Depreciation methodology for capital goods removed from export and trade zones clarified; assessment uses used car rates and quarterly flat rate.
Depreciation for capital goods taken out of Free Trade Zones, Export Processing Zones or 100% EOUs and assessed for duty is to be calculated using the depreciation rates applicable to used cars at assessment; a uniform quarterly flat rate applies thereafter, subject to an overall cap. Depreciation eligibility requires prior in zone use for not less than three years for FTZ/EPZ and completion of the stipulated export obligation for 100% EOUs.

Modvat option: manufacturers who did not take input credit may withdraw and claim small scale exemption in same year.
Manufacturers who filed a declaration of intent to avail Modvat but did not pay duty on clearances or take input credit may be permitted to opt for full small scale exemption in the same financial year; past cases should be decided accordingly, provided no Modvat credit was actually availed and no duty was paid on clearances.

Modvat credit rules updated to limit simultaneous claims and require duty documents before claiming credit.
Amendments clarify Modvat credit: Rule 56A now bars simultaneous credit under Rules 56A and 57A for the same inputs but allows proforma credit for non Modvat inputs; Rule 57E permits adjustment whenever input duty varies; Rule 57G requires prescribed duty paying documents before credit though inputs may be used with RG 23A entry pending documents; Rule 57H allows transitional credit for inputs in stock at acknowledgement or received after declaration filing but excludes inputs used for exempt goods.

Depreciation for capital goods: quarterly rates defined, capped overall, allowed only after prescribed in zone use or export obligation.
Depreciation on capital goods moved from Free Trade/Export Processing Zones or 100% EOUs to Domestic Tariff Area is to be computed using specified quarterly rates mirroring those for used cars, with a uniform lower quarterly rate after the fourth year and an overall ceiling of 70%. Eligibility is conditional: Free Trade/EPZ goods must have been used in the Zone for at least three years, and 100% EOU goods qualify only if the unit has completed the export obligation imposed by the Board of Approval; no depreciation if debonding occurs before completing that obligation.

Modvat credit on imported inputs: procedural declaration at first use enables credit subject to Customs-Central Excise verification.
Importer need not declare C.V. duty on the Bill of Entry at import for Bombay Customs House entries; when goods are put to use the importer must declare to the jurisdictional Central Excise officer that no refund of the C.V. duty has been claimed. Central Excise may allow Modvat credit and will seek verification from Bombay Customs House, which will note the Bill of Entry and withhold any refund unless confirmed that the manufacturer's credit account has been debited; if Customs already refunded, it will report the net refunded amount. Importer must furnish user/factory details to Customs.

Edible rice bran oil standard clarified: raw oil must meet vanaspati use standards; rebate measured before hydrogenation.
The explanation in the excise notifications is to be read so that edible rice bran oil means raw rice bran oil fit for processing into vanaspati and must conform to the raw grade standard applicable to oils used in vanaspati manufacture rather than to the refined edible oil standard; rebate entitlement is to be measured with reference to the quantity of oil immediately before hydrogenation.

Adjustment of duty credit: payment date determines entitlement to MODVAT credit after product reclassification.
Adjustment of duty credit after a change in product classification under amended Rule 57E depends on the date the additional duty is paid; if classification was changed per Board instructions and the additional duty payment was made on or after 1-3-1987, adjustment in the Modvat users' account should be permitted even where the classification change occurred earlier.

Supplementary records acceptance: private moulding-stage tyre records accepted if they contain prescribed requisite information for compliance.
Private records maintained by tyre manufacturers at the moulding stage will be accepted as the prescribed supplementary records if they contain all requisite particulars required by the Board's instructions governing supplementary records; acceptance is conditional on those private records serving the statutory purpose and meeting prescribed informational criteria.

Spot verification of goods not required before issuing subsidiary gate passes; issue after examining gate pass genuineness.
Spot verification of duty-paid goods immediately prior to issuance of a subsidiary gate pass is not required. Superintendents must satisfy themselves about the genuineness of the gate pass and issue the subsidiary gate pass after such examination. Field formations are to be informed and receipt of the communication acknowledged.

SSI concession: provisional registration accepted as sufficient to claim duty concession under the relevant notification.
The Board directed that provisional registration issued by State Government authorities shall be accepted for the purpose of availing the duty concession under Notification No. 175/86, treating provisional registration as adequate documentary basis for entitlement to the SSI concession.

Permission to enter general bond extended to all registered exporters, subject to eligibility and existing conditions.
Permission to execute a general bond for exports is extended to all registered exporters, including merchant exporters, provided the registered exporter is otherwise eligible and complies with the conditions and procedural requirements specified in Board's Circular No. 9/86-CX.6; the change must be communicated to the trade by appropriate notice.

Reopening under section 143(2)(b) required where computerized summary assessments selected for sample scrutiny were already completed.
Where a case selected for sample scrutiny has already been assessed under section 143(1) by computer, the proceedings must be reopened under section 143(2)(b) so the case can be placed in scrutiny; this modifies earlier instructions only to that extent and addresses centralised computerized processing that may prevent segregation of returns at the time of August selections.

Customs duty split for ships-for-breaking triggers excise levy on ship-breaking scrap unless prior higher duty was paid.
Customs duty on ships-for-breaking is divided into a basic customs duty per Light Displacement Tonnage and a separate additional duty, with auxiliary duty nil. Excise duty is imposed on ship-breaking scrap derived from ships that have paid the restructured customs duties, while scrap made from ships that paid the earlier higher basic duty is exempted to prevent double taxation; such scrap is also specified as an input qualifying downstream products for excise exemption.

Approval of cigarette package surface designs now processed by Director (Audit) with seven-day approval and concurrent notifications.
The Director (Audit) will consider applications for approval of cigarette package surface designs, make enquiries and checks as necessary, and ordinarily approve designs within seven days of filing. On approval, the Director (Audit) shall simultaneously notify the manufacturer and the jurisdictional Collector of Central Excise. The existing arrangement for approval of wrapper, outer covering or label specimens under rule 93 of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 continues.

Classification of hot tops and ferruxes as miscellaneous chemical products directs tariff treatment based on functional use.
The Board, after examination and consultation with the Chief Chemist, concluded that products known as hot tops and ferruxes used to keep molten metal in risers are classifiable as miscellaneous chemical products under the chemical products chapter of the tariff schedule, based on their functional use and technical assessment.

Approved gratuity fund contributions must be held in post office or scheduled bank accounts or used for LIC group gratuity.
Contributions to approved gratuity funds received on or after the operative date must be deposited in a Post Office Savings Bank account or a current account with a scheduled bank or utilised to make contributions under a Group Gratuity Scheme with the Life Insurance Corporation; investments in other previously permitted investment modes are no longer allowed.

Labeling requirement for cigarettes: temporary permission to print length on slide for existing packaging, thereafter length must appear on shell.
Manufacturers may print the length and retail price on the cigarette slide for existing packaging stocks, with clearances permitted up to 31-5-1987; thereafter length must be printed on the cigarette shell. The relaxation excludes new brands, which must bear length declarations on the pack, and if existing stock is exhausted before the deadline fresh packaging must show length on the shell. Collectors of Central Excise shall permit clearances and may require declaration of package counts and media advertisements about length and price.

Non excisability of mineral oil sludge confirmed, so excise assessments should be finalised on that basis.
Mineral oil sludge accumulating at the bottom of storage tanks for petroleum products is not a manufactured product and is to be treated as non-excisable, falling outside the scope of the Schedule to the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985; pending assessments should be finalised accordingly.

Simplified central excise procedure: licensed small scale industry units within exemption limits may file quarterly excise returns.
Licensed small scale industry manufacturers whose clearances remain within the full exemption limit under the relevant SSI exemption notification shall furnish a quarterly return in the proforma of Annexure B in lieu of monthly RT 12 returns. A separate return is required for each tariff item, entries must follow the opening balances in the Daily Account Register, and the return must include opening balance, quantity manufactured, removals by purpose, values, closing balance and the declaratory signature of the assessee or authorised agent.

Technical offences adjudication: assignment to Divisional Assistant Collectors with penalties proportionate to gravity and deterrence.
All contraventions classified as technical offences - breaches without alleged or potential evasion of excise duty - are to be adjudicated by the Divisional Assistant Collectors. Penalties for these technical offences must be determined according to the seriousness of the breach and calibrated to act as an effective deterrent against future non-compliance.