Electronic certificate of origin enables preferential tariff claims when issued in prescribed format and properly verified.
Electronic Certificates of Origin issued by the Sri Lankan Issuing Authority are acceptable for preferential tariff claims under the India-Sri Lanka FTA if issued in the prescribed format with authorized seals and signatures and meeting Notification No. 19/2000-Customs requirements. Verification will use specimen seals/signatures and the unique QR code; doubtful cases are to be referred to the FTA Cell. Importers must upload the e-CoO to e-Sanchit and accurately enter certificate particulars; a printed e-CoO may be used for defacement checks and the EDI system prevents reuse of CoO reference numbers.

Customs Tariff changes require filings with updated classification; pending entries must be recalled and reassessed.
Customs Tariff changes from the Finance Act 2023 are effective 01.05.2023; systems now accept only updated Commodity Tariff Headings (CTHs) and amended notifications. All Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills, including Ex-bond and advance entries pending regularization, must be filed or recalled and reassessed where affected by the new CTHs; Shipping Bills granting export benefits must be amended if those benefits are impacted. Stakeholders should manually verify CTHs, notification applicability, and Partner Government Agency clearances before filing.

Declaration of Customs Area designates Warehouse II for LCL import cargo handling under Customs Act, effective May 2023.
Declaration designates Warehouse No. II at M/s. Sattva CFS & Logistics Pvt. Ltd., Vichoor Village, Chennai as a Customs Area for handling LCL import cargo under the powers of Section 8(b) of the Customs Act, 1962, partially modifying the earlier public notice and directing that LCL procedures follow the referenced public notice; Google location and GPS coordinates are enclosed and an effective date is specified.

Customs area amendment redefines Dawki land customs station limits, specifying ICP boundary and adjoining road stretches.
Exercise of powers under Section 8(b) of the Customs Act modifies the Customs Area limits for Dawki Land Customs Station to include specified stretches of NH-40 and the Dawki-Muktapur road, and to delineate the Integrated Check Post (ICP), Dawki (approximately 21.90 acres) with boundaries along the Dawki-Muktapur Road, the international border-facing side, and the ICP's east and west boundary walls. The earlier facility notification dated 01.12.2010 is modified accordingly.

Electronic Cash Ledger payments: restrict PAN-based payments to baggage declarations and merge held PAN wallets after registration.
Electronic Cash Ledger (ECL) PAN-based payments made for Bills of Entry have resulted in non-activated PAN wallets with balances on hold because payers were not registered on ICEGATE. ICEGATE has been changed to allow PAN payments only for Baggage Declarations. Field formations must identify PAN payers for affected Bills of Entry, have those payers register on ICEGATE under CHA/IEC as appropriate, obtain confirmations/undertakings to merge held PAN-based wallets with registered ICEGATE IDs, and email scanned undertakings to ICEGATE for the merging exercise.

Customs tariff classification changes require import/export declarations to use updated CTHs and may need reassessment or amendment.
Finance Act, 2023 revised the Customs Tariff effective 01.05.2023 and the Customs system has been updated accordingly. All Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills must be filed with the post-amendment CTHs; advance or pending BEs filed before the effective date must be recalled and reassessed where CTHs or notifications are affected, and shipping bills tied to export benefits may need amendment. Stakeholders should verify notification applicability and Obtain necessary NOC/clearance from Partner Government Agencies before filing and report any difficulties to the designated contact.

Port charge liability for delayed DPD CFS containers shifted to CFSs; terminals must ensure evacuation and not insist on PD accounts.
CFS operators are directed to bear port charges for containers kept beyond the free period at terminals, and must move DPD CFS containers from port terminals to CFSs within the prescribed free time; port terminals are instructed not to insist on opening PD accounts. A fortnightly Task Force including CFSs, terminals, shipping lines, BCBA and Customs will address delays and may consider waiver of ground rent for delays beyond stakeholders' control, with implementation issues to be reported to the CCSP Cell.

SMTP email services supplement SMS communications on the Customs Brokers Licensing Management System, with registered email delivery and helpdesk support.
SMTP email services on the Customs Brokers Licensing Management System portal supplement existing SMS communications. Portal communications to Customs Brokers and other stakeholders will also be sent to their registered email addresses. The facility is limited to one-way delivery of portal messages, while system-related queries and issues are to be submitted to the designated CBLMS helpdesk email address.

AEO LO portal registration required; online filing with real time monitoring and digital certification enables deficiency response.
Launch of V 3.0 web application enables online filing, real time monitoring, and digital certification of AEO LO applications; applicants can upload annexures, track processing stages on a dashboard, and respond to deficiencies by uploading additional documents. A step wise guide is available on CBIC and aeoindia websites. A transitional allowance for physical filing is provided during roll out, after which portal registration is mandatory. Client Relationship Managers are designated to assist applicants with implementation and technical issues.

Reassessment requirement: refund claims only follow authorised modification of assessment, with limited exceptions for post clearance corrections.
A claim for refund of excess customs duty requires modification of the original assessment through appropriate statutory proceedings; re-assessment must follow an appellate order or authorised amendment and Groups must not undertake suo motu reassessment to grant refunds, subject to limited exceptions for recalled goods, post clearance amendment invocations, and non revenue cases. Post clearance amendments after out of charge require cancellation approval, reasoned officer decisions recorded in departmental comments, and will enable consequential refunds processed by the Refund Section.

Use of body worn cameras by boarding officers requires continuous perspective recording during boarding and prior notice to ship.
Boarding officers must wear jackets with a Body Worn Camera positioned to record from the officer's perspective, activate recording upon approaching the gangway, continue uninterrupted during boarding duties until de-boarding, display name and badge, and inform stakeholders in advance; BWCs must be stand alone without Wi Fi or SIM, and vessel Safety Officer endorsements permitting suspension of camera use in unsafe areas must be recorded and escalated for cross verification.

Body worn camera requirement for boarding officers mandates continuous recording from gangway approach until deboarding, with safety exceptions.
Vessel boarding officers must wear jackets fitted with a Body Worn Camera mounted on the right-side pocket and record from approach to the gangway until deboarding, notifying persons being recorded. Shipping agents must be informed in advance. The BWC is stand-alone without connectivity; use may be suspended in areas deemed unsafe by the vessel Safety Officer with endorsement and escalation to Assistant/Deputy Commissioner (Boarding) and Joint/Additional Commissioner (Boarding).

Online AEO LO registration required: portal mandatory from May, enabling real time monitoring and digital certification.
Version 3.0 of the AEO web application mandates that applicants who submitted physical AEO LO documents register on the portal and upload requisite annexures; uploaded applications can be monitored in real time via a dashboard and deficiencies addressed by online upload of additional documents. A transitional period allows physical filing without registration until 30 April 2023, after which portal registration becomes mandatory for AEO certification; applications filed before 11 April 2023 may remain manual unless migration is requested.

Seizure of foreign cigarettes: claimants must reply within ten days or perishables will be disposed under disposal rules.
Foreign-origin cigarettes totaling 389,000 sticks seized on 10.02.2023 in Visakhapatnam were taken under customs seizure powers on reasonable belief of confiscation liability. The consignments were booked via railway receipts and addressed to an identified consignee. The notice directs the consignor, consignee or any claimant to submit a reply with supporting documents within ten days; failing which the customs authority will dispose of the perishable seized goods under the Disposal Manual.

Discontinuation of Gate Preventive Officer signature on custodian-issued gatepasses expedites clearance while Gate POs remain posted.
The endorsement requirement of the Gate Preventive Officer on custodian-issued Delivery Gatepasses is discontinued to expedite and paperless customs clearance; Gate Preventive Officers will nonetheless remain posted at gate locations to maintain preventive and security functions during physical movement of imported goods.

SMTP email notifications for customs brokers now deliver portal communications to registered addresses as a one-way service.
SMTP email service on the Customs Brokers Licensing Management System (CBLMS) is now operational to send portal communications to registered e mail addresses, complementing existing SMS notifications. The channel is implemented as a one-way message delivery from the portal to customs brokers and stakeholders; users with issues are directed to the CBLMS helpdesk email for support.

EGM errors in export manifests must be corrected to secure post export incentives and avoid delays.
The notice lists EGM errors identified in the EDI system (Annexure A) and reiterates the Section 41 obligation to deliver the manifest to the proper officer before departure. It records that incorrect EGMs have produced delays in receipt of post export incentives and instructs exporters, customs brokers, airlines and custodians to remove the listed EGM errors through the concerned airlines so exporters can avail post export benefits; implementation difficulties may be reported to Customs, Export, ACC, Mumbai.

Empanelment of Chartered Engineers: applications invited for valuation of second hand machinery under CBIC guidelines, with submission instructions and deadline.
Notice invites applications for empanelment of Chartered Engineers for valuation, appraisement and inspection of imported second hand machinery at Custom House, Kandla, in accordance with Circular No. 07/2020 Customs. Applicants certified by the Institute for such appraisement/inspection and meeting the Circular's qualification criteria must submit required documents by post or email to the Commissioner of Customs, Kandla, so applications are received by the office by the stated deadline; contact details are provided for enquiries.

Appointment of approved valuers for assaying and valuing jewellery and precious items with capped fees and strict conduct rules.
A departmental panel of approved valuers will be appointed to assay and value gold, silver, jewellery, precious/synthetic stones and other valuable articles for import, export, seizure and confiscation; appointed valuers must be present for extraction processes, provide government-approved assay certificates, appear before authorities when required, and comply with a prescribed tiered fee schedule (with GST and a Rs.1,000 minimum). Applications require Form-1, proof of affiliation, qualifications, experience and undertakings; selection involves verification, referral to jewellery associations and formal interview, and appointments are non-transferable with prescribed eligibility, code of conduct, recordkeeping and depanelment measures for misconduct.

Manual Out of Charge permitted on bank certificate when duty not reflected, subject to e payment verification and importer undertaking.
Manual Out of Charge may be granted when duty payment is not reflected in ICES upon production of a bank certificate in Annexure A confirming payment and an importer undertaking to deposit the duty with applicable interest if not credited; the facility is subject to prior e payment verification on the ICEGATE website and the bank must forward the certificate by official email for confirmation.