Export bond procedure: jurisdictional Deputy/Assistant Commissioners now accept, renew bonds and localize CT 1 issuance for merchant exporters.
Jurisdictional Deputy/Assistant Commissioners of Central Excise, Ahmedabad-III are designated to accept, issue and renew general export bonds and to accept/issue proof of export and CT-1 certificates for merchant exporters within their jurisdictions; existing bonds executed at Headquarters will be discharged at Headquarters on expiry, after which new bonds or renewals must be executed before the designated jurisdictional Deputy/Assistant Commissioner (Export).

Strict adherence to filing time-limits for SLPs required; delays will be attributed and non-compliance treated seriously.
Instruction reiterates adherence to the Board's circular procedure and time frame for filing Special Leave Petitions before the Supreme Court; notes recurring delays in forwarding SLP proposals from Commissionerates to the Board leading to dismissals for delay; directs field formations to follow the prescribed procedure, fix responsibility for delays, and warns that any deviation will be viewed seriously.

Write-off committee constitution urged to clear backlog of irrecoverable indirect tax arrears and enable delegated write-off powers.
The Board directs constitution of committees to examine proposals for write-off of irrecoverable indirect tax arrears under delegated financial powers, recalling delegated authority limits and earlier instructions for zonal and Chief Commissioner committees. Noting a substantial backlog and limited committee constitution by zones, the Board instructs zones to identify cases, constitute committees, or forward proposals to the Board to enable exercise of delegated write-off powers and expedite pending cases.

Pendency management: supervisory officers directed to eliminate long pending adjudication, ensure inspections and timely MIS uploads.
Supervisory officers are directed to take immediate remedial action to eliminate pendency in key work areas by ensuring regular inspections, timely uploads to the Monthly Information System, and active resolution of matters likely to cause litigation or impede ease of doing business, with specific focus on delayed adjudication, Call Book cases, outstanding refund claims, unanswered LARs/SOFs and long running investigations.

Central Excise duty on jewellery: transitional valuation safeguards, limited enforcement and sub committee to design compliance procedures.
Imposition of Central Excise duty on articles of jewellery was announced with differential treatment based on input tax credit and certain exclusions. A Sub Committee of the High Level Committee will consult trade and officials on compliance procedures, recordkeeping, forms (including Form 12AA) and operating procedures, reporting within 60 days. Pending recommendations, payments shall follow first sale invoice value; invoice valuation will not be challenged if caratage/purity, weight and gem carats are specified; enforcement actions are restricted and exporters may use self declaration and LUT under prevailing arrangements.

Review powers are confined to designated committees; orders must not be reviewed twice and revenue must be verified before appeal.
Review authority over orders in appeal is vested in the Committee of Commissioners and the Committee of Chief Commissioners, and there is no provision for reviewing the same order twice; field formations must adhere to this statutory review framework and counter-check disputed revenue figures before deciding to prefer an appeal.

Grievance monitoring: maintain weekly feedback, contact complainants, and submit consolidated monthly report to central grievance email.
Chief commissioners/directors general and subordinate commissioners/ADGs must contact complainants telephonically, record weekly feedback in a prescribed format capturing registration, complainant details, nature of grievance and quality of redress, and compile consolidated electronic monthly reports to the central grievance inbox by the tenth of each month with copies to Zonal Members.

Valuation of imported set top boxes: do not base CVD on Retail Sale Price where no transfer of property or RSP packaging exists.
Where Set Top Boxes imported by a DTH provider are supplied free to consumers without transfer of property, hire-purchase, or instalment payments, the condition for valuing CVD on Retail Sale Price is unmet because Legal Metrology requires an RSP-printed retail package and a sale to an ultimate consumer; therefore CVD should not be levied on the basis of RSP and the Tribunal decision in Bharti Telemedia Ltd. should be followed in identical cases.

Implementation monitoring of tax administration reforms mandates publication of recommendation status and ongoing digital and governance measures.
Department of Revenue instructs CBEC to publish on its website a status statement of accepted, under-implementation, and under-examination TARC recommendations affecting CBEC, summarising chapter-wise dispositions and listing implemented operational reforms such as the Directorate General of Tax Payers Services, SEVOTTAM adoption, digital platforms (ACES, ICES, RMS), Directorate General of Performance Management, integrated Audit Commissionerates, automated refund interest, customs single window progress, and a formal Data Sharing Policy with periodic information security audits.

Electronic payment of refunds: direct bank credit via RTGS/NEFT with bank certified authorization and net receipt after charges.
A system of electronic payment of refunds/rebates requires direct credit to the assessee's/exporter's bank account via RTGS/NEFT through designated authorized banks. Claimants must submit a one time bank certified authorization and a cancelled cheque for fresh claims, with self attested copies for subsequent claims and similar certification for pending claims by the specified deadline. Refund sanctioning authorities will forward a signed beneficiary statement, a consolidated cheque, original authorizations (retaining duplicates), and a soft copy to the bank; banks will credit accounts after deducting applicable RTGS/NEFT charges recoverable from claimants.

Central Excise registration requirement for EOUs procuring from or supplying to domestic market and mandatory ER 2 monthly returns.
EOUs (including STP, EHTP and BTP units) must obtain Central Excise registration when procuring excisable goods from the Domestic Tariff Area or removing excisable goods to the Domestic Tariff Area, in addition to any Private Bonded licence. These units must file the ER 2 monthly return within ten days of month end, reporting manufacture of excisable goods, duty free inputs and capital goods (indigenous or imported), quantities cleared, and inter unit transfers.

Selection of Special Public Prosecutors: transparent committee-based appointments, fixed initial term, and mandated annual performance appraisal.
Procedure prescribes a zonal needs assessment by Chief Commissioners, public notice-based recruitment of advocates meeting CrPC eligibility, and evaluation by a three-member Committee (concerned Commissioner, a Commissioner nominated by the Chief Commissioner, and the Zonal Addl. Director General of Revenue/Excise Intelligence). Initial engagement is normally 18 months with renewal after a 12-month appraisal; recommendations and consolidated proposals are forwarded to the Board for appointment/extension. Annual performance appraisals and equitable workload distribution are mandated, and existing terms on fees remain until further revision.

Excise and customs rate changes introduce optional brand based levies on garments and jewellery and new vehicle and environment cesses.
Specified Finance Bill, 2016 proposals are implemented immediately for many items by notifications and provisional declaration, altering customs and central excise rates, creating an optional brand based excise levy on readymade garments (2% without CENVAT / 12.5% with CENVAT on branded RSP threshold goods with tariff value increased to 60%) and an optional jewellery levy (1% without CENVAT / 12.5% with CENVAT) with revised SSI thresholds and simplified registration; numerous targeted BCD, export duty and concessional exemptions or restrictions are introduced across multiple chapters, and legislative and rule changes revise warehousing, limitation periods, CENVAT credit use, RSP assessment and administrative procedures.

Interest rate on goods warehoused for export reduced to a lower annual rate when cleared to domestic consumption.
Paragraph 10.3 of Circular No. 581/18/2001-CX is amended to substitute the prior interest provision with interest @ 15% per annum for goods warehoused for export when diverted to domestic consumption; the amendment is notified by Circular No. 1019/7/2016-CX and is effective from 1.4.2016.

Withdrawal from prosecution permitted for long pending low value excise cases; administrative steps advised to seek court consent to discontinue.
Authorisation to seek withdrawal from prosecution is directed for Central Excise cases where the duty evaded is below a low monetary threshold and prosecution has been pending for more than fifteen years. Relying on Sections 257 and 321 CrPC and the Supreme Court's grounds for withdrawal, Commissioners must request Public Prosecutors to file applications to courts to withdraw prosecution, include co noticees, and add case specific grounds if available; continuance must be referred to the Board with justification. Courts retain final authority.

Certificate as proof of Central Excise duty payment extended to all industries to facilitate trade and simplify compliance.
The facility to issue a certificate evidencing payment of Central Excise duty, previously available to Small Scale Industry, is extended to the entire industry as a trade facilitation measure. The Board directs that the benefit of the earlier circular be applied industry-wide, field formations and trade be informed, and implementation difficulties reported to the Board; the circular takes effect from 1 March 2016.

Single registration for multiple closely located factory premises permitted where processes interlink and movement is accounted, subject to conditions.
Amendment permits single registration for multiple premises of the same factory located in close proximity within one Central Excise Range where processes are interlinked and units are not under area-based exemptions, subject to Commissioner approval, proper accountal of inter-premises movement of goods, and any prescribed conditions.

Grievance redress: PG Call Centre to obtain outbound feedback and mandate routine official reviews to improve disposal quality.
A PG Call Centre shall place outbound calls to the last official in the grievance disposal chain and obtain citizen feedback on quality of redress. Administrative officers at multiple levels are required to perform regular reviews of disposed and pending grievances to assess timeliness and quality, with the objective of removing root causes and improving overall grievance redress by CBEC and its offices.

Electronic refund reconciliation: UTR collection and periodic scrolls ensure PAO-led matching and discrepancy reporting.
A monthly reconciliation regime requires collection of the bank-generated Unique Transaction Reference (UTR), consolidation of UTRs and cheque details by the refund sanctioning authority for transmission to the Pay and Accounts Officer (PAO), and submission by the bank of a periodic scroll showing transfers; the PAO shall reconcile field cheques with the periodic scroll and report discrepancies to field formations for verification and compliance reporting.

Electronic payment of export refunds via RTGS/NEFT requires bank-certified one-time authorisation; bank may deduct applicable transfer fees.
Direct electronic remittance of sanctioned export refund/rebate amounts is implemented via RTGS/NEFT through specified Syndicate Bank branches; claimants must provide a one-time bank-certified authorisation (Annexure-A). Designated Assistant Commissioners will submit consolidated signed statements (Annexure-B) and an e-mail to the bank with a weekly consolidated cheque; the bank will verify details, effect remittances, and deduct applicable RTGS/NEFT charges per RBI, with authorized officers and PAO following CBEC e-payment and reconciliation procedures.