Electronic sealing requirement for bonded warehouse movements extended to allow infrastructure setup and procurement of RFID seals.
Electronic sealing using RFID seals is mandated for deposit in and removal of goods from Customs bonded warehouses, applying to importers, exporters, bonded warehouse licensees, customs brokers and trade members. The effective date for mandatory implementation has been extended to permit warehouse operators and traders to acquire and install necessary RFID seals and related infrastructure, in line with the Board's revised guidance.

AEO-TI application process simplified: two new annexures and zonal-level accreditation with local programme managers.
Prescribes a simplified AEO-TI application regime replacing prior annexures with Annexure-1 (General Compliance) and Annexure-2 (Legal, Commercial Records and Financial Solvency Compliance), mandates filing of new applications on these forms, and decentralises accreditation to Zonal AEO Cells with the Zonal AEO Programme Manager making final acceptance or rejection decisions while forwarding accepted applicant information for certificate generation.

Amendment procedure for Bills of Entry: electronic amendments required after out of charge cancellation, with applicable amendment fees.
Electronic amendment of EDI Bills of Entry is required for incorrect or missing container details: if detected before OOC, obtain Group approval, amend via Service Centre, secure system approval, and forward for OOC; if detected after OOC, cancel OOC via EDI, recall BE by Group, amend through Service Centre, obtain Group approval, and reforward for OOC. Applicable amendment fees must be paid and priority processing is directed.

eSANCHIT PGA Upload: PGAs will directly upload licences and certificates and beneficiaries must register on ICEGATE.
eSANCHIT under SWIFT requires electronic submission of supporting documents; PGAs will upload LPCOs into eSANCHIT and the system will generate an Image Reference Number communicated to beneficiaries via the email id registered on ICEGATE. A pilot with three PGAs will test the facility, after which beneficiaries will not be permitted to upload documents that PGAs upload. All importers, exporters, customs brokers and other beneficiaries are requested to register on ICEGATE.

Canalization of Beach Sand Minerals exports requires routing through a state trading enterprise with strict KYC and pre shipment controls.
Export of specified Beach Sand Minerals is canalized and must be routed through a designated State Trading Enterprise. Exporters must register and complete KYC, submit a Letter of Intent 30 days before shipment and detailed supporting documents seven days prior, including mineral test certificates, certified petrological and chemical analyses, origin certificates, indemnities, royalty receipts, environment and atomic-energy licences, mining registrations and end user certificates. Designated sampling and analysis procedures apply for bulk and containerized consignments, and a service charge on FOB value is levied for the enterprise's export facilitation services.

Mandatory electronic submission of supporting documents now required; uploaded files substitute for hardcopies for most bills of entry.
Mandatory paperless processing requires electronic uploading of digitally signed supporting documents for all bills of entry filed at ACC Chennai via e SANCHIT/e SANJCHIT; uploaded documents negate the need for hardcopies during assessment, while originals that are mandatory for verification must still be produced to officers but also uploaded when filing. Guidance and FAQs are available on ICEGATE and implementation queries may be emailed to the Customs EDI/Appraising Main contacts.

Transshipment of import bonded cargo: permission extended to Oscar Freight Pvt. Ltd. for specified airlines until 05.10.2021.
Permission is granted to M/S. Oscar Freight Pvt. Ltd. to operate bonded trucking for transshipment of import bonded cargo across Customs notified locations in India, conditioned on consignee request, airline authorisation and Customs approval; a Rs.300 crore security bond was executed for 06.10.2018-05.10.2021 and exemption from bank guarantee was sought under the Board's circular due to annual transshipment volume above 2,500 MT, with approval covering specified airlines handled by MIAL and AIATSL and governed by Chapter VIII of the Customs Act and relevant transshipment and cargo handling regulations and circulars.

Electronic sealing requirement for bonded-warehouse movements extended to allow infrastructure setup and seal procurement by warehouse owners.
The Board has extended the mandatory electronic sealing (RFID) requirement for movement of goods under warehousing bond to permit establishment of infrastructure and procurement of seals by warehouse owners, covering deposit into and removal from Customs bonded warehouses.

IGST refund helpdesk established with updated officer contacts and designated nodal AC/DC(export) officers to address refund queries.
A dedicated IGST refund helpdesk at Customs House Ahmedabad has been constituted with named officers (Deputy Commissioner, Superintendent, Inspector and NID Engineer), telephone contacts and the central email [email protected]. AC/DC(Export) in charge at each field formation will serve as the nodal officer for IGST refunds in their jurisdictions. Stakeholders should report difficulties through the provided helpdesk contacts; other provisions of Public Notice No. 02/2018 remain unchanged.

Waiver of late fee charges may be granted for bona fide delay; use advance Bill of Entry filing to avoid penalties.
Late fee charges for delayed presentation of Bills of Entry are imposed under the Bill of Entry Regulation, 2018, but the proper officer may waive charges if satisfied of bona fide reasons; importers and customs brokers must furnish cogent reasons and are urged to use the advance filing facility permitted under Section 46(3) to avoid demurrage and last minute defaults, with adherence to Self Assessment and E Sanchit procedures required and regulatory action possible for non compliance.

Exports by Post procedures require filing Postal Bill of Export and tracking number verification before Let Export Order is issued.
Exporters with valid IEC must file Postal Bill of Export (PBE) at FPO Kochi-PBE I for e commerce and PBE II for commercial exports-attach invoices and CN22/CN23 labels, have goods processed manually by Customs, obtain tracking numbers from postal authorities, and receive a Let Export Order from the designated Customs officer after scanning or examination; proof of export with tracking numbers must be provided to Customs before ICAN upload for refunds and incentives.

Import of saccharin from China: corrigendum clarifies that the public notice applies specifically to all importers of saccharin.
Corrigendum clarifies the scope of an earlier public notice by specifying that the notification is directed to persons engaged in the import of saccharin from China, replacing the broader phrase "the concerned commodity from the concerned country" and thereby identifying importers of saccharin from China as the intended audience.

Withdrawal of round-the-clock customs clearance shifts processing to port DPD and central RMS/DPD facilitation cells.
Withdrawal of round-the-clock customs clearance at three specified CFSs replaces on-site 24x7 processing with port-based Direct Port Delivery and Customs House facilitation cells; exporters and customs brokers must use port DPD facilities for factory stuffed and self e sealed export containers, RMS facilitated import bills will be handled by a six-day RMS facilitation cell, and AEO/DPD clients will be served by a continuous DPD cell. Implementation difficulties are to be reported to the Deputy Commissioner of Customs (Docks - Administration).

Baggage declaration: advanced electronic filing and a two channel clearance govern passenger baggage, duties and prohibited items.
International cruise passengers must comply with Customs Baggage Declaration rules, including early online advanced baggage declaration and electronic filing by agents. A two channel clearance system applies: Green Channel for passengers with no dutiable or prohibited goods within free allowance, and Red Channel for those with dutiable, prohibited/restricted items or uncertain declarations. Duties on excess baggage are assessed and paid via a challan at terminal bank counters; Green Channel use is a binding declaration and misrepresentation may attract penalties and confiscation.

Online Out of Charge module for AEO and DPD clients enables prioritized release within two hours.
An online Out of Charge module at JNCH lets entitled AEO and DPD importers or their authorised customs brokers submit release requests via the DPD JNCH website after uploading requisite documents to e-sanchit and paying applicable duties. Submissions generate an SMS to the appraiser/superintendent; on compliant requests received between 10am and 5pm, the responsible officer must grant Out of Charge within two hour, except where original documents must be produced, in which case offline verification at RMS Facilitation Centre or CFS is required.

Designation of Appellate Authority under the Right to Information Act: officer named to act during absence of first appellate authority.
An Additional Commissioner of Customs, SMT K K Suja, is designated as the Appellate Authority under sections 4(1) and 5(1) of the Right to Information Act to act during the absence of the First Appellate Authority for the Import Commissionerate; the notice supplies the designee's office designation and telephone contact and refers to the earlier public notice that notified the First Appellate Authority.

IGST refund certification: Cost Accountants authorised to issue certificates to expedite refund processing where records were not transmitted
Cost Accountants are authorised to provide the requisite certificates envisaged under Circular 12/2018-Customs for sanction of pending IGST refund claims where records were not transmitted from GSTN to Customs due to GSTR 1/GSTR 3B mismatch, enabling exporters to obtain Cost Accountant certificates to facilitate immediate processing of refund claims.

IGST Refund helpdesk updated: team of officers substituted and contact details published for refund processing support.
Substitution of the IGST Refund Helpdesk team at the Commissioner of Customs, New Custom House, Kandla, replacing the team named in Paragraph 5 of the earlier public notice and publishing the names, designations and contact numbers of officers responsible for handling IGST refund matters to provide designated points of contact for trade stakeholders.

Paperless export document uploads (eSANCHIT) enable voluntary ICEGATE submissions, IRN linking, and streamlined Customs processing.
Pilot facility permits voluntary upload of digitally signed supporting documents (eSANCHIT) on ICEGATE for exports. Authorized users must log in, upload required documents, and can view uploaded files online. Documents submitted after Shipping Bill generation obtain an Image Reference Number (IRN) and must be linked to the Shipping Bill via an amendment at the Service Centre; this linking also applies to responses to Customs queries. Customs officers will access electronic documents during assessment, may raise queries through ICES, and examining officers will record inspection results and process Let Export Order (LEO) online. The facility will be extended to Participating Government Agencies.

IGST refund claims: Cost accountants authorized to certify records under board circulars, enabling sanction despite transmission gaps.
Sanction of pending IGST refund claims where GSTN records have not been transmitted to DG Systems is enabled by authorizing Cost Accountants to provide the requisite certificates under the framework of earlier Board Circulars, allowing reconciliation and processing of refund claims despite transmission gaps; stakeholders facing implementation difficulties may report them to the issuing office.