Place of supply rules clarified: transportation, advertising and co location services governed by default IGST place of supply principles.
Clarification: place of supply for transportation of goods, advertising services, and co-location services is governed by the IGST place-of-supply rules. Transportation services where supplier or recipient is outside India follow the default place-of-supply rule: recipient location if available, otherwise supplier location; mail/courier likewise. Advertising: sale/grant of rights to use hoarding is located at the hoarding site; provision of display services by a vendor is an advertising service located by the default rule. Co-location is hosting/IT infrastructure provisioning and located at recipient, unless limited to mere renting of space.

Export of services: INR receipts via Special Rupee Vostro Accounts meet the IGST Act payment requirement when RBI/FTP conditions are satisfied.
Payments credited to Special Rupee Vostro Accounts of correspondent banks, when effected in accordance with RBI's A. P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 10 and the Foreign Trade Policy 2023 and subject to their conditions and approvals, shall be considered to fulfil the payment requirement in sub clause (iv) of clause (6) of section 2 of the IGST Act for determining export of services.

Authorization of Booking Post Offices expands e filing network for Postal Bill of Export under Postal Export (Electronic Declaration) Regulations.
Additional Booking Post Offices have been authorised to electronically file Postal Bill of Export under the Postal Export (Electronic Declaration and Processing) Regulations, 2022; these offices, equipped with Dak Ghar Niryat Kendra facilities, are mapped to corresponding Foreign Post Offices and are to accept international mail consignments via the DNK portal, with Customs formations directed to implement the extended e filing network and report any difficulties.

GST applicability on services: clarifies treatment of passenger transport, electricity reimbursements, job work, DMFTs and horticulture exemptions.
Input tax credit under the same line of business covers passenger transport (SAC 9964) and renting with operator (SAC 9966) but excludes leasing without operator (SAC 9973). Electricity bundled with renting/maintenance is a composite supply taxed as the principal supply, while electricity charged as a pure agent is excluded from value. Job work converting barley to malt is job work in relation to food and food products. DMFTs are Governmental Authorities. Horticulture services to CPWD with goods 25% qualify for exemption.

Taxability of guarantees: personal and corporate guarantees treated as taxable supplies between related persons under GST.
Personal guarantees by directors are a supply of service between related persons even without consideration and are valued at open market value; where regulation prohibits any consideration to the director, the open market value may be treated as nil. Corporate guarantees by related companies or by a holding company for a subsidiary are also supplies between related persons and their taxable value must be determined under the statutory valuation provision amended to include a specific sub-rule for corporate guarantees, applied uniformly regardless of input tax credit availability. The corporate-guarantee valuation sub-rule does not apply to personal guarantees.

Place of supply clarified: default rule applies for transport, advertising distinctions and co location treated as hosting services.
Clarification: for transportation of goods (including mail/courier) where supplier or recipient is outside India, the default place of supply rule applies-location of recipient when available, otherwise location of supplier. In advertising, sale or grant of rights to use hoarding space is located at the immovable property; mere provision of display services is determined by the default rule. Co-location services are treated as hosting and IT infrastructure provisioning and usually follow the default rule (location of recipient), except where the arrangement is purely renting of physical space with basic infrastructure, in which case the immovable property's location governs.

Export of services via Special Rupee Vostro Accounts satisfies the IGST Act payment condition for export classification.
Payment received by Indian exporters of services in rupees from designated Special Rupee Vostro Accounts of correspondent banks, pursuant to the RBI A.P. (DIR Series) Circular and Foreign Trade Policy procedures, shall be treated as fulfilling the payment requirement in sub clause (iv) of clause (6) of section 2 of the IGST Act, subject to conditions and approvals under the FTP and extant RBI circulars and without prejudice to other legal permissions.

Minimum public unitholding requirement updated for InvITs; preferential allotment and sponsor sale processes clarified and disclosure mandated.
An additional method allows privately placed InvITs to meet the minimum public unitholding requirement via preferential allotment, counting only units issued to the public. Modifications to sponsor sale mechanisms provide two alternative divestment options-one subject to limits tied to trading volume and another to raise public unitholding to the regulatory threshold-with trading-volume limits not applicable to privately placed InvITs. The Investment Manager must announce proposed sales in advance and obtain undertakings preventing related parties from purchasing on sale dates; compliance with insider trading rules and InvIT Regulations is required. The circular is effective immediately.

Export Sampling Requirement for rice consignments: testing mandatory before shipment; compliance and pre-stacking with prompt lab testing advised.
Pre shipment sampling and testing of all rice consignments is mandatory before grant of Let Export Order. Basmati rice may be exported subject to APEDA Registration and specified grain dimensions; Non Basmati white rice and Broken rice are prohibited; Parboiled and Brown/Rice in husk attract a twenty percent ad valorem export duty. Samples must be drawn and test reports obtained from the Custom House Laboratory within forty eight hours; exporters should pre stack consignments in CFSs/Customs areas to ensure testing and clearance before shipment.

Custodianship appointment extended: custodian liable for duties on lost or pilfered consignments and must meet security and bond conditions.
Appointment of M/s FedEx Express Transportation and Supply Chain Services (India) Private Limited as custodian for its own courier consignments at the FedEx facilities is extended for ten years, subject to statutory compliance, liability for duty on pilfered or lost goods while in custody, obligations for receipt, handling, storage, record-keeping and insurance of the notified area, provision of infrastructure and facilities for Customs staff, and financial security by bond supported by bank guarantee, government bond, or cash deposit.

GST on composite supply and pure agent treatment clarified; principal supply governs rate and specific exclusions affirmed.
Clarifies that input tax credit for the "same line of business" covers passenger transport and renting with operator but excludes leasing without operator; electricity bundled with rent or maintenance is a composite supply taxed at the principal supply rate, while electricity supplied and charged as a pure agent is excluded from value; job work converting barley into malt is treated as job work in relation to food products and attracts the food-product job work rate; District Mineral Foundations Trusts are Governmental Authorities eligible for government exemptions; horticulture services to CPWD with goods not exceeding 25% value qualify for notification-based exemption.

GST rate on imitation zari thread clarified: metallised polyester/plastic film yarn falls under reduced GST; no inversion refunds.
Metallised polyester film or plastic film converted into yarn or combined with textile yarns falls within the HS description of yarn combined with or covered by metal and is to be treated as imitation zari thread or yarn under Schedule I, thereby attracting the concessional GST rate recommended by the Council; additionally, no refund shall be permitted on metallised polyester/plastic film on account of inversion, and the position has been given effect through amendment of the Central Tax (Rate) notification.

Issuance of customs passes: streamlined documentation, electronic processing and prescribed timelines for deficiency response and card issuance.
Amendments delete the requirement to submit four years' business volume documents for fresh issuance and transfer of H, G and Self category customs passes and establish CBLMS processing timelines: deficiency memos issued within ten working days and cards issued within fifteen working days of application or satisfactory reply, with transfer of H and G passes processed within forty five days of application or fifteen days of a satisfactory reply. Physical submission and collection of pass applications is no longer required post CBLMS implementation.

GST applicability clarifications for certain services require uniform adherence by State Tax field formations under implementation guidelines.
GST applicability clarifications for certain services are to be applied uniformly by State Tax field formations in Tripura. Specified State Tax officers are instructed, under the power to secure uniform implementation of the Tripura State Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, to follow the annexed central guidelines concerning GST on certain services.

GST rate and classification clarifications require uniform application by State tax officers under the State goods and services tax framework.
GST rate and classification clarifications issued following the GST Council's 50th meeting are adopted for uniform implementation under the Tripura State Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. State tax officers are directed to follow the central guidelines concerning GST rates and classification of specified goods, with the objective of maintaining consistency in administration across field formations.

IEC numbers for exempted importers: designated codes must be used for specified non commercial import/export categories.
Designated IEC numbers are prescribed for use by specified non commercial PSUs and defined importer/exporter categories for import/export processing; the notice maps each IEC to a particular class of importer/exporter, directs their use in customs transactions, states that these IECs have been included in the ICES directory for non standard IECs, asks trade and broker associations to publicise the information, and declares the Public Notice a standing order for Customs (Port), Kolkata with contact channels for issues.

Scanner non-functioning triggers direct full examination at port with notification, daily records and supervision by docks authorities.
When the AXIS X-ray scanner is non-functioning for more than twenty-four hours, CSD must post a notice with copies to AC/DC (Docks) and MBPT; containers selected for scanning need not be brought to CSD for FIR stamping and shall be moved directly to port for full examination under DC/Docks supervision. CSD will e-mail MBPT and DC Docks with the list of selected containers. The Docks officer will maintain records of each non-scanned container and send daily details to DC/SIIB and DC/CSD. The provision ends when CSD notifies scanner resumption.

Revision of All Industry Rates of Duty Drawback updates tariff-specific rates, introduces caps and clarifies suffixing for claims.
Revision of All Industry Rates assigns an AIR and, where applicable, an upper cap to each tariff item; claimants must suffix tariff items with letter B to claim AIRs, while exports under the Special Advance Authorization Scheme require suffix D. The revision changes rates across sectors due to duty and price shifts, introduces new tariff items and refined descriptions, provides caps to limit drawback amounts, reclassifies certain entries (example: Schaeffers Acid), and clarifies that tariff headings in singular include plurals, covering cotton blends with multiple manmade fibres.

Supply of service between related persons: guarantees are taxable and valuation follows Rule 28, with specified exceptions for personal guarantees.
The circular treats personal guarantees by directors as a supply of service between related persons and directs valuation under Rule 28; where RBI mandates no consideration for such personal guarantees, open market value may be treated as zero, yielding nil taxable value unless remuneration is actually paid. Corporate guarantees provided by related companies or by a holding company for its subsidiary are also supplies of service, with taxable value to be determined pursuant to Rule 28(2) as inserted by Notification No. 52/2023, irrespective of input tax credit availability. Rule 28(2) does not apply to personal guarantees.

Place of supply rules: default location of recipient governs transport, advertising space and colocation service classifications.
Where supplier or recipient is outside India, place of supply for transportation of goods (including mail/courier) follows the default rule: location of recipient if available, otherwise supplier. Advertising: sale or grant of rights to use hoarding is supply related to immovable property and place of supply is the location of the hoarding; mere display services by a vendor are advertising services and follow the default rule. Co-location services are generally Hosting and IT Infrastructure Provisioning and follow the default rule (location of recipient), except where only physical space and basic infrastructure are rented, in which case immovable-property rules apply.