Post EGM shipping bill cancellation enables customs to block export incentives for returned cargo after manifest filing.
System-based cancellation facility in ICES is introduced for export cargo returned from international waters due to closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The new AC-role option, "Post EGM SB Cancellation", enables the proper officer to mark a Shipping Bill for cancellation even after filing of the Export General Manifest. The mechanism prevents disbursal of export incentives where benefits have not yet been scrolled, stops pending incentive scrolls from being generated after cancellation, and requires manual recovery action where scrolls were already generated before cancellation.

Import cargo clearance operations remain functional to support uninterrupted processing and expedited clearance during the financial year-end period.
Import cargo clearance operations at the Import Commissionerate, Air Cargo Complex, Sahar, Mumbai are to remain functional on specified dates to ensure uninterrupted trade facilitation and expedited clearance of import cargo. EDI, Import Shed, TSK, Import Noting, and Assessment Groups for PAG and permitted FAG assessment will operate. Stakeholders are to plan their activities for seamless processing.

Entry Inwards procedure streamlined to speed vessel discharge by linking email intimation with electronic customs approval.
Reduction of the time gap between vessel berthing, grant of Entry Inwards and commencement of cargo discharge is achieved through advance email intimation by the vessel agent and immediate electronic action by the Boarding Officer. After a vessel enters the docks, or after pilot boarding at specified anchorage points, the agent must request Entry Inwards through the designated customs email ID and inform the Boarding Officer, who may then grant Entry Inwards in ICES and communicate it back for discharge to begin. Physical documents remain required at boarding, and boarding formalities continue, including action on discrepancies or mis-declaration.

Export cargo return procedures set for Strait of Hormuz disruptions, covering manifest filing, verification, cancellation and transshipment control.
Procedural relaxation is prescribed for export cargo returned from international waters due to closure of the Strait of Hormuz or similar maritime disruptions, under Section 143AA of the Customs Act, 1962. Where a vessel carrying export cargo lands at an Indian port other than the original port of departure, the shipping line or authorised agent must file the Sea Arrival Manifest, containers must be verified against manifest and export documents, and tampered or unsealed containers are subject to 100% examination. On request of the exporter, customs formations are to coordinate for verification of export incentives, cancellation of the Shipping Bill and Let Export Order, and reversal or recovery of incentives already disbursed.

Force majeure fee waiver for export document amendments applies when consignments are withdrawn due to shipping or logistics disruption.
Fee for amendment or cancellation of export documents may be waived when export consignments are withdrawn from the Customs area or documents require change solely due to force majeure circumstances beyond the exporter's control. The proper officer may allow such amendment or cancellation without the prescribed fee, on being satisfied from supporting evidence that the request arises from unavoidable shipping, port, airport, or cargo disruptions and not from avoidable error or omission.

Customs duty payment facilitation expands with payment aggregator mode for cards, UPI, internet banking and electronic cash ledger routing.
Customs duty payment facilitation is expanded through the ICEGATE e-Payment platform by introducing a payment aggregator as an authorised mode for duty deposits. The facility permits payment by credit card, debit card and Unified Payment Interface, extends internet banking access through payment aggregator mode, and operates alongside existing authorised banker internet banking and NEFT/RTGS payment through RBI. Commission, if any, payable to the bank for deposits made through this mode is to be borne by the person making the deposit.

Customs operational continuity keeps assessment and cargo clearance active on specified holiday dates to prevent backlog and support trade facilitation.
Customs field formations and assessment groups under Mumbai Customs Zone-II are directed to remain operational on specified weekends and a Tuesday at the end of the financial year to prevent backlog and ensure uninterrupted trade facilitation. The directions cover RMSFC, EDI, import docks, TSK, CEAC, export docks, export stuffing, import noting, PGAS and assessment groups for PAG assessment and, where permitted by the respective NAC, FAG assessment.

Drawback pendency clearance drive targets query replies, sample reports and scroll-in issues for faster sanction of export incentives.
Drawback pendency clearance is undertaken through a special Drawback Mela for exporters, customs brokers and stakeholders with pending drawback claims at the Port Commissionerate. The notice identifies delays caused by non-submission of replies to EDI queries, pending sample-test reports, and SCROLL_IN issues linked to rejected bank account details. Exporters are directed to submit ICES replies, physical documents, e-BRCs where required, correct ICEGATE bank details, and use Sevottam for reprocessing or PC-Scroll management.

Duty drawback on unlocked mobile handsets: merchant exporters required to comply with confirmed entitlement instruction.
Instructions require that duty drawback claims on exported unlocked mobile handsets by merchant exporters be administered in accordance with the referenced judicial determinations, which were upheld and whose review was dismissed; customs field formations must implement and comply with that established legal position in processing drawback claims.

Jurisdictional amendment expands Principal Commissioner of Customs, Visakhapatnam's territorial scope to specified ports, districts and EEZ.
The Notification amends the customs jurisdiction of the Principal Commissioner of Customs, Visakhapatnam by substituting the prior table entry and defining a revised territorial scope that includes Port of Visakhapatnam, Gangavaram Port, Visakhapatnam International Airport, the Bayyavaram Container Freight Station, areas under Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation, specified districts' Inland Container Depots, airports, Export Oriented Units, Special Economic Zones and warehouses, and the continental shelf and Exclusive Economic Zone facing Andhra Pradesh; the amendment is effective on publication in the Official Gazette.

Pet import facilitation allows stranded Indians to bring dogs and cats from conflict zones under relaxed quarantine conditions.
Facilitation is provided, as a one-time relaxation measure, for the import of pet dogs and pet cats accompanying stranded Indian nationals returning from war-hit Middle East countries where pre-export formalities could not be completed. Import is permitted on owner declaration, proof of residence with the owner, and vaccination records, with rabies vaccination at the port of entry required where records are incomplete or absent. Clearance follows document scrutiny and clinical examination by AQCS, while quarantine and related expenses are borne by the owner where abnormal findings are recorded.

Return of export cargo: procedures under Section 143AA enable BTT, shipping bill cancellation and supervised international transshipment.
Prescribes procedures under Section 143AA for export cargo returning to Indian ports: file Sea Arrival Manifest at port of landing; verify containers and seals, subject tampered containers to 100% examination; coordinate with port of export to verify and cancel Shipping Bills and Let Export Orders and reverse disbursed export incentives; permit Back to Town after confirmation and compliance; DG Systems to provide dummy port codes and post-EGM cancellation facility; ICEGATE to share cancelled Shipping Bill details; maintain manual records until system changes are operational.

BTT procedures require conditional NOC, seal verification and cancellation of LEO and shipping bill on return.
Procedure prescribes conditional Brought To Terminal (BTT) NOC from the AC/DC of the CPP/CFS that granted LEO, contingent on documentary proof of return/suspension of export incentives and taxes (drawback, RoDTEP/RoSCTL, IGST or LUT intimation). Superintendent/PG Tech issues movement orders to terminals, gate officers verify seal intactness and permit release or direct preventive escort and 100% examination for tampered seals. AC/DC will cancel LEO and Shipping Bill (currently manually) when DG Systems enables post EGM cancellation, after which conditional BTT is finalised.

Pet import facilitation: emergency one time relaxation allowing AQCS clearance subject to vaccination and owner borne quarantine costs.
A one time relaxation permits import of pet dogs and cats accompanying stranded Indian nationals from war hit Middle East locations where pre export formalities cannot be completed. Pre import requirements include owner declaration of residence and available vaccination documentation, with veterinary checks advised when pets are sourced from neighbouring countries. Post import, AQCS will examine documents and clinically inspect animals; pets without up to date certificates or with short vaccination delays will be vaccinated for rabies at port (owner bears costs) and may be quarantined if abnormalities are found, with all quarantine expenses payable by the owner.

Waiver of port storage charges and reduced reefer plugin fees for stranded East bound export containers; carriers must pass benefits.
JNPA relief directs terminal operators to grant a 100% waiver of ground rent/dwell time charges for up to 15 days and an 80% reduction of reefer plug in charges for up to 15 days for Middle East bound export laden containers stranded within the terminal and meeting the port's specified gate in and location criteria; shipping lines, NVOCCs and freight forwarders must pass these benefits to actual exporters and report implementation difficulties to the SCMTR Cell.

Returning export cargo procedures allow berth and offload with seal verification and Shipping Bill/LEO cancellation following prescribed checks.
Expedited procedures permit export vessels to berth at their originating Indian port and allow offloading without Sea Arrival Manifest or Bill of Entry in specified return scenarios, subject to a master's undertaking, verification of shipping documents, seal integrity checks, cancellation of Shipping Bills and LEOs, recovery of any disbursed export incentives, and 100% examination where seals are tampered; local coordination assigns seal verification to Preventive Sections and Shipping Bill/LEO cancellation and incentive recovery to EDC/Drawback/IGST Sections, with interim manual records until DG Systems enables post-EGM cancellations.

Baggage declaration and risk-based clearance govern duty-free personal effects, valuables, commercial goods, and unaccompanied baggage under updated customs rules.
Passengers carrying dutiable or prohibited goods must file the prescribed baggage declaration, ordinarily through the Atithi application, and non-declaration or mis-declaration may attract action under the Customs Act, 1962. Used personal effects needed for daily necessities may be cleared duty free, while commercial goods are not bona fide baggage. Jewellery and valuables receive duty-free treatment only where they qualify as used personal effects or meet prescribed re-import, temporary-import, or special-allowance conditions. Customs verification is risk-based, and unaccompanied baggage remains subject to applicable declaration, bona fide-use and monitoring requirements.

Movement numbers required for container transfers to CFSs; terminals must not move containers without CMFC approval and escalation.
Terminals will receive auto-approved Movement Numbers on grant of entry inwards and shall initiate transfer to CFSs without further CMFC approval; for LCL containers CMFC will grant approvals in ICES and transmit Movement Numbers via ICEGATE. Terminals must escalate delays in auto-generation through designated helplines and report unresolved issues to the Assistant/Deputy Commissioner, CMFC, which may grant manual approvals; terminals must not move containers to CFSs without a Movement Number.

Para-wise comments requirement: concerned sections must prepare and forward comments to Legal Section for timely counter-affidavits.
Amendment replaces paragraph 2.4 to require concerned sections (Adjudication Unit, Seizing Unit, Refunds and Rewards Section) to prepare para-wise comments for submission to appellate/legal forums and forward them to the Legal Section within stipulated timelines to enable timely filing of the counter-affidavit; action assigned to Supdt./AO of the concerned section.

Cancellation of Bond and Bank Guarantee: original EPCG documents must be submitted to secure release and avoid Customs action.
Bonds and bank guarantees against listed EPCG licences will be released only upon submission of specified original documents-original EODC/redemption letter, ANF certification, installation certificate, original EPCG licence with duty debit particulars, shipping documents or ARE-1, bank realisation certificate and other DGFT submissions-and evidence of fulfilment of export obligation to avoid action under the Customs Act; bonds at TSK/JNCH will be forwarded to EPSMMC, JNCH for file closure.