Duty free entitlement permits hotels duty free import of specified equipment and consumables, excluding agricultural and dairy products.
The circular corrects paragraph headings to read Duty Free Entitlement Credit Certificate to Service Provider and Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) Scheme, and revises paragraph 2.2 to state that hotels are entitled to duty free import of spares, office equipment, furniture, professional equipment and consumables, excluding agricultural and dairy products, linked to their average foreign exchange earnings during the preceding three years.

Self-assessment customs clearance: importer/exporter declarations accepted by EDI with duty computed and subject to post-clearance audit.
The Accelerated Clearance Scheme (ACS) permits eligible importers and exporters to self-assess classification, claim exemptions and declare values with duty calculated by the EDI system and no routine physical examination; participation requires prior application, acceptance of post-clearance audit, record retention, and is subject to exclusions for specified goods and to risk-based physical checks or enforcement intelligence.

Exemption from SAD on DTA clearances by EOU/SEZ units permitted where VAT is applicable.
Consolidation effective 1-4-2003 replaces multiple notifications with a streamlined set aligning EOU/EHTP/STP/SEZ relief to the revised Exim Policy: central provisions cover duty free import/procurement, duty-free indigenous procurement, concessional DTA clearance and exemption from excise and additional duties; key changes include SAD exemption on DTA clearances (subject to VAT not being exempt), replacement of Export Performance by positive NFE, proportionate recovery of duty on NFE shortfall, permission for import/export by post and personal baggage, expanded duty-free items for contract farming and consumables, job-work allowance for gem and jewellery units, and rules allowing up to 100% depreciation for capital goods cleared to DTA.

Revised Customs Classification Codes require import DTRs to be transmitted using new codes to ensure consistent data processing.
Field formations must transmit all import DTRs-EDI, non EDI and manual-using the revised 8 digit Customs Classification Codes adopted from 1 February 2003; reporting with both old and new codes will disrupt centralised data processing and prevent timely adoption of the new classification. Issue instructions to all formations, send an immediate compliance report to the Board, and acknowledge receipt.

Concessional import duty eligibility extends to imports by third parties when goods are delivered to eligible institutions.
The Board clarifies that the concessional customs duty under Notification 51/96-Cus. must be allowed where goods are imported for delivery to an institution specified in the notification, even if the importer is not one of the entities listed, and directs issuance of a public notice to inform trade.

Subcontracting of production allowed in DTA with safeguards; permission subject to bona fide necessity and verification.
EOUs, STP/EHTP and SEZ units may send goods out for job-work and have them returned within ninety days; value-addition figures need not be supplied with the permission application. Subcontracting of production in DTA is allowed under the Exim Policy but requires satisfaction of bonafide necessity by the jurisdictional Assistant/Deputy Commissioner, verification of antecedents, application of existing conditions including bank guarantees, and may be denied where misuse or high risk is identified.

Duty free entitlement expansion permits verified import credits for exporters and service providers, enhancing export input access.
Amendments extend and clarify duty free import entitlements and export incentive schemes: Status holders and service providers may obtain Duty Free Entitlement Credit Certificates for specified imports subject to actual user conditions, Customs verification and use of notified ports; Advance Licences for annual requirements are reintroduced for status holders and Advance Licences for supplies to export processing zones are exempt from anti dumping and safeguard duties; DFRC benefits are extended to deemed exports with specified documentation; DEPB eligibility is granted for DTA supplies to SEZ units with Bills of Export and verification; EPCG obligations are recalibrated as a multiple of duty saved, allow used capital goods and expanded spares, and permit combined fulfilment by goods and services exports.

Duty drawback admissibility for supplies from DTA units to SEZs clarified, treating such supplies as physical exports eligible for drawback.
Goods moved from DTA to SEZ are to be treated as physical exports for drawback under the Customs Act and Drawback Rules; such supplies qualify for All Industry and Brand Rates. The SEZ is a Customs Station; goods must enter under a Bill of Export registered in the SEZ Customs formation and examined by Customs. Drawback is payable to the SEZ unit on the basis of a disclaimer certificate from the DTA unit and may be disbursed by cheque or direct credit to the SEZ unit's account.

Duty Drawback Rates revised: updated all-industry rates effective early April with sector-specific adjustments and SEZ eligibility.
Ministry revised the All Industry Rates of Duty Drawback effective 7 April 2003, updating the Drawback Table to reflect changes in customs and central excise duties, maintaining rates where input duties are unchanged, creating new entries for man-made fibre handloom made-ups, reducing rates for several textiles and carpets, adding clarifying notes for leather and bicycle entries, and treating supplies to Special Economic Zones as eligible for drawback with declaratory relief subject to field verification.

De-linking domestic sale of surplus power: domestic sales by EOUs in DTA not counted against DTA sale entitlement.
De-linking of domestic sale of surplus power by EOUs and export-zone units from domestic sale entitlements: sales of surplus captive-generated power in the DTA, permitted only after payment of duty foregone on inputs, are not treated as finished products and therefore shall not be counted against the unit's domestic sale entitlement under the Exim Policy. Development Commissioners must ensure captive plant capacity matches unit requirements and the earlier circular is modified accordingly.

Registration of foreign drug manufacturers and mandatory import licences now govern all drug imports, with inspections and shelf life conditions.
Foreign manufacturers or their authorised agents must obtain a registration certificate for manufacturing premises and for each drug before importation; registration requires specified documents, prescribed fees, a defined validity, reporting of manufacturing or testing changes, and permits Indian authority inspections with additional fees and testing charges. Registration may be suspended or cancelled for violations. Import licences are required for all drug types after completion of registration, subject to validity periods, prescribed licence fees, deletion of prior exemptions for actual users, and a requirement that imported drugs meet a minimum retained shelf life. Government hospitals have a separate, limited import provision for essential new drugs.

Introduction of new customs stamps by foreign authority conveyed for information and necessary administrative action by Indian customs.
Circular No.20/2003-Cus dated 27 March 2003 transmits a letter from the Embassy of India, Ashgabat (No.Ash/Misc/1/2003, dated 17 February 2003) regarding introduction of new customs stamps by the State Customs Service of Turkmenistan and directs Indian customs officials to take the information and necessary administrative action.

Exemption from Declarations for goods sent abroad for testing or repair, subject to re-import and repatriation requirements.
The amendment exempts goods sent outside India for testing or for repair and re-import from the GR-form declaration requirement, adds these categories to permitted exports, revises SOFTEX filing to triplicate submission at designated export points, and requires SEZ units to realize and repatriate the full export value within a specified period while empowering the Reserve Bank to extend the period or alter the unit's governance after opportunity to be heard.

Ad-hoc customs duty exemption: importers may apply to the port Commissioner who can recommend provisional clearance.
Importers seeking an ad-hoc exemption under Section 25(2) of the Customs Act may apply to the Commissioner of Customs at the port, who will forward the request to the Board with the documents listed in Annexure II and with comments on the applicant's charitable nature, activities and reputation; the Commissioner may also recommend provisional clearance and the guidelines must be publicised by public notice.

Temporary removal of duty free laptops and projectors requires inventory accounting, named authorization, notification to jurisdictional officers, and record retention.
Temporary removal of duty free laptops and video projection systems from EOU, EHTP, STP and SEZ units is permitted provided units account for the equipment in inventory, issue a named written authorization with full specifications and serial identifiers, endorse a copy to the jurisdictional Assistant/Deputy Commissioner of Customs/Central Excise with acknowledgement, and maintain records of such authorisations for inspection.

Customs valuation procedure: follow Rule 10A process before rejecting a declared invoice value, ensuring written grounds and hearing rights.
Customs officers must not enhance invoice value arbitrarily; rejection of a declared value requires satisfaction based on contemporaneous prices, written intimation to the importer specifying grounds for doubt, a reasonable opportunity to be heard, and issuance of a speaking, appealable order. Reliance on Directorate of Valuation data and Valuation Bulletins is emphasised.

Duty exemption for gifts under bilateral agreements - distribution certificates not required; compliance with agreement terms remains necessary.
Notification No. 148/94-Cus. exempts goods gifted free of cost under a bilateral government-to-government agreement and contains no condition requiring a distribution certificate for that entry; the distribution-certificate requirement applies only to a different entry. Authorities must not demand a distribution certificate for imports under the bilateral-gift entry, though imports must conform to the provisions of the bilateral agreement, and a public notice should be issued to inform trade.

Brand Rate decentralisation: jurisdictional Central Excise units now process and issue brand-rate drawback approvals locally.
The Ministry delegates fixation of Brand Rate of drawback under Rule 6 and Rule 7 to jurisdictional Central Excise Commissionerates; exporters must file under the Normal Scheme at the Commissionerate HQ, which will operate a dedicated Brand Rate Unit to acknowledge, verify (within 15 days), compute and approve Brand Rates (approval tiers based on drawback amount) and issue Brand Rate letters to exporters and the Customs port, with Brand Rates to be fixed within ten days of verification and subject to Value Addition and other Drawback Rules conditions.

Examination norms for EOU and SEZ exports clarified: EPCG/DEEC norms apply; sealed consignments follow stricter norms.
Exports by EOUs and SEZ units are to follow the examination norms applicable to EPCG/DEEC schemes (para 2.1(D)); if an export consignment is sealed by Customs or Central Excise, para 2.1(A) norms apply; para 2.1(B) norms for free shipping bills apply only to exports not under any export promotion scheme. Administrative notification by Public Notices/Standing Orders is required and implementation difficulties are to be reported to the Board.

Excise and service tax reform restructures excise bands, expands service tax scope, and tightens cenvat and valuation rules.
The Finance Bill, 2003 restructures excise into consolidated ad valorem bands while retaining special treatments for tobacco and petroleum, imposes new and revised excise and specific duties (including temporary NCCD levies), and reforms textiles taxation by removing exemptions, withdrawing deemed credit and extending Cenvat through to garments. Service tax is proposed to rise and its scope broadened to multiple services with tightened credit and payment rules. Valuation rules and depot/place of removal definitions are clarified, monthly duty payment and default interest regimes are reformed, and retrospective amendments limit diversion of input credit and require revision and recovery of past benefits.