messes to personnel or non-business persons are covered by the exemption for services supplied by Central/State/UT/local authorities under notification No. 12/2017, if the services qualify as government-supplied. Incentives paid by MeitY to acquiring banks for promoting RuPay and low-value BHIM-UPI transactions are subsidies linked to the price of the service, not consideration from the government for services, and therefore do not form part of the taxable value and are not taxable under GST.

Anti Money Laundering compliance: intermediaries must apply risk based KYC, CDD, monitoring and reporting obligations to clients.
The Master Circular mandates that securities market intermediaries implement written AML/CFT policies approved by senior management, apply a risk based Client Due Diligence process including KYC and beneficial ownership identification, perform ongoing transaction monitoring, report suspicious and specified transactions to FIU IND within prescribed timelines, maintain and retain client and transaction records to provide an audit trail, and designate a Principal Officer and Designated Director to ensure compliance; reliance on third parties for CDD is permitted subject to conditions, but ultimate responsibility remains with the intermediary.

Expected Loss based rating scale for infrastructure introduced; CRAs must follow new disclosure, withdrawal and governance rules.
Amendments introduce an Expected Loss (EL) based Rating Scale for infrastructure instruments with seven EL categories and require CRAs to prefix rating symbols with their name; they mandate press releases on withdrawal (stating reasons) except in specified cases, set procedures and timelines for initial rating communication, issuer acceptance or review/appeal and public disclosure of non-accepted ratings in prescribed formats, update half-yearly and six-month reporting annexures to capture rating actions and defaults, and strengthen governance by excluding MD/CEOs and business-responsible persons from rating committees and requiring issuer-review committees to be largely distinct and include one-third independent members.

Greenwashing prevention: issuers must ensure compliant use of proceeds and transparent disclosure to investors and ongoing monitoring.
Issuers of green debt securities must use proceeds only for activities within the regulatory definition, continuously monitor transition pathways to confirm reduction of adverse environmental impacts, quantify negative externalities, avoid misleading labels or false third party certification claims, disclose any non compliant use to investors, and, if required by debenture holder majority, undertake early redemption, while adhering to assigned ratings and continuous disclosure obligations.

Minimum public shareholding compliance: prescribed methods include public issuance, promoter divestment, ESOP and ETF transfers with disclosure and undertakings.
SEBI prescribes permissible methods to achieve minimum public shareholding, including public issuance, offer for sale by promoters via prospectus or stock exchange mechanism, rights and bonus issues to public shareholders with promoters forgoing entitlements, QIP allotments, ESOP exercise subject to compliance and caps, promoter open market sales under alternative quantified schemes with prior announcement and undertakings, and transfer of promoter shares to ETFs with disclosure and subscription undertakings; stock exchanges must monitor compliance and report breaches, and the Board may approve other methods on application.

Customs pass management: issuance, renewal and cancellation now processed exclusively through the online broker licensing portal.
Activation of CBLMS functionalities makes issuance, renewal and cancellation of Customs Passes for broker employees subject to exclusive submission and processing via the Customs Broker Licensing Management System. The portal applies to existing brokers with validated CB profiles and to new brokers licensed through CBLMS; a user manual detailing the process flow is available under the portal's Knowledge Centre.

GST rate classification clarifications require uniform application of central guidelines by State tax field formations.
GST rate and classification clarifications concerning certain goods are adopted for uniform implementation under the Tripura State Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. State tax officers are directed to follow the Central Government guidelines on GST rates and classification of goods across the concerned field formations.

Refund for unregistered persons: temporary PAN registration and RFD-01 filing permit tax refunds when credit-note period has expired.
Enables unregistered recipients who bore GST on prepaid or advance-paid services to obtain refunds by taking temporary PAN-based registration, completing Aadhaar authentication, and filing Form GST RFD-01 under 'refund for unregistered person' with Statement 8, the supplier's certificate and supporting documents; refunds are limited to tax declared on the invoices, require separate applications per supplier or State, are available only where the credit-note period has expired, use the supplier's cancellation letter as relevant date when no receipt date exists, and will be processed by the proper officer with sanction in Form GST RFD-06.

Nutraceuticals inclusion expands SHEFEXIL jurisdiction, making nutraceutical products fall under its export promotion remit for facilitation.
The Director General of Foreign Trade amended Appendix 2T to add nutraceuticals to the list of products under the Shellac & Forest Products Export Promotion Council's jurisdiction, thereby bringing nutraceutical products within the Council's export promotion and facilitation remit alongside shellac, lac-based products, guar gum, herbs and minor forest produce, effective immediately.

Refund for unregistered person: temporary registration and portal filing enable tax refund where credit-note time has expired.
Enables unregistered recipients who bore tax on advance payments for services to obtain temporary registration on the common portal using PAN, complete Aadhaar authentication, enter a bank account in their name, and file FORM GST RFD-01 under the category Refund for Unregistered person with Statement 8, supplier certificate and supporting documents. Separate applications are required per supplier and per State/UT of supplier registration. If the supplier can still issue a credit note within statutory time, the credit note should be issued; where time has expired, the supplier's cancellation letter will be treated as the relevant date for refund limitation. The proper officer will process the claim and issue FORM GST RFD-06 with a detailed order.

Fake invoice transactions: demand and penalty clarification applies under state GST law with necessary modifications for uniformity.
Demand and penalty provisions relating to transactions involving fake invoices are to be applied uniformly under the Chhattisgarh Goods and Services Tax framework. The clarification issued under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 applies, with necessary modifications, to proceedings concerning demand and penalty consequences arising from fake-invoice transactions, as though issued under the Chhattisgarh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

Accurate GST return reporting requires proper disclosure of inter-State supplies and ineligible input tax credit reversals.
Mandatory reporting of correct information on inter-State supplies, ineligible or blocked Input Tax Credit, and reversal of such credit applies in FORM GSTR-3B and FORM GSTR-1. The framework adopts relevant central GST procedural requirements, with necessary modifications, to ensure uniformity in furnishing inter-State supply details and reporting ineligible or blocked Input Tax Credit and its reversal.

GST procedural uniformity applies central clarifications under the State GST regime, subject to necessary State-level modifications.
Powers under the Chhattisgarh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 are exercised to ensure uniformity in GST-related procedures and actions. The clarifications contained in Central GST Circular No. 172/04/2022-GST are applied to proceedings under the State GST regime, with modifications necessary for State-level application. The incorporated clarificatory framework is treated as issued under the State GST law.

Inverted duty refunds for concessional supplies follow an adopted clarification to ensure uniform processing under state GST law.
Refund proceedings under an inverted duty structure involving supplies of goods under a concessional notification must follow the adopted clarification, with necessary modifications, for uniform implementation under the Chhattisgarh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

Electronic credit ledger re-credit through FORM GST PMT-03A follows a uniform prescribed framework under the State GST regime.
Re-credit in the electronic credit ledger through FORM GST PMT-03A is regulated under the Chhattisgarh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 by applying the framework in Circular No. 174/06/2022-GST, with necessary modifications. This ensures uniform implementation of the prescribed re-credit mechanism under the State GST regime.