Clearance of in-transit motor vehicles on their own power allowed with inspection and insurance or bank guarantee conditions.
Amendment allows in-transit motor vehicles destined for Nepal to move on their own power provided Indian Customs examine them to confirm conformity with the Customs Transit Declaration, import licences and letters of credit; vehicles are treated as sensitive goods and must be covered by an insurance policy or bank guarantee for the difference between market and c.i.f. value, assigned to and payable to the Commissioner of Customs if goods do not reach Nepal, and movement is permitted only through specified Land Customs Stations with consequential changes to permitted transit conveyances.

Authorised Officer appointment under food safety law enables imported food clearance and compliance at Kandla Port.
Pursuant to the Food Safety and Standards Act and the CEO's order, Shri B.H. Waghela (Superintendent), Customs Kandla Commissionerate, is notified as the Authorised Officer for Kandla Port with immediate effect and until further orders to oversee imported food clearance; the notice provides the officer's contact details for operational coordination and compliance.

Valuation of second-hand machinery: importer must obtain certified Chartered Engineer valuation; customs may re-determine declared value.
Imported second-hand machinery must be accompanied by an independent Chartered Engineer or equivalent certificate detailing new-machine price at manufacture year, current CIF of a new machine, manufacture year, supplier sale price, present condition, reconditioning/repair works and costs, and expected residual life. Where no load-port certificate exists, a certificate from a Ministry-recognized Chartered Engineer/Inspection and Certification Agency listed in FTP Appendix 5 or the empanelled local agencies is acceptable. Local inspections must be supervised and countersigned by an Import Shed Appraising Officer/Superintendent; only such attested certificates will be accepted, and the Assessing Officer will evaluate documents and NIDB data to accept or re-determine value under Rule 12 of the Customs Valuation Rules, 2007.

Import controls on metallic scrap require certified inspection and prescribed security measures before customs clearance.
Import of metallic waste and scrap at JNCH requires a Pre Shipment Inspection Certificate in Appendix 2H format from agencies listed in Appendix 2G and all documents mandated by Para 2.54 of the HBP 2015 20; for specified processed scrap at JNPT until its Radiological Detection Facility is operational, importers must instead obtain a Post Shipment Inspection Certificate, submit DGFT Public Notice documents, furnish a one time bank guarantee in the prescribed format, ensure 100% container scanning proof before out of charge, and face adjudication, re export and enforcement actions for false declarations.

Transfers and postings in senior Customs and Central Excise grades ordered, with mandatory joining and compliance reporting requirements.
Transfers and postings in the grades of Principal Commissioner and Principal Additional Director General of Customs & Central Excise are ordered with immediate effect, listing officers, new postings and additional charges; a subset of officers is retained until the Annual General Transfer exercise. Officers must join by the prescribed date and no pre-joining representations will be entertained; Chief Commissioners/Directors General must report joining compliance to the Board with a copy to ADG (HRM-II), DG HRD, and all prior representations stand disposed of.

Extra Duty Deposit payment now mandatory online through ICES; manual payments will not be accepted after implementation.
Integration of an online Extra Duty Deposit (EDD) payment module in ICES 1.5 mandates that the Appraising Officer generate an invoice level EDD challan, forward particulars to the bank for e payment, and block out of charge until the EDD is remitted; incorrect unpaid challans may be deleted and regenerated by the Appraiser, and manual EDD payments will not be accepted after implementation.

SEZ cargo electronic integration enables automated linking of shipping and customs filings, triggering transshipment approvals and release procedures.
Integration requires steamer agents to mark IGMs with the correct SEZ code and TP cargo nature so ICES forwards particulars to SEZ online. Importers/CBs will file Bills of Entry in SEZ online, which tags IGM data and sends goods-removal messages and authorised representative details to ICES; the Docks Section verifies particulars, ICES generates a transshipment approval and an online reference and Approval Order in triplicate, and those references govern release and custody transfer.

Authorized Economic Operator certificate validity extended to five years, subject to annual post certification review and DGICCE extension.
Validity of Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) certificates is normally extended to five years, replacing the prior three year term, while maintaining annual post certification review by the AEO Programme Manager; further extension may be granted by the DGICCE and the modification amends para 15.5 of the earlier Board Circular, eliminating the routine need for fresh applications and full re verification at the three year mark.

CVD exemption clarified: manufacturer must satisfy non availment condition, preserving domestic concessional excise treatment.
The Board amended relevant notifications to clarify that the non availment condition for excise duty exemption must be met by the manufacturer (not the importer), and added explanations that "appropriate duty" includes nil or concessional duty or tax whether or not read with existing exemption notifications; domestically manufactured goods covered by these entries therefore continue to be exempt or subject to concessional excise treatment as before the amendments.

Import of second hand electronics requires prior environmental permission or a trade licence; non compliance triggers customs penalties.
Imports of second hand and used electrical and electronic assemblies are regulated as hazardous waste and allowed only with prior environmental permission or a requisite trade licence; this requirement applies to all modes of importation, including courier and personal imports. Non compliance attracts action and penalties under the Customs Act, and authorised couriers must advise clients on compliance and report breaches to customs authorities.

SEZ online integrates with ICES 1.5 for electronic IGM, Bills of Entry, transshipment approvals and re-warehousing messaging.
Pilot integration of SEZ online with ICES 1.5 at Bengaluru requires IGMs to include the correct SEZ code and "TI" designation so ICES can transmit particulars to SEZ online for filing Bills of Entry; SEZ online will tag IGMs, send removal and re-warehousing messages via ICEGATE, and ICES will generate transshipment approvals and closure of IGM lines (subject to physical verification and a 45-day re-warehousing window). Manual endorsement, registers and physical verification procedures continue concurrently during the pilot, and export Shipping Bills, LEO and EGM data are likewise exchanged in real time.

Import controls on secondhand electronics now require environmental permission or trade licence; non-compliance risks customs penalties.
Secondhand and used electrical and electronic assemblies are treated as hazardous waste and may be imported only with prior environmental permission or a required trade licence. This restriction applies regardless of import mode, including courier shipments and personal imports; non-compliance exposes consignments and importers to customs enforcement and penal action. Authorised couriers must advise clients about compliance and report breaches to customs authorities.

Centralized Customs Cargo Service Provider management created to issue statutory notifications and monitor CCSP compliance.
Creation of a Centralized Customs Cargo Service Providers (CCSP) Management Cell at Custom House, Ahmedabad to issue notifications under section 8 (landing places/jetties/ICDs/CFSs/ports) and section 45 (appointment of Custodians and CCSPs) of the Customs Act, and to monitor CCSP compliance with the Handling of Cargo in Customs Area Regulations, 2009; Cell located at Room No. 308 under the Assistant/Deputy Commissioner, CCSP Cell, with contact details provided.

Renaming of DG Inspections: establishes Directorate General of Performance Management with defined inspection and performance-monitoring functions.
Renaming of the Directorate General of Inspection (Customs & Central Excise) to Directorate General of Performance Management (Customs, Central Excise & Service Tax) is ordered with immediate effect. The Directorate's charter includes studying and inspecting field formations nationwide, recommending procedural corrections and efficiency improvements, compiling and monitoring monthly performance reports, processing rebate claims under Board notifications or treaties, managing Official Language policy implementation, implementing the AEO programme, conducting Customs House Agents examinations, supervising manuals and RFD work, and handling tax arrear recovery.

Bank Guarantee renewal and closure must be recorded in EDI and notified to the Bank Guarantee Cell for reconciliation and reporting.
Groups must record all bank guarantee renewals and closures in the EDI system and inform the Bank Guarantee Cell; renewals are made by amending expiry dates in EDI and closures by closing the bond and guarantee entry. The Bank Guarantee Cell must generate the monthly list of expiring guarantees from EDI, reconcile it with any PC-maintained data to add missing entries, and circulate the reconciled report to Groups. Groups must continue to submit the monthly action report on expiring guarantees as required by standing order procedures.

Double-payment of Customs Duty requires a refund claim with bank proof and system verification under statutory refund procedure.
Excess electronic payments of Customs Duty that have been transferred to the government account are treated as deposits refundable through the statutory refund process; banks can re credit only before transfer. Importers/CHAs must apply to the Deputy/Asst. Commissioner (Refund), Kandla, submitting bank confirmation of debit and transfer, cyber receipt, and the bank's attested scroll with bill of entry and challan. The officer will verify via PAO/e PAO records, ICEGATE challan enquiry, ICES system data and bank confirmation before sanctioning the refund.

Manual registration of duty credit scrips required while electronic module is unavailable, with verification and register-entry steps.
Procedure prescribes steps for manual registration of duty credit scrips under MEIS and SEIS while the EDI module is non operational: present original scrips with copies and BRCs; Licence Section to check Alert Register and endorse No Alert; obtain DGFT verification of genuineness by download or fax; register only after genuineness and No Alert confirmation; enter licence particulars in Alphabetical Register and record debits/credits based on Bills of Entry, with Audit Clerk endorsement of debit sheets and licence register.

Direct Port Delivery: do not declare CFS in IGM to avoid bond debit and obtain Out of Charge from Port CFS.
DPD consignments must not list any CFS in the IGM; declaring a CFS causes debiting of the CFS bond and necessitates presenting the container to that CFS for Out of Charge. Out of Charge for DPD should be obtained from the Port CFS (Q10), except where the Additional Commissioner (System Manager) grants special permission to use an alternate CFS, in which case that CFS must be declared in the IGM and used for delivery.

Integration of SEZ online with Customs EDI enables real time data exchange for automated import/export clearance and transshipment.
Integration of SEZ Online with Customs EDI (ICES) implements real time IGM data sharing and automatic integration of IGM with SEZ Bills of Entry; assessed B/Es are transmitted to ICES with authorized representative details. Electronic transshipment requires verification of representative identity and endorsed B/L, generation of a Transshipment Number, and Preventive Officer verification of container/seal/marks prior to release; ICES and SEZ Online will exchange release, goods receipt, and warehousing messages, after which ICES will close relevant IGM lines.

Carpet export verification requires serial numbering and approval of market inquiries before export benefits are sanctioned.
Carpet exporters must serially number each bale and each carpet within the bale to enable examination and sample drawal. Where a provisional Let Export Order is issued and samples are sent for market inquiry, customs or foreign trade export benefits cannot be sanctioned until the inquiry report is approved in writing by a Joint Commissioner, Additional Commissioner, or higher-ranking customs officer. These controls address misdeclaration, inflated export values, and excess drawback claims.