Customs permit: loading non-container cargo from Shriram Jetty for export by inland barges subject to strict compliance.
Permission under section 8 of the Customs Act, 1962 allows loading of all cargo except containers from Shriram Jetty for export to Bangladesh by inland water barges, contingent on strict compliance with Public Notice No. 50/2003, the prior designation of the jetty as a Custom Area, and related customs provisions and port authority concurrence.

Classification by manufacturing method permits provisional assessments pending supplier verification and acceptance of foreign chamber certificate.
Board guidance addresses CVD leviability where classification depends on manufacture with or without power, acknowledging tribunal precedent allowing supplier declarations but requiring departmental verification of notification conditions; assessments may be kept provisional pending verification through missions or other means, and a certificate from the supplying country's Chamber of Commerce or government agency confirming production without use of power may be accepted, with field formations directed to finalise pending assessments.

Retrospective anti-dumping duty blocked where no provisional levy existed; final duty applies only from notification date.
Final anti-dumping duty on lead-acid batteries from Bangladesh is effective only from the final notification date; retrospective levy to the provisional-duty date is not permissible where no provisional duty was levied for that origin, since retrospective application requires both a prior provisional levy and a designated authority's final finding of injury.

STPI units: prior approval and documentation required for DTA software sales; assessment provisional until STPI certification.
STPI units must obtain STPI approval and Customs permission for DTA software sales, providing buyer identity, value and mode of sale; present AR-I and invoice to Customs at sale for assessment and submit the same invoice to the Director, STPI for valuation/certification within two days. Assessment remains provisional until STPI certification. Units must maintain a detailed DTA sale account and obtain any other required agency permissions in advance and inform Customs.

Customs refunds: direct refund claims barred where the original assessment was not challenged and has become final.
Refunds arising from customs assessments are not maintainable by a direct refund application where the assessee failed to challenge the original assessment order and that order has become final; officers are directed to follow the judicial ratio treating unchallenged assessments as barring later refund claims and to process refund matters accordingly.

Testing coordination for imported textiles: require composition testing at the textiles committee when hazardous dye tests are conducted.
Where consignments are sent for hazardous dye testing at the Textiles Committee laboratory, the composition test (texturised/non-texturised) must also be carried out at the Textiles Committee; if azo dye testing is not required under DGFT guidance, composition testing may be performed at the Central Revenue Control Laboratory (CRCL). The DGFT framework also provides for reduced sampling, prioritisation of consignments from jurisdictions without dye prohibitions, and limited validity of test reports for identical imports.

Classification of provisional assessment deposits now recorded under Customs receipt head rather than civil deposits.
Deposits made by assessees in provisional assessment cases shall be classified directly under the 0037-Customs final receipt head instead of 8443-Civil Deposits-Rev. Deposits; existing balances are to be reconciled with the CAO and transferred accordingly.

Provisional assessment: allow release of disputed consignments pending classification, subject to security to protect revenue.
Consignments with classification disputes should ordinarily be released by resort to provisional assessment or provisional release unless import is prohibited or prosecution is contemplated; samples may be drawn and adequate bank guarantees or security obtained to protect revenue, fines and penalties. If detention is necessary, the consignment should be transferred to a Customs warehouse rather than held in general custody.

Public Notice scheduling: issuance on set Mondays, with immediate release for Board directives or revenue-sensitive matters.
Public Notices from Customs field formations are to be issued on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month, with issuance moved to the next working day if a designated Monday is a holiday. Notices that are based on Board circulars, instructions or notifications, or whose delay would cause revenue loss or clearance delays, must be issued immediately; field formations must inform concerned parties and ensure strict compliance.

Piecemeal queries on import/export declarations should be avoided; EDI administrators must control and prevent frivolous queries.
Officers assessing Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills should avoid raising piecemeal queries that delay assessment and clearance; queries should be consolidated where practicable. In EDI-enabled operations, Systems Managers/Administrators must monitor and control the number and nature of queries to prevent frivolous or unnecessary requests, and the Board's instructions are to be communicated to all concerned.

Misuse of DEPB Scheme uncovered: recycling of exported-imported watches to claim illicit export benefits, officers alerted.
Misuse of the DEPB Scheme was effected by recycling India-made watches: exporters overvalued outbound consignments to a foreign buyer and subsequently re-imported identical watches declared at a much lower unit value and false origin to repeatedly claim DEPB export credits. Evidence shows large volumes and significant alleged export-benefit claims, with possible hawala-linked remittances; customs field officers are instructed to note the modus operandi, prevent recurrence and assist ongoing investigations.

Job-work scope clarified: use of indigenous materials does not negate customs exemption for imported inputs in export production.
The Customs exemption for imported materials used in execution of export orders under Notification No. 32/97-Cus applies to jobbing even when indigenous materials are used; incorporation of local content does not by itself remove the activity from job-work, and field formations should take a broad but precautionary approach guided by the Supreme Court's exposition of job-work and the Exim Policy.

Classification of CPU cooler fan: treated as fan, not computer part, affecting tariff treatment and pending assessments.
The Board directs that a CPU cooler fan with heat sink is classifiable as an other fan because its principal function is cooling the CPU area and the heat sink only enhances that cooling; consequently, pending assessments should be finalized on that basis and concessional benefits for computer parts do not apply.

Administrative control over EOU units determines which Commissioner handles investigations, show cause notices and adjudication.
Administrative jurisdiction for investigation, issuance of show cause notices and adjudication in cases of short-levy or evasion of Customs or Central Excise duties for 100% EOUs, EHTP, STP and SEZ units lies with the Commissioner who has administrative control over the unit. Procurement certificates and CT-3s are issued under a general B-17 Bond executed before the officer having jurisdiction over the unit, which may be invoked for recovery. Port/airport Assistant Commissioners must inform the unit in-charge when re-warehousing certificates are not received to enable demand notices.

Advance Import General Manifest filing: commencement deferred; software changes and stakeholder training required before implementation.
Advance Import General Manifest (IGM) filing under the Customs Act is to be implemented pursuant to prior Board instructions, with the commencement of the new IGM regime deferred to a later notified date. The department's systems unit must make software changes, prepare procedural guidance, and ensure ICES systems managers provide stakeholder training before implementation.

Depreciation on capital goods for export-oriented units: proportional straight-line allowance until duty payment required, regardless of full-year accounting.
Depreciation for capital goods supplied to EOUs, EHTP and STP units is allowable from commercial production (or from date put to use) until payment of duty, calculated by the straight line method and prorated for part years or months; the allowance may be granted up to full value and formations must apply this uniformly and publicize the clarification.

Post-audit of brand rate fixation: DGEP to receive related documents for post-audit alongside internal audit.
The Directorate General of Export Promotion has been assigned post-audit functions for fixation of brand rates; one set of documents relating to fixation of brand rates must be provided to that directorate for post-audit in addition to the Internal Audit Department of the Central Excise field formations, and standing orders should be issued to staff to that effect.

Mill test certificate requirement: prime steel consignments accepted only with manufacturer-issued certification confirming quality and markings.
Consignments of H.R./C.R. steel sheets, coils, plates and tin plate declared as prime or stock lot must be supported by a manufacturer-issued mill test certificate certifying standard, heat number, quality, chemical composition, mechanical properties and related particulars for individual coils/plates/packages; dock officers must compare certificate details with goods markings and may treat consignments as defective if the certificate is not produced, affecting acceptance of the prime/stock lot claim and clearance.

Importability of capital goods under DFCEC Scheme now permitted for service providers, enabled by recent DGFT and customs notifications.
Import of capital goods necessary for rendering services by eligible service providers is permitted under the DFCEC Scheme. A government notification and customs amendment operationalise authorisation for importation of any capital goods required for service delivery under the Scheme, and the Circular expressly supersedes earlier restrictive guidance disallowing such imports.

Admissibility of DEPB benefits remains suspended for supplies from DTA units to SEZ units until SEZ chapter brought into operation.
Admissibility of export credit under the DEPB Scheme for supplies by DTA units to SEZ units is suspended until Chapter XA of the Customs Act is brought into operation; prior administrative extensions lack legal effect, and where benefits were granted earlier recovery action must be initiated while customs formations issue public and standing notices for guidance.