Administrative control of Export Oriented Units assigned to Central Excise Commissioners where Customs and Excise jurisdictions overlap.
The Board substituted prior instructions to direct that the administrative work of Export Oriented Units, Export Processing Zones, Electronic Hardware Technology Parks and Software Technology Parks in port cities where Customs and Central Excise jurisdictions overlap shall be handled by Commissioners of Central Excise, reallocating supervisory responsibility and replacing the earlier guidance.

Designation of CFS areas permits transhipment of import containers to designated CFS subject to applicable notifications and circulars.
The Commissioners of Customs have designation power under Sec. 8(a) of the Customs Act to designate areas for loading and unloading called Container Freight Stations (CFS); transhipment to a CFS designated for loading or unloading in the port is therefore within the scope of transhipment. Transhipment from Jawahar Port to CFS Mulund is to be considered under Notification No. 61/95-Cus. (N.T.) read with the Board's circulars, which frame the regulatory conditions for permitting such movements.

Tariff classification of UPSS: placed under the tribunal-assigned electrical apparatus heading and binding on field formations.
An uninterruptible power supply system (UPSS) consisting of rectifier, battery charger, battery, inverter and static bypass switch supplies stabilized AC power and continuity. A tribunal decision classifying UPSS under an electrical apparatus tariff heading has created divergence from prior Board and WCO advice. The Department directs that the tribunal classification is binding on field formations until reversed, and UPSS must be treated under the tribunal-assigned customs and corresponding central excise headings; pending assessments should be finalised accordingly.

Monitoring of export obligation: licencing authority certificate now required to discharge bonds under DEEC and EPCG schemes.
Licencing authority is primarily responsible for monitoring export obligation; Customs will continue to require bonds or BGs but must insist on a licencing authority certificate confirming discharge of export obligation before bond discharge. For waiver of bond the Assistant Commissioner of Customs will act only after receiving the licencing authority's certificate; for Special Imprest Licencing Scheme the licencing authority's certificate alone suffices; for EPCG and service exports a licencing authority certificate may be required as evidence of discharge.

Conversion of shipping bills allowed only if advance licence is unused and surrendered and customs satisfaction of scheme conditions.
Conversion of shipping bills filed on or after 30 May 1995 to the Pass Book Scheme is permitted only where the exporter's Advance Licence has not been utilised, is surrendered to the licensing authority with evidence, and credit is allowed only upon satisfaction by the Assistant Commissioner of Customs that Pass Book Scheme conditions are fulfilled.

Setting up of new ICD/CFS halted pending election process; no notifications under Section 7(aa) to be issued.
Notifications declaring places as Inland Container Depots (ICDs) or Container Freight Stations (CFSs) under Section 7(aa) are not to be issued until completion of the election process; requests for early notification from Commissioners and intending custodians must be deferred and the commencement of new ICD/CFS notifications suspended during the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Private bonded warehouse sensitivity classification - commissioners must decide sensitivity based on commodity nature, duty rates, and licensing.
Granting licences for private bonded warehouses is to be based on Commissioners' individual determination of commodity sensitivity, taking into account the nature of the commodity, duty rates and licensing aspects; no comprehensive list of sensitive items is to be prescribed, and difficulties encountered should be reported to the Board.

Import restriction on maintenance-free batteries: classification under the negative list mandates import only with a licence.
Maintenance-free rechargeable storage batteries are classified as consumer goods within the negative list of imports, and may be imported only against a valid licence. The Specified Licensing Committee determined that such batteries cannot be allowed to be imported without a licence, and administrative instructions are to be issued to ensure enforcement of the licensing requirement; the decision has been communicated to trade administration offices for necessary action.

Fertiliser plant definition includes ammonia units for captive consumption, so imported renovation equipment qualifies for exemption.
The term fertiliser plant encompasses units producing intermediate products for captive consumption; an ammonia unit producing ammonia for captive consumption falls within this scope and machinery or equipment required for its renovation or modernisation is entitled to the exemption under the relevant customs notification.

Pass-book Scheme declaration requirements: detailed Annexure A and Input-Output norm identification ensure examination-based valuation and attachment to shipping documents.
Pass-book Scheme requires exporters to submit detailed Annexure 'A' declarations of product and input descriptions and technical characteristics, including the serial number of applicable Input-Output norms. Customs Houses must issue Public Notices mandating Annexure 'A' at the time of filing Shipping Bills; examinations are to be conducted with reference to those declarations, reports recorded on original and Export Promotion copies, and Annexure 'A' attached and attested. For AR-4 clearances and credit requests, Central Excise and designated authorities must ensure production and attestation of Annexure 'A' accompanying the Export Promotion copy.

DEEC book logging: narrow documentary list required to expedite processing; other document demands must be specifically recorded.
For logging DEEC books, in addition to the original DEEC book and original licence, only the third copy of the DEEC shipping bill, on board bill of lading, customs attested invoice copy, AR 4 where required, and test report/technical opinion/Chartered Engineer's Certificate (where sampling occurred) are ordinarily necessary; any other document may be demanded only for a recorded specific purpose and not as routine practice.

Conversion of scrap into ingots is manufacture; scrap removals require excise duty, ingots may return duty-free on certificate.
Conversion of scrap into ingots is a complete process of manufacture and thus scrap removed from 100% EOU/EPZ units to the domestic tariff area for recycling cannot be treated as duty-free job work; such scrap must be cleared on payment of excise duty. The ingots produced on conversion, however, can be returned to the unit without payment of duty on the prescribed certificate for further use as raw material. Commissioners should re-examine and, where necessary, seek recovery of duty where duty-free permissions were improperly granted.

Hydraulic seals classification assigns tariff headings by material: plastic or hardened rubber as machine parts; unhardened rubber as rubber articles.
Classification of hydraulic seals and rings depends on material and function: plastic seals not covered by the limited plastic exclusions are classifiable as machine parts-plain shaft bearings if used as bearings, parts of hydraulic cylinders if solely/principally for cylinders, or residual parts of Chapter 84 if suitable for cylinders and other machines. Unhardened vulcanised rubber seals are classifiable as rubber articles, whereas hardened vulcanised rubber seals are classifiable under Chapter 84 in the same way as plastic seals. The circular mandates uniform classification and settlement of pending cases.

Warehousing of perishable goods: require immediate demand for duty and sale after noncompliance to protect revenue.
An audit found loss of customs duty and interest where perishable imported and bonded ship stores remained in warehouse and lost commercial value; the importer relinquished the title and the department failed to extend warehousing periods appropriately or raise demands. The Board directs care in granting extensions for goods with limited shelf life and immediate raising of demands for duty, penalties, rent and interest when warehoused goods are not removed, with detention and sale after due notice if the owner fails to comply, to protect revenue.

Value declaration compliance requires substantiation of materially divergent import prices or referral to licensing authority for corrective action.
For Value Based Advance Licences, declared unit prices must reflect prevailing international prices consistent with Customs valuation. DEEC Book entries allow verification; where actual import prices materially diverge from declared prices, the importer must substantiate the declared CIF valuation before the Licensing Authority, and inability to justify should be referred to that Licensing Authority for corrective action, with requisite instructions to be issued by the Directorate.

Drawback claim time limits: extensions by Assistant Commissioner possible; further relief only via rule 17 relaxation application.
Drawback claims must be filed within three months from the Shipping Bill let-export order; the Assistant Commissioner may allow a further three-month extension on sufficient cause, and claims in respect of pre-commencement exports were subject to a three-month window from rules' commencement. Claims filed after the applicable cut-off are time-barred and cannot be accepted by Customs. Relief beyond these limits may be sought under rule 17 by applying to the Commissioner of Drawback with reasons showing failure was beyond the exporter's control.

Bonded continuation under Section 65 allows export-oriented units to continue manufacturing after initial bonding period pending approval.
EOU and EPZ units that have completed the initial bonding period but await approval to continue as EOUs may continue manufacturing operations in bond by functioning under Section 65 of the Customs Act; field formations are to note this position and advise units wishing to operate under bond accordingly.

Differential customs duty on wind turbine assemblies: enforce parts nil rate only for manufacturers; prevent CKD reclassification.
The circular warns of attempts to import complete wind operated electricity generators, including second hand units, in CKD form to wrongfully obtain the nil rate available for specified parts intended for manufacturers, and directs customs authorities to enforce the prescribed differential duty treatment between complete units and parts and to prevent circumvention by reclassification.

Exemption applicability: Erroneous tariff references do not defeat exemption, but deliberate tariff limiting restricts relief.
Where a notification's description squarely covers goods but the cited chapter/heading/sub heading numbers are incorrect or inapplicable, those tariff references should be treated as inadvertent and not deny the exemption; the exemption applies based on the description. Conversely, where a broad description could cover goods across multiple headings yet only certain tariff references are listed, those listed references deliberately restrict the exemption to goods within those specified headings.

Conversion to EPCG scheme permitted by amended customs notifications enabling one-time conversion of export-oriented and special scheme units.
Amendment via Notification No. 171/95 removes a specific proviso that had rendered conversion to the EPCG Scheme inapplicable, thereby restoring the facilitation for one-time conversion of units operating under 100 percent EOU, EPZ, STP, EHTP, aquaculture and horticulture schemes to the EPCG Scheme and requesting public notice to inform trade and industry.