Bond filing for exporters: designated Deputy/Assistant Commissioners enable nationwide procurement after bond execution.
Merchant exporters and manufacturer cum merchant exporters may file a Bond under Rule 13(1)(a) or a General Bond under Rule 14 of the Central Excise Rules, 1944 with the designated Deputy/Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise (Export) in whose jurisdiction the exporter's head office or factory is located; after executing that bond the exporter may procure excisable goods from manufacturers anywhere in India. The Commissionerate designates the Deputy/Assistant Commissioner divisions at Amritsar and Jalandhar for these filings and administration.

Excise exemption scope clarified: concessions apply to manufacturers, preventing importers from claiming concessional CVD benefits.
The revenue administration amended relevant notifications to clarify that the conditioned non availment requirement and concessionary treatment apply to manufacturers, not buyers or importers, and inserted an explanation that the term appropriate duty includes nil or concessional duty or tax; these changes preserve existing exemption or concessional excise treatment for domestically manufactured goods and address competitive disadvantage arising from prior judicial interpretation.

Detailed scrutiny of central excise returns must follow risk based selection with document verification and operational escalation options.
Guidance requires departmental officers to conduct detailed scrutiny of Central Excise returns selected mainly by a risk scoring methodology, with Commissioners able to supplement selections manually. A prescribed monthly proportion of returns must be examined, the most recent return used, and supporting documents may be called for verification. Returns under audit or recently scrutinised are excluded from selection for a defined interval. Composite ranges must allocate scrutiny between Central Excise and Service Tax proportionately, ACES access problems are to be escalated to DG (Systems) with manual printouts permitted, and prior conflicting instructions are rescinded.

Withdrawal of trade notices: prior notices superseded by central excise notifications clarifying amendments to existing notifications.
Trade Notice Nos. 03/2015 and 04/2015 are withdrawn because Notification Nos. 34/2015, 35/2015 and 36/2015 (all dated 17 July 2015) supersede and incorporate the amendments previously addressed by those trade notices; stakeholders are directed to rely on the July 17, 2015 notifications as self explanatory replacements.

Input duty payment requirement: manufacturers must ensure duty-paid inputs, no credit taken, and comply with registration plus stock-declaration obligations.
Eligibility for the notification is limited to excisable goods manufactured from inputs on which appropriate excise duty or additional customs duty has been paid and for which the manufacturer has not taken CENVAT credit; the prohibition on credit applies to the manufacturer (not the buyer) under the CENVAT Credit Rules. Affected manufacturers must register under Rule 9 of the Central Excise Rules 2002 and submit duplicate, separate declarations of input and finished goods stock to the jurisdictional range office by the specified compliance deadline.

Exemption scope for anode slime clarified: not covered by exemption for waste and scrap of precious metals.
The Board concluded that anode slime, a by product of electrolytic copper refining, is not exempt under serial no. 195 of the exemption notification because it does not constitute "waste and scrap of precious metals"-it contains only traces of precious metals-and it does not arise in the course of manufacture of goods of the tariff chapter dealing with precious metals. The Board noted divergent field decisions and pending adjudications, observed that the matter involves mixed questions of law and fact for adjudication, and indicated that statutory appellate remedies remain available.

Digital signature verification procedures enable authentication and integrity checks of electronically maintained tax records for compliance verification.
Assessees may maintain electronic records and authenticate records and invoices using Class 2 or Class 3 Digital Signature Certificate from an Indian certifying authority, must intimate authorised signatory details to the jurisdictional officer, and maintain separate electronic records for each factory or registration. A Central Excise Officer may requisition printouts of electronic records for verification and the procedure for validating digitally signed documents requires internet-enabled access to stored files, inspection of signature properties and modification history, and the option to add verified signers to a list of trusted certificates.

Mandatory interview requirement for standing counsel empanelment ensures equal opportunity and uniform selection procedures for indirect tax representation.
Constitution of a fresh regular panel of Senior and Junior Standing Counsels is mandated for representation in indirect tax matters; departments must advertise, conduct interviews for all candidates including extensions, enclose advertisement copies and address VIP references, and follow prior procedural annexures and instructions while submitting recommendations after completing prescribed formalities.

Authorization of Commissioners requires personal signing of counter affidavits and prohibits delegation of representation in High Court matters.
The Board directs that an authorised Commissioner must personally sign the vakalatnama and file the counter affidavit for the Union or Ministry/Board officers in High Court matters; delegation to subordinates is not permitted. For petitions naming multiple Ministries/Departments, the petition must be forwarded to the concerned Ministry/Department to file its counter. If no jurisdictional officer is joined, the nodal Commissioner for the bench must be authorised and must obtain and incorporate comments from concerned officers. Where policy input is needed, the authorised Commissioner will obtain comments from the policy wing, inform the legal section, and then vet and file the counter affidavit.

Settlement of cases: issue a follow-up notice informing noticees of Settlement Commission options and encourage voluntary application.
Directs officers to send a follow-up letter immediately after issuance of a Show Cause Notice informing the noticee about the Settlement Commission scheme, advising eligible persons to apply to the Settlement Commission according to the prescribed procedure and to notify the Adjudicating Authority; annexed model letters are provided for Central Excise, Customs and Service Tax matters and the instruction is to be circulated among officers.

Management Information System implementation: Commissionerates must upload and Zonal CCs validate Monthly Performance Reports via the web portal.
Centralized MIS requires Commissionerates and designated ADGs to upload Monthly Performance Reports via the DDM web-based utility using assigned user-ids; Zonal Chief Commissionerates or relevant Functional Owners must validate uploads before MPRs enter the MIS database. Role-based access controls limit insertion, submission, correction and validation rights; originating users may correct submitted MPRs until validation, while post-validation corrections need formal approval from Functional Owners. The system automates aggregation, reporting and dashboards for Functional Owners and Board users and replaces manual/email transmission of MPRs.

Payment of rebate/refund claims directly to assessee/exporter bank accounts via RTGS/NEFT with bank certified authorisation required.
Facility introduced for direct payment of sanctioned rebate/refund amounts to assessees'/exporters' bank accounts via RTGS/NEFT. Claimants must submit a one time bank certified authorization (Annexure A) with a cancelled cheque; subsequent claims may use a self attested copy. Refund sanctioning authorities forward an Annexure B list, a consolidated cheque, original authorisations and a soft copy to the designated bank, which will credit beneficiary accounts after deducting applicable NEFT/RTGS charges per RBI guidelines.

Refund/rebate claims should be released unless a stay order is obtained; appeals must be filed expeditiously.
The Board declined to file a Special Leave Petition and ordered immediate implementation of the High Court order dated 11.03.2015. It reiterated that refunds or rebates granted by an order should not be withheld solely because an appeal is filed unless a stay order is obtained; appeals or stay applications should be filed early, and refunds remain subject to the outcome of any appeal. The Board directed strict compliance with Circular No. 572/9/2001 CX para (3) and its refund instructions.

Finance Act 2015 implementation: officers must apply enacted amendments when issuing show-cause notices and adjudication orders.
Field officers and adjudicating officers must implement legislative changes enacted by the Finance Act, 2015 from its date of assent and specifically apply amendments to Section 11A and Section 11AC of the Central Excise Act, 1944, and the specified provisions of the Finance Act, 1994 when issuing show-cause notices or passing adjudication orders.

Monetary threshold for appeals: SLPs below the prescribed limit should not be pursued, except for constitutional or ultra vires issues.
Proposals to file Special Leave Petitions should comply with the Board's prescribed monetary limits and be fully completed before submission; however, SLPs may be forwarded irrespective of amount where (a) constitutional validity of an Act or Rule is challenged, or (b) a Notification, Instruction, Order or Circular has been held illegal or ultra vires, and such proposals must be sent to the Commissioner (Legal).

Cenvat Credit in transit sale: direct dispatch permits credit on supplier's invoice where consignee receives goods directly.
The circular clarifies that newly inserted provisos to rule 11(2) permit Cenvat Credit to be taken by a consignee on the basis of a Cenvatable invoice issued by a registered dealer or registered importer when goods are transported directly from the manufacturer or port to the consignee, without passing through the dealer's premises. It confirms continuity of prior circulars and rule 9 documentation requirements, states registration requirements remain unchanged, and explains specific scenarios for registered and unregistered dealers and importers regarding invoicing and direct dispatch.

Expedited clearance for export relief goods to Nepal with special procedural facilitation by customs and excise authorities.
Field formations must facilitate rapid procurement and export of relief items to Nepal by expeditiously completing export formalities, including exports under bond and duty free procurement, and Chief Commissioners may issue temporary administrative orders to remove procedural difficulties and ensure urgent dispatch of consignments.

Customs duty revisions adjust import tariffs and exemptions, with linked excise, CENVAT and service tax modifications affecting specified goods and services.
Revisions adjust customs duties-raising, reducing or exempting basic customs duty on specified commodities and goods, amending export duty for certain iron ore fines, and withdrawing specified additional duty exemptions while preserving basic duty exemptions and government import exceptions. Excise amendments alter deemed capacity and duty parameters for tobacco packing machinery, withdraw select textile and defence-related exemptions, restrict concessional excise treatment for certain computer components to actual users, and extend cess exemptions to DTA clearances from 100% EOUs. CENVAT rules allow specified utilisation of education cesses for basic duty, and a clarification permits simultaneous BCD and CVD concession claims for specified fertilizer inputs. Service tax exemptions are granted for services under certain social insurance and pension schemes.

Factory stuffing permission requires documented application, jurisdictional verification and supervisory NOC, with provisional grants and periodic review.
Factory stuffing permission requires a formal application with certified IEC, PAN/Central Excise registration, Status Holder and RCMC documents, and depends on prior feasibility and verification reports plus a No Objection Certificate from jurisdictional Central Excise authorities confirming availability to supervise stuffing; DGFT confirmation of IEC genuineness is required. Manufacturer-exporters using free shipping bills are ineligible and stuffing is allowed scheme wise; status holders may receive provisional permission subject to timely submission of verification or face cancellation. Permissions cover nominated customs stations, require attested production at export, and are subject to periodic monitoring and cancellation for misuse.

Export to SEZ entitlement: rebate and CENVAT refund remain available for DTA-to-SEZ clearances under existing rules.
Supply of goods from the Domestic Tariff Area to a Special Economic Zone constitutes export and licit DTA-to-SEZ clearances continue to be eligible for duty rebate under the Central Excise Rules and for refund of accumulated CENVAT credit under the CENVAT Credit Rules; SEZ Act provisions deem SEZs outside customs territory, have overriding effect, and SEZ Rules permit clearance under bond or as duty paid with claim of rebate on ARE-1.