Waiver of late fee for delayed Bills of Entry due to electronic portal outage; relief for affected filings.
Waiver of late fee is granted for delayed filing of Bills of Entry caused by the electronic filing portal's non functioning; the relief covers Bills of Entry linked to the affected vessel entry period and belated filings within the specified contiguous dates, and the Public Notice operates as a Standing Order with difficulties to be reported to the Deputy Commissioner of Customs (Appraising Main) for action.

Transitional credit verification: jurisdictional officers must verify TRAN-1/TRAN-2 claims and issue reasoned orders before ledger crediting.
Verification of Transitional Credit filed/revised through TRAN-1/TRAN-2 must be performed by the jurisdictional central or state tax officer who shall commence verification upon availability of the form or receipt of a self-certified copy, coordinate with counterpart officers where both central and state components exist, follow principles of natural justice, obtain supporting records, consider counterpart verification reports and applicant submissions, and pass a reasoned order quantifying allowed credit and upload it to the common portal for crediting to the electronic credit ledger.

Refund of unutilised input tax credit clarification: amended formula and specified goods restriction apply prospectively to future filings.
The amendment to sub rule (5) of rule 89 modifying the refund formula for unutilised input tax credit applies prospectively to refund applications filed on or after the amendment's effective date; earlier pending applications are to be processed under the prior formula. Separately, the notification restricting refunds for certain goods under specified chapters applies prospectively to refund applications filed on or after its effective date and does not impact applications filed before that date.

Export Obligation relaxation: targeted fee free EO extensions and EO waivers for specified EPCG authorisations amid COVID 19 disruption.
One-time relaxation of Average Export Obligation and extensions of Export Obligation (EO) periods are provided for specified EPCG authorisations due to COVID-19. Hotel, Healthcare and Educational sector authorisations are exempt from Average Export Obligation for 2020-21 and 2021-22 and qualify for fee free EO extensions equal to days within the COVID window, with prior extensions deducted; paid composition fees or other payments are not refundable. For other sectors, fee free EO extensions are available for a narrower period but carry a 5% additional EO in value terms on the balance EO, and the paid composition fee option remains available where eligible.

GST exemption for government supplied mess accommodation affirmed; digital payment incentives treated as non taxable subsidies under the circular.
Accommodation services supplied by military and similar messes to personnel or persons other than business entities are exempt under Sl. No. 6 of notification No. 12/2017 if they qualify as services supplied by Central/State/UT/local authorities. Incentives paid by MeitY to acquiring banks under the RuPay/BHIM UPI promotion scheme are subsidies directly linked to the price of the service and are not part of the taxable value under section 2(31) and section 15 of the CGST Act, 2017, therefore not taxable.

GST classification clarifications confirm tariff headings and rates for specified goods, and regularize past treatment as recommended.
Clarifies GST classification and rates: Rab falls under tariff heading 1702 attracting 18% GST; Chilka, Khanda and Churi/Chuni by products are fully exempt from GST from 1 January 2023 with intervening period treatment regularised; carbonated fruit beverages are classifiable as HS 2202 99 with applicable GST and compensation cess; extruded snack pellets are classifiable under tariff item 1905 90 30 at 18%; SUV compensation cess applies only where specified physical and engine criteria are all met; importers can claim lower IGST where eligible.

Customs Pass management: issuance, renewal and cancellation must now be processed exclusively through the CBLMS online portal.
CBLMS portal now governs issuance, renewal and cancellation of Customs Passes for broker employees nationwide; only brokers with successfully submitted and validated CB profiles or new brokers whose licences are issued through CBLMS may use the portal. A user manual detailing the process flow is available under the portal's Knowledge Centre.

GST exemption for government supplied mess accommodation affirmed; MeitY incentives to banks treated as non taxable subsidies.
Accommodation services supplied by Air Force and similar messes to personnel who are not business entities are covered by the exemption at Sl. No. 6 of Notification (12/2017) when such services qualify as supplied by Central/State/UT/local authorities. Incentives paid by MeitY to acquiring banks under the RuPay/BHIM UPI promotion scheme are subsidies linked to service price and do not form part of the taxable value under the KGST Act, 2017.

GST classification clarifies product headings and applicable tax treatments for Rab, by products, beverages, snacks, SUVs, imports.
Rab, distinct from molasses, is classifiable under tariff heading 1702 and attracts the GST rate for that heading. By-products of pulse/dal milling (Chilka, Khanda, Churi/Chuni) are fully exempt from GST from 1 January 2023 and interim matters are regularised on an "as is" basis. Carbonated fruit beverages are assigned HS 220299 and fall under the specific notification entries with applicable GST and compensation cess; snack pellets manufactured by extrusion are classifiable under 1905 90 30. SUVs meeting all four specified criteria attract the stated compensation cess. Importers of goods listed in Notification No. 3/2017 may claim a lower IGST rate where eligible.

Composition fee for export-obligation extensions revised, introducing fixed fee slabs, capped extension limits, and automatic ban-period extensions.
Para 4.42 is amended to replace ad valorem monthly composition fees with prescribed fixed composition-fee slabs for extensions of Export Obligation periods under Advance Authorisations; RAs may grant one six month extension on payment of the prescribed fee and self declaration of unutilised inputs, a second six month extension is permissible on payment of higher prescribed fees with the same self declaration, only two such extensions (maximum 12 months beyond EO expiry) are allowed, bans automatically extend EO without fee, and the new fee regime applies to requests made on or after 19.01.2023 while pending matters follow earlier rules.

Refund for unregistered persons: temporary PAN registration enables GST tax refund when long term service contracts are cancelled.
Enables unregistered recipients who paid tax on pre paid long term services to obtain refunds when contracts are cancelled and the supplier cannot issue a credit note: applicants must obtain temporary PAN based registration, complete Aadhaar authentication, provide a bank account in their name, and file Form GST RFD 01 with statement 8, supplier certificate and supporting documents; refund is limited to tax on relevant invoices, separate applications are required per supplier and State, the supplier's cancellation letter is the relevant date where no receipt date exists, and proper officers must process claims and issue RFD 06 with a speaking order.

Operational debt under insolvency: reduced GST demands require DRC-25 intimation and recovery only for the adjusted amount.
Where IBC proceedings finalise and reduce amounts payable as Government dues under the GGST Act, such IBC adjudication constitutes an "other proceeding" under section 84, obliging the Commissioner to intimate the reduction to the taxable person and to the authority with pending recovery. Recovery may proceed only for the reduced amount from the stage it stood prior to disposal. Under Rule 161, the Commissioner shall issue the intimation in Form GST DRC-25 when a confirmed demand against a corporate debtor has been reduced by IBC finalisation.

No Claim Bonus not treated as consideration and may be deducted from premium for GST valuation.
No Claim Bonus is not consideration from the insured and does not constitute a supply by the insured. When NCB is pre disclosed in the policy and specifically recorded on the invoice, it qualifies as a deductible discount under clause (a) of sub section (3) of section 15 of the GGST Act, and GST is payable on the premium after deducting the NCB. The e invoicing exemption under Notification No. 13/2020 State Tax applies to the entity as a whole, not to particular supplies.

Re-determination under section 75(2) requires revised tax demand within the prescribed period, limited to timely notified amounts.
If an appellate body concludes a fraud based show cause notice is unsustainable, the proper officer must re determine tax, interest and penalty by treating the notice as issued under the non fraud provision; the re determination order must be issued within the two year period prescribed for compliance with appellate directions, and only amounts originally notified within the allowable non fraud notice period may be re determined-time barred amounts must be dropped. For multi year notices, re determination applies only to years for which the original notice was timely issued under non fraud rules.

Place of supply rules: transportation to a foreign destination is treated as place of supply, attracting IGST and eligible input tax credit.
The circular clarifies that for transportation services of goods from India to a foreign destination where both supplier and recipient are in India, the place of supply is the foreign destination under the proviso to sub-section (8) of section 12 of the IGST Act; such supplies are treated as inter-State supplies attracting IGST, suppliers must report place of supply as '96-Foreign Country' in GSTR-1, and recipients in India may claim input tax credit of the IGST charged subject to conditions in sections 16 and 17 of the GGST Act.

Input tax credit reconciliation: require documentary verification and supplier certificates where ITC claimed is absent from counterparty records.
Where ITC claimed in Form GSTR 3B does not appear in Form GSTR 2A owing to supplier non reporting, omission, misclassification or wrong GSTIN, the proper officer shall obtain invoice details and verify statutory ITC conditions: possession of invoice, receipt of goods/services, and payment including tax; check reversals under relevant provisions and time limits; and verify supplier tax payment by requiring CA/CMA certificate with UDIN above a specified difference threshold or supplier certificate below that threshold, subject to a proviso limiting relaxations for certain late claims in FY 2017 18.

No Claim Bonus treated as invoice discount, GST on premium after deduction; e invoicing exemption covers entire entity.
No Claim Bonus (NCB) is not consideration from the insured to the insurer but qualifies as a pre disclosed discount under clause (a) of sub section (3) of section 15 of the DGST Act when recorded in the policy and invoice; GST is therefore leviable on the insurance premium payable after deduction of NCB shown on the invoice. The e invoicing exemption under Notification No. 13/2020 State Tax applies to the exempted entity as a whole and covers all supplies made by that entity.

Limitation on re determination of tax: redetermination is confined to amounts for which non fraud notices were timely issuable and completed within prescribed time.
An order to re determine tax, interest and penalty under the non fraud show cause framework must be issued within the two year period prescribed following communication of an appellate direction. Re determination is limited to amounts for which a non fraud notice could lawfully have been issued within the non fraud limitation window measured from the due date for filing the relevant annual return or the date of any erroneous refund; amounts outside that window must be dropped.

Place of supply rules: foreign destination fixes tax point, IGST applies and recipient may claim input tax credit subject to conditions.
Where supplier and recipient are in India but goods are transported to a place outside India, the proviso to sub section (8) of section 12 of the IGST Act makes the foreign destination the place of supply; such services are treated as inter State supplies attracting IGST, and the Indian recipient may claim input tax credit of IGST subject to the conditions and restrictions on input credit and apportionment under the DGST provisions. Suppliers must report the place of supply as '96 Foreign Country' in Form GSTR 1.

Input tax credit mismatch: verify documentary evidence and require certified confirmations to validate ITC claims.
Where recipients claimed ITC in GSTR-3B that does not appear in GSTR-2A due to supplier non-filing, misreporting, wrong GSTIN or wrong classification, the proper officer shall obtain invoice details and verify statutory ITC conditions: possession of tax documents, receipt of goods or services, payment to supplier, timeliness, and any requirement for reversal. For verification of supplier tax payment, documentary certification is required-externally certified CA/CMA certificates with UDIN for larger discrepancies or supplier certificates for smaller ones-and these measures apply to bona fide errors in the specified financial years in ongoing or pending proceedings.