Acceptance of undertaking in lieu of bond extended to facilitate trade during COVID lockdown until end of May.
Importers, exporters and customs brokers may continue to submit an undertaking in lieu of a bond for customs clearance, subject to the conditions in CBIC Circular No.17/2020 and related public notices. The Board, considering the extended lockdown and the time needed for normalisation, has further extended the temporary facility for acceptance of such undertakings as announced in CBIC Circular No.23/2020; provisional acceptance remains conditional on later submission of the proper bond.

Port clearance procedure requires specified vessel certificates, verification, continuity bond or undertaking, and emailed scanned documents during lockdown.
Granting of EDI Port Clearance and Advance Port Clearance requires production and verification of specified vessel certificates (including Immigration NOC, Port Health, Load Line, Safety Radio, Safety Equipment, Ship Registry, Light House and Income Tax certificates) and verification of entry records and light dues by the concerned AC/DC before EDI issuance. Advance Port Clearance may be issued on a continuity bond with submission of outstanding certificates within seven days; during COVID 19, undertakings and scanned copies may be emailed pending formal bond submission. Advance Port Clearance is valid three days and extendable three times.

Undertaking in lieu of bond extended during COVID lockdown, with deadline for formal bonds deferred pending review.
The Board has extended the temporary facility permitting acceptance of an undertaking in lieu of a bond for customs clearance during the COVID-19 lockdown; the deadline for submission of the proper bond in lieu of which the undertaking is accepted is deferred, the earlier conditions remain applicable, and the relaxation will be reviewed at the end of the lockdown period.

Inclusion of National Calamity Contingent Duty in Brand Rate calculation required for duty drawback determinations.
Incidence of National Calamity Contingent Duty (NCCD) on inputs used in manufacture of export goods must be included in calculation of the Brand Rate of duty drawback; NCCD is levied as excise and customs duty and is subject to relevant provisions, refunds and exemptions under Central Excise and Customs law, and is already taken into account for All Industry Rates by the Drawback Committee.

Undertaking in lieu of bond accepted under section 143AA extended to continue temporary customs clearance relief.
Acceptance of an undertaking in lieu of a bond for customs clearance is extended, with the deadline for submission of the proper bond correspondingly deferred. The existing conditions of the earlier circular remain unchanged. Field formations should issue trade guidance and report implementation difficulties to the Board, which will review the temporary arrangement at the end of the lockdown period.

Email-based amendment requests centralised to ICEGATE addresses with specified escalation for unresolved late-fee waiver applications.
Modification centralises requests for amendments and waiver of late fee in bills of entry to specified ICEGATE group email IDs per Appraising Group, withdraws previously published group addresses to prevent duplication, directs finalisation/regularisation of Prior/Advance Bills of Entry to the EDI Section email, removes the blanket requirement to mark all requests to supervisory officers, and prescribes escalation to ADC/JC email IDs where requests are not resolved within the prescribed timeframe.

Amendments and late fee waiver requests must use designated ICEGATE emails, with escalation if unresolved within 24 hours.
Requests for amendment of Bills of Entry and waiver of late fee must be sent only to the specified ICEGATE email IDs of the Appraising Groups listed; the earlier mail IDs in Public Notice No. 35/2020 are no longer to be used. Finalisation or regularisation of Prior/Advance Bills of Entry must be sent to the EDI Section email. If amendment or late-fee waiver requests are not resolved within 24 hours, they may be escalated by email to the ADC/JC of the respective commissionerate as specified.

Scanned Pre-shipment Inspection Certificate acceptance for customs clearance permitted; original physical certificate must follow within sixty days.
Importers of metallic scrap and waste may present a scanned copy of the Pre-shipment Inspection Certificate uploaded on e-sanchit for customs clearance, subject to an undertaking by the importer or customs broker at clearance. Customs may accept the scanned PSIC without asking for the physical copy, provided the original physical PSIC is submitted to the concerned Customs authority within sixty days of clearance; the facility is temporary in response to COVID-19 related document movement interruptions.

Late filing waiver for import Bills of Entry extended; late fees waived if filed within specified relief period.
Amendment extends temporary waiver of late filing fees under the Bill of Entry regulations: Bills of Entry for consignments arriving at ICD Tughlakabad on or after 21.03.2020 but on or before 17.05.2020, if filed late on or before 20.05.2020, will not attract late fee charges; other provisions remain unchanged and the amendment is to be publicized and treated as a Standing Order.

Extension of time limits under customs law allows statutory and procedural filings and obligations to be completed without approaching authorities.
Time limits prescribed under the Customs Act and subordinate rules for actions whose last dates fall within the relief period are extended to the newly specified date, covering completion of proceedings, issuance of orders and notices, filing of appeals, replies, applications, furnishing of reports/documents/returns, and export obligations under DEEC, EPCG and Advance Authorizations including TRC/drawback notices and related NOCs; stakeholders need not seek separate extensions and officers shall treat the notice as a standing order.

Enbloc movement of DPD containers permitted to designated CFSs to relieve terminal congestion, with advance notice to importers.
Permission is granted for enbloc movement of DPD Containers from Visakha Container Terminal to specified CFSs to relieve congestion during the COVID 19 lockdown; terminals must notify importers/customs brokers in advance, CFSs should adopt a sympathetic approach to charges and follow applicable shipping and customs advisories, and difficulties are to be reported to the Joint/Additional Commissioner of Customs.

Late filing waiver for Bills of Entry extended, allowing late-filed entries within specified inbound manifest period to avoid late fees.
Administrative waiver preserves that Bills of Entry arising from IGMs filed within the newly specified IGM window, if filed late on or before the administrative cut-off date, will not attract late fee charges under the Bill of Entry (Electronic Integrated Declaration and Paperless Processing) Regulations, 2018 read with the second proviso to Section 46(3) of the Customs Act, 1962, thereby facilitating clearance during the lockdown; other terms of earlier Public Notices remain unchanged.

Relaxation of import clearance deadlines for COVID-related delays; online waiver requests and substitution of bills permitted.
Extension of previously prescribed clearance cutoff dates due to COVID-19-related lockdown, enabling importers to apply for waiver of late fee charges and for substitution or amendment of Bills of Entry under the Customs Act; applications are to be submitted online via the designated form, and the measure is issued with the Commissioner of Customs' approval for ICD Patparganj and other ICDs.

Cargo Movement Approval Order digitisation allows e mailed soft copies to enable container dispatch without signed physical orders.
On vessel arrival and grant of entry inwards, the ITP Cell Superintendent shall generate Cargo Movement Approval Orders and forward soft copies by e mail to the VCTPL Superintendent, VCTPL planning section and to liners (liners to share e mail ids). VCTPL may dispatch incoming containers to respective CFSs on receipt of soft copies if other formalities are fulfilled; signed physical copies will not be required for movement during these measures. Difficulties in implementation must be reported to the Assistant/Deputy Commissioner (ITP).

Automated import clearance: system now enables BE regularisation, requires warehouse code before OOC and adds officer alerts.
System changes mandate automatic regularisation of prior Bills of Entry with ACL role capability and a morning auto-regularisation routine; SUP role officers can indicate online document submission to support eSanchit usage; WBE processing requires warehouse code entry before OOC if not provided at filing; automated OOC queuing will include previously set-aside BEs and present officers with pop-ups explaining reasons and the option to raise queries to importers.

Provisional preferential clearance without Certificate of Origin permitted; missing or digital CoO treated as lower-trust category with security.
Provisional preferential clearance is permitted when a Certificate of Origin is unavailable; original hard-copy absence or digitally signed/unsigned CoOs are to be treated as lower-trust for security purposes under existing customs guidance, unless there is reasonable belief of mis-declaration of origin or value addition, in which case stricter handling applies.

Import clearance automation: system now auto-regularizes prior BE, mandates warehouse entry before OOC and queues exceptions.
ICES Advisory 16/2020 automates and reassigns certain import clearance functions: automatic regularization of prior Bills of Entry at goods registration with ACL-level amendment capability and a daily auto-check for pending regularizations; SUP-role indication of online supporting-document upload to enforce eSanchit; mandatory entry of warehouse code before permitting Out of Charge where not given at filing; and revised automated OOC queuing that will include previously set-aside BEs with officer pop-ups and the ability to raise queries, reducing physical interface.

Automated import regularization and mandatory warehouse coding streamline electronic clearance and reduce physical interfaces for importers.
ICES enhancements enable automated regularization of prior Bills of Entry in the ACL role with daily system checks to clear pending BEs; SUP-role officers must record whether supporting documents were uploaded via eSanchit; warehouse codes must be entered before OOC for WBEs where not provided at filing; and auto-queuing now places previously set-aside BEs before officers with explanatory pop-ups, permitting officer queries to importers and reducing physical interactions.

Import clearance automation now mandates electronic document verification and automatic BOE regularisation, reducing physical interventions.
ICES changes expand automatic regularisation of prior Bills of Entry by enabling ACL-role amendments and introducing a morning routine to auto-regularise pending BOEs; SUP-role officers must indicate whether supporting documents were uploaded via e Sanchit when granting OOC/CCV; warehouse code entry for Warehouse BOE is mandatory before OOC; and automated OOC queuing will include BOEs formerly set aside, with officer pop-ups and electronic query capability to avoid physical interface.

AEO certificates expiring March-May 2020 are extended to 31 May 2020; holders may file renewals during this period.
AEO certificates expiring or expired between 1 March 2020 and 31 May 2020 have been extended in the system until 31 May 2020; affected holders will continue to receive AEO benefits and may file renewal applications within the extended period; a list of 30 entities is annexed and difficulties should be reported to the office; the notice shall operate as a standing order for departmental officers.