Verification of new IEC: physical inspections must be led by an officer not below FTDO, with limited two member exception.
Physical verification of new IEC must be performed by a two member team led by an officer not below the rank of FTDO. In exceptional circumstances, with specific orders of the Head of Office in the Regional Authority, a two member team composed of one FTDO/Section Head/LA and one UDC/Senior LDC may carry out the inspection; this amends paragraph 2 of the prior Policy Circular.

Value addition norms for Advance Authorisation scheme updated to include low-threshold standards for specified exports.
A new Appendix 11B is added to Handbook of Procedures (Vol.1) under FTP 2009-14 prescribing value addition norms (below 15%) for specific products under the Advance Authorisation Scheme. Appendix 11B is inserted in the Appendices and Aayat Niryat Forms and the Contents, and sets product-specific minimum value addition requirements, including an 8% minimum for Copper Cathode/Copper Wire Rods manufactured from copper concentrate.

CXL concessions export allocation establishes designated agency and mandatory EUR/GSP certification for sugar exports to the EU.
Allocation of CXL Concessions sugar export quantity to the EU is authorised under the Foreign Trade Policy with the commodity listed in the ITC(HS) schedule and M/s Indian Sugar Exim Corporation Limited designated as the agency for exports under the preferential quota; EUR form must be endorsed by Customs at shipment and the GSP certificate issued by the Export Inspection Agency or the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, with specified Schedule CXL Regulation entries required in both documents.

Minimum disbursement requirement for precious metals applies on cumulative half yearly basis, not per consignment, clarified.
The minimum disbursement requirement is to be evaluated with reference to cumulative disbursement of the quantum of precious metal imported over a half yearly period, and not on a per consignment basis, allowing nominated agencies to aggregate disbursements across imports within the half year accounting window to meet the stipulated minimum.

Certificate of Origin authorization: Bahadurgarh Chamber added as an issuing agency for non preferential origin certification.
An amendment to the Handbook of Procedures lists Bahadurgarh Chamber of Commerce & Industry as an agency authorised to issue Certificate of Origin - Non Preferential for Haryana, providing its contact details and integrating the agency into the established origin certification framework under the Foreign Trade Policy.

Confirming membership of chartered accountants via an online verification portal to ensure certificates are issued by practicing members.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India has provided an online verification portal to confirm that a certificate was issued by a member holding a full time Certificate of Practice; regional authorities are directed to use this facility to ensure that only certificates issued by duly enrolled members with practice authorization are acted upon.

Mega power project contracts must be via ICB or tariff based competitive bidding and state import content.
Suppliers to mega power projects must certify that the supply contract is procured under International Competitive Bidding or through tariff based competitive bidding in accordance with the Foreign Trade Policy provisions and must state the import content of the order in figures and words; this substitutes paragraph (e) of Form 1 A and paragraph 2(e) of Form 1 B in Appendix 22C and paragraph (e) of Appendix 27 in the Handbook of Procedures, Vol. I.

Revalidation of duty credit scrips limited; re-credit of special additional duty allowed only under custody or short validity conditions.
Amendments permit revalidation of freely transferable Authorisation and Duty credit scrips only when validity expired in Customs/RA custody; introduce a six month maximum revalidation from endorsement to allow re-credit of 4% Special Additional Duty into freely transferable Duty credit scrips (including DEPB) where remaining validity is under six months; establish 24 month validity for Chapter 3 duty credit scrips and restrict DEPB revalidation except under those two exceptions.

Special Additional Duty re-credit restores duty credit scrip balances after Customs refund, conditional on prescribed documents and endorsements.
Applicants must submit the original duty credit scrip and the consolidated certificate (credit note) issued by the customs authority to the Regional Authority that issued the scrip; the RA will endorse the scrip with the re-credit amount, may revalidate the scrip for six months, and must notify the customs authorities at the port of import and port of registration. Transferees claiming proportionate re-credit must produce an attested copy of the scrip, proof of transfer, the consolidated certificate and an Indemnity Bond; the RA will issue a duplicate scrip with a six-month validity after scrutiny and notify customs.

ANF 2-A amendment: no fee for modifications within 90 days; Rs1000 penalty for condoned delays; PAN inclusion free.
The amendment provides that no fee is payable for modification/amendment applications made within 90 days; the Regional Authority issuing the IEC may condone delays on payment of a penalty of Rs.1000 by Demand Draft. No fee is required for inclusion of PAN in an existing IEC.

Export obligation reduction: relief allows proportional cuts where sector exports decline, with a revised base-year rule and notification.
The amendment allows proportional reduction of average export obligation for exporters in sectors/product groups whose exports decline relative to the previous year; if decline is continuous, the base year for eligibility and reduction calculation becomes the year after the onset of continuous decline. DGFT will notify eligible sectors to Regional Authorities within seven months of the financial year end, and Regional Authorities shall re-fix the annual average export obligation for the previous year for exporters in those sectors.

SION amendments update non stick aluminium utensil input output norms and conditionally allow specified coating and handle inputs.
Amendments revise the Standard Input Output Norms for SION entries C 23 and C 2046, listing permitted aluminium feedstocks, coating materials, moulding powders, handles and rivets, and updating aluminium content and internal/external coating consumption norms for the export products. Conditional allowances are specified: bakelite moulding powder only if exported with bakelite handles; high temperature/silicon/PTFE coatings only if the product is painted; other components permitted only when exported with corresponding handles or on a net to net basis.

Admissible date of export/period set at 27.8.2009 for claiming chapter 3 export incentives unless otherwise notified.
The amendment replaces the column heading 'Admissible Date of Export' with 'Admissible Date of Export/Period' in specified HBP appendices and inserts a note stating that, unless a specific date or period is subsequently notified, the admissible date of export for claiming benefits is 27.8.2009; the amendment is effective from 1.1.2010.

Safeguard measures expand trade law to allow quantitative restrictions and tighten controls on dual use goods and technologies.
The Amendment Bill would add statutory safeguard measures allowing quantitative restrictions, tighten export controls on dual use goods and technologies, extend the Act to encompass technology and services (including financial services) for administering incentive schemes, broaden the definition of "licence", dispense with licences except as provided by the Act, enable swift action in trade disputes, rationalise fiscal penalties, empower settlement of customs and excise dues, and permit review of subordinate officers' decisions by the Director General of Foreign Trade.

Cotton woven fabrics added as market-linked focus products, linking them to specific export markets for trade benefits.
Amendment adds cotton woven fabrics (ITC(HS) 5208-5212) to Appendix 37D, Table 6 as a New Market Linked Focus Product, making that product-sector eligible for export-linked benefits under the Foreign Trade Policy, 2009-14 for exports on or after 1 January 2010, and links the product to specified markets including Algeria, Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa, Ukraine, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China and Japan.

Composition of Unit Approval Committee specified for the Handbook of Procedures, clarifying membership and special invitee provision.
The Handbook of Procedures (Vol. I) is amended to insert a provision prescribing the composition of the Unit Approval Committee: Development Commissioner as Chairperson; Jurisdictional Commissioner of Central Excise & Customs, Joint DGFT, and Joint/Deputy Development Commissioner of the Zone as Members; and provision for any other departmental nominee to attend as a special invitee, pursuant to powers under Para 2.4 of the Foreign Trade Policy.

New Market Linked Focus Products: export benefits for chemical exports linked to specified international markets from Jan to Jun 2010.
The Director General of Foreign Trade, under Paragraph 2.4 of the Foreign Trade Policy, adds Table 6 to Appendix 37D creating "New Market Linked Focus Products" and making export benefits available for shipments from 1 January 2010 to 30 June 2010. Table 6 designates chemical sectors-inorganic chemicals (chapter 28) and organic chemicals (chapter 29)-and lists linked markets for chapter 28 including Algeria, Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa, Ukraine, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China and Japan; chapter 29 has no markets specified in the published table.

Amendments to export appendices add VKGUY products, new focus market Timor Leste, and expanded market-linked focus products.
Adds specific VKGUY products to Appendix 37A; adds Timor Leste to Appendix 37C focus markets; expands Appendix 37D by inserting numerous FPS product codes and descriptions in Table 4, adding Special Focus Products in Table 5 (including bicycles, agricultural machinery parts, fasteners, pumps, staples and related items), adding China and Japan as linked markets for Table 6, and listing market-linked focus products and target linked markets for sectors such as machine tools, earth-moving equipment, transmission towers, electrical equipment, steel tubes, galvanized sheets, compressors, structures, auto-components, three-wheelers, scaffoldings and vulcanized rubber items.

Eligibility of tufted cotton bathmats/rugs for duty credit scrip requires specified self-declaration and shipping bill description.
Exports of cotton bathmats/rugs under ITC (HS) Codes 5703 or 5705 described on export documents as cotton bathmats/rugs or machine-made/machine-tufted cotton bathmats/rugs shall be eligible for duty credit scrip under Focus Product Scheme or earlier VKGUY/FPS rates after the exporter furnishes a self-declaration certifying tufting by a worker using a table-top mounted sewing machine and that cutting, sheering, embossing and related finishing operations were done manually; from the circular's date exporters must describe goods as "tufted cotton bathmats/rugs" and provide the specified declaration.

Export obligation extension for advance authorisations permits automatic extension or regularisation by paying applicable customs duty.
For Advance Authorisations where raw sugar was imported in the earlier specified period and export obligation remains unfulfilled, the Export Obligation Period (EOP) is automatically extended to a later specified date without payment of the composition fee; alternatively, the advance licence/authorisation holder may pay the customs duty applicable on the date of import for the quantity proportionate to the unfulfilled export obligation and get the case regularised.