Monitoring shareholding of MIIs enforces shareholding limits, fit-and-proper criteria and triggers freezes on excess holdings.
MIIs must disclose category-wise shareholding publicly, appoint a Designated Depository (DD) to monitor paid-up equity and breaches on an End of Day basis, and inform exchanges of threshold breaches. The DD will generate daily aggregate reports, alert on caution and breach levels, coordinate with other depositories, and on breaches apply ISIN-level freezes, disable e-voting for excess holdings, and freeze corporate benefits directing them to investor protection or settlement guarantee funds; listed excess holdings are divested via a special trading window, unlisted divestment follows regulator directions.

No Objection Certificate requirement: NOC not required for Acetic Anhydride procured from SEZ units under Certificate of Supplies.
Paragraph 4.08(ii) requires Regional Authorities to endorse Advance Authorisations to designated agencies and impose a condition that an NOC from the Drug Controller and Narcotics Commissioner is obtained before effecting imports. DGFT clarifies that this NOC requirement will not apply where an Advance Authorisation holder procures Acetic Anhydride from a unit located inside an SEZ against a Certificate of Supplies, provided the material is manufactured by that SEZ unit.

As is where is basis: acceptance of declared lower-rate GST payments as full discharge, no refunds to higher-rate payers.
The circular clarifies that where GST Council-directed regularisation on an "as is" or "as is, where is" basis addresses competing rates or interpretational doubt, the tax position declared in a taxpayer's returns at the lower or nil rate for the regularised period is treated as full discharge of liability, while taxpayers who paid the higher rate are not entitled to refunds; the regularisation does not protect taxpayers who paid no tax when the higher rate is held applicable, and applicable tax shall be recovered from nonpayers.

GST classification: revised rates and tariff headings for extruded snacks, RMPU air conditioners and vehicle seats take effect prospectively.
Clarification directs that extruded/expanded savoury snack products manufactured by extrusion are subject to 12% GST prospectively while un fried or un cooked extruded snack pellets remain at 5%, with past periods liable at 18%. Roof Mounted Package Unit air conditioners for railways are classified as air conditioning machines and attract the rate applicable to that heading. Seats for two wheelers are classifiable as two wheeler parts attracting the higher rate; car seat assemblies are reclassified to the higher rate prospectively. Field formations must implement and report difficulties.

Taxability of affiliation services: universities' affiliation taxable while government schools' board affiliation exempt, with past liabilities regularised.
Affiliation services by universities to colleges are taxable and not covered by the educational exemption. Affiliation by Central/State boards to schools is taxable, with supplies to government schools exempt from the notified date; past GST on such affiliation to all schools is regularized on an as is where is basis. DGCA approved flying training courses with mandated completion certificates qualify as exempt education services. Ancillary services by GTAs during road transport form part of a composite supply unless supplied independently and invoiced separately.

IGST export refund regularization applies after import tax and cess payment with interest and reassessment of the bill of entry.
IGST refunds on exports may be regularized where inputs were initially imported without payment of IGST and compensation cess under specified customs exemption benefits, provided the importer subsequently pays those taxes with interest. The refund is not treated as contravening rule 96(10) where the relevant bill of entry is reassessed by jurisdictional customs authorities to reflect payment of IGST and compensation cess.

Data hosting services supplied on principal-to-principal basis use recipient-location rules and may qualify as exports when statutory conditions are met.
Data hosting services supplied by an Indian provider to an overseas cloud computing provider are supplied on a principal-to-principal basis and are not intermediary services where the provider does not facilitate supplies to end users. The services are neither in respect of recipient-made-available goods nor directly related to immovable property. Where no specific place-of-supply provision applies, the place of supply is the recipient's overseas location. Such supply may qualify as export of services, subject to the remaining statutory export conditions.

Input tax credit on demo vehicles remains available when authorised dealers use them to promote further vehicle supplies.
GST input tax credit on demo vehicles used by authorised motor-vehicle dealers is available where the vehicles are used to promote and facilitate the dealer's further supply of similar motor vehicles. Credit is not available where vehicles are used for unrelated purposes or where the dealer merely provides marketing or test-drive facilitation services to a manufacturer without selling vehicles on its own account. Capitalisation does not by itself affect credit, subject to applicable conditions, depreciation restrictions, and the prescribed capital-goods disposal mechanism on subsequent sale.

Advertising service classification determines whether Indian agencies serving foreign clients act on principal basis or as intermediaries.
Where an Indian advertising agency provides an integrated advertising service to a foreign client on its own account, contracts separately with media owners and invoices the foreign client, it is not an intermediary. The foreign client remains the recipient; an Indian representative or target audience is not the recipient. Such services are not performance-based merely because advertisements are displayed in India. The recipient-location rule applies where no special rule governs, so the place of supply is outside India, subject to export conditions. An agency that only facilitates a direct media-owner supply to the foreign client is an intermediary.

Direct payout of securities: settlement pay-out timing revised so securities are credited to clients on the same settlement day.
Clearing Corporations must credit securities directly to clients' demat accounts in the equity cash segment (including netted cash and F&O physical settlement), and the timing for securities pay-out on the settlement day is revised so securities are credited on the same settlement day instead of the following working day, with corresponding amendments required to the activity schedule and market participants' rules.

Payout to client demat accounts deadline extended to allow orderly implementation; exchanges and depositories must update systems and bylaws.
Mandate to effect pay-out of securities directly to the client's demat account is deferred to allow orderly implementation after delayed operational guidelines from Clearing Corporations; Exchanges, Clearing Corporations and Depositories must notify members, implement systems and procedures, and amend bye laws, rules and regulations to ensure compliance under SEBI and Depositories Act powers.

Customs bonded warehouse digitization streamlines online licensing, goods transfers, monthly returns, and bond compliance on ICEGATE.
Digitization of Customs Bonded Warehouse procedures is introduced through the Warehouse Module on ICEGATE for online filing of warehouse licence applications, online processing of requests for transfer of warehoused goods, and uploading of monthly returns. The module covers structured workflows for transfer of warehoused goods in different scenarios, including change of ownership, change of warehouse, and change of both warehouse and ownership, with electronic validation of bond details and officer-level approval at the relevant stage. Monthly return compliance is also digitized through upload of Form A and Form B, while security under Section 59 of the Customs Act remains required in addition to the warehousing bond.

Digitization of customs bonded warehouse procedures enables online licensing, bond-validated transfers and electronic monthly return uploads.
An ICEGATE Warehouse Module digitizes online filing and backend processing of warehouse license applications, captures officer queries and responses, generates warehouse codes, and routes applications via the port-linked ICES role. It implements workflows for three transfer scenarios-ownership change, warehouse change, and combined change-validating item-by-item into-bond entries, handling Triple Duty and transhipment bonds through ICES with electronic debit/credit, and enabling scanned upload of monthly returns while retaining the physical transfer Form until integration.

Refund jurisdiction delegation assigns claims by monetary threshold and zone, with ineligible input tax credit recovery referred to jurisdictional officers.
Refund functions under section 54 of the Delhi Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 are assigned to specified proper officers according to pecuniary and territorial jurisdiction. Assistant Commissioners and GSTOs decide claims up to the prescribed lower threshold, while senior proper officers decide claims exceeding it. Online higher-value applications must be placed before the competent senior officer. If refund rejection entails recovery of ineligible input tax credit, the matter must be referred to the jurisdictional proper officer or ward officer.

Extension of filing deadline for voluntary liquidation monitoring forms under section 196(1) IBC to address technical issues.
Extension of time granted for filing forms to monitor voluntary liquidation processes following representations from liquidators and agencies about technical difficulties; the Board has extended the last date for submission to accommodate electronic and submission issues and issues the extension under its statutory power under section 196(1) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.

Extension of filing deadline for liquidation monitoring forms granted, allowing liquidators more time to comply.
The Board extended the deadline for submission of liquidation-monitoring forms to 30.11.2024 after representations from liquidators and Insolvency Professional Agencies citing technical difficulties; the extension is issued under the Board's powers under section 196(1) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 and is directed to all registered Insolvency Professionals, Recognised Insolvency Professional Entities and Registered Insolvency Professional Agencies.

Specific due diligence by AIFs required to prevent regulatory circumvention, triggering compliance, reporting and investor exclusion measures.
SEBI prescribes specific due diligence by AIFs, their managers and Key Management Personnel to prevent circumvention of QIB/QB benefits, RBI prudential norms on stressed assets, and NDI Rules on border-country investments. Triggers include schemes where same group investors contribute fifty percent or more of corpus (for QIB/QB and border-country scrutiny) and specified twenty five percent/control-based tests for RBI regulated investors; due diligence must follow implementation standards formulated by the Standard Setting Forum for AIFs. Non compliant proposed or existing investments must either exclude relevant investors or be withheld, and must be reported to custodians who compile and furnish information to SEBI.

Digitization of customs bonded warehouse processes enables online licensing, transfers, bond validation and monthly return uploads via ICEGATE.
Digitization implements an ICEGATE Warehouse Module for online Warehouse Licensing, electronic processing of three types of Bond to Bond Movement (change of ownership, change of warehouse, or both) with validation of IEC, Transhipment and Triple Duty Bond details and officer approvals, and uploading of scanned Monthly Returns, while retaining the physical transfer Form until integration and reaffirming port-based security submission requirements.

Exhibition samples import exempt from import authorization when regulated by HBP conditions, subject to bond or ATA Carnet.
Import and re import of Exhibits and Samples for demonstration, display, exhibition or fairs are regulated under Para 2.60 of the Handbook of Procedures, 2023 and permitted without import authorization or registration under Import Monitoring Systems, subject to the conditions of Para 2.60, including submission of a bond/security to Customs or presentation of an ATA Carnet and other applicable compliance requirements.

Social Enterprises on Social Stock Exchange: SEBI extends deadlines for annual disclosures and impact reports to January 31, 2025.
SEBI partially modified its May 27, 2024 circular to extend the outer timelines under the LODR Regulations for Social Enterprises' annual disclosures and annual impact report for 2023-24, setting the revised deadline for both submissions at January 31, 2025.