IGST refund denials: exporters must align drawback claims with applicable rates to promptly secure refund consideration.
Denial of IGST refunds is linked to exporters claiming incorrect drawback rates or where higher and lower rates are identical; claims will be examined and disposed of per the legal provisions in Circular No. 37/2018 governing Drawback Claims, and field formations are directed to notify stakeholders to ensure compliance with applicable drawback rates.

IGST refund denial where exporters claimed higher drawback preserves drawback election and prevents subsequent refund claims.
Exporters who elected composite/all-industry drawback rates by declaring suffixes and making DBK002/DBK003 declarations on the shipping bill thereby relinquished any claim to IGST refund or ITC for the exported product; the shipping bill is treated as the operative drawback claim and, once higher drawback was claimed, IGST refund cannot subsequently be allowed.

Compulsory product registration: importers must register notified electronic goods with BIS before import or present MeitY exemption.
Importers must ensure notified electronic and IT goods conform to Indian Standards and are registered with BIS before import or have MeitY exemption; registration follows product testing at BIS-recognized labs and permits use of the BIS Standard Mark on product and packaging (stickers prohibited). Repaired, refurbished and second-hand notified items require registration or prior MeitY permission and may be detained if unregistered. Customs officers must verify BIS certificate coverage, proper Standard Mark display, upload of BIS certificates to e-sanchit, and refuse clearance of non-complying goods, referring issues to MeitY.

IGST refund entitlement denied where exporter claimed higher drawback and declared relinquishment; claim cannot be reopened.
Exporters who, between 1.7.2017 and 30.9.2017, claimed composite drawback by using drawback serials suffixed A or C and making the required shipping bill declarations (including DBK002/DBK003 or prior manual declarations) thereby relinquished any IGST/ITC refund claim; where such declarations were made, IGST refund cannot subsequently be allowed and the issue will not be reopened.

Customs duty on cruise consumption: vessels must declare and pay duty for consumed stores, with limited exceptions for mere passage.
Cruise vessels must pay Customs duty on liquor and other stores consumed aboard, based on self-assessment and vessel declarations. Domestic passengers on domestic sectors cannot buy duty-free goods on board; any such purchases will attract duty payable at the next port. International passengers retain baggage allowance under the Baggage Rule, 2016. The definition of Indian Customs waters is extended to the Exclusive Economic Zone, but dutiability arises only when a vessel calls at a port or transits territorial waters or stays in Indian waters; mere passage without calling does not attract duty.

Compulsory registration requirement: importers must verify BIS registration and valid IMEI/ESN/MEID before clearance.
Imported notified electronics must bear the Standard Mark and a unique BIS registration matching product, brand, model, manufacturer and manufacturing location verifiable on www.crsbis.in; GSM handsets without valid IMEI or with all-zero IMEI and CDMA phones without valid ESN/MEID or with all-zero ESN/MEID are prohibited, and Customs and trade participants must increase vigilance to ensure compliance with the CRO and mobile import policy.

Electronic sealing requirement: mandatory RFID sealing for goods moved under warehousing bond extended; stakeholders must comply and report issues.
Electronic sealing is mandated for movement of goods under customs warehousing bond, requiring RFID sealing for consignments deposited in or removed from Customs bonded warehouses; the mandatory implementation date has been extended by Board circular and stakeholders are instructed to comply strictly and report any difficulties in implementation to the issuing office.

RFID one time locks mandated for bonded warehouse movements, with electronic trip reports and ISO compliant vendor and reader requirements.
Importers, exporters, owners and licencees must use RFID anti tamper one time locks (RFID OTL) instead of mechanical one time locks for movement of goods into, out of, and between bonded warehouses; vendors listed on the CBIC portal must supply ISO compliant RFID OTLs, capture TID and warehouse linkage at sale, and provide readers/data upload capability. The circular prescribes specific data elements to be captured for each movement scenario, requires licencees to procure readers, establishes that scanned RFID "trip reports" serve as arrival acknowledgements, mandates examination on tamper detection, and allows discretionary exemptions by the Principal Commissioner/Commissioner.

e-SANCHIT document upload: PGAs will furnish LPCOs electronically and beneficiaries must register on ICEGATE for access.
e-SANCHIT under SWIFT will centralise electronic submission of regulatory documents and transition upload responsibility to Participating Government Agencies, which will upload Licences, Permits, Certificates and Other Authorizations and generate a unique IRN. Beneficiaries will be notified via their ICEGATE-registered email and a viewing facility will be provided. Following a pilot with three PGAs and subsequent rollout, beneficiaries will not be permitted to upload PGA-issued documents themselves and are directed to register on ICEGATE per the published procedure.

Customs duty on cruise ship consumption: duty payable based on vessel self assessment; domestic passengers cannot buy duty free onboard.
Cruise vessels must pay customs duty on consumption of stores including alcohol based on the vessel's self assessment and declaration; Customs may recover appropriate duty. No routine Customs escort will accompany domestic legs, though the Chief Commissioner may deploy officers when necessary. Domestic passengers on domestic sectors cannot buy duty free goods onboard and will pay duty on such purchases at the next port. International passengers retain baggage allowances under the Baggage Rules, 2016. Calling at an Indian port, transit through territorial waters, or staying at port renders the vessel liable for duty; mere passage without calling does not.

Classification of e-seals as base-metal seals directs customs to assess them under the seals tariff item.
RFID e-seals are functionally seals with an electronic add-on that evidences tampering; accordingly they are to be classified under Heading 8309 as seals and other packing accessories of base metal, and customs assessments must follow that tariff treatment.

Customs Broker Licence examination scheduled; applicants must meet eligibility, pass written and oral exams, and submit complete applications on time.
Examination for grant of a Customs Broker Licence under Regulation 6 will be conducted by the Commissionerate. Applicants must meet Regulation 5 eligibility criteria-citizenship, sound mind, non-insolvency, Aadhar and PAN, no specified penalties or criminal convictions, requisite educational/professional qualifications or equivalent customs experience, and financial viability evidenced by bank certification or acceptable asset proof. The Commissioner may verify eligibility; written and oral examinations both must be passed, with a capped number of attempts. Applications in prescribed Form A with required documents and attested photo must be complete and timely or will be rejected.

Reward guidelines expanded to include GST recoveries and permit rewards to eligible non-CBIC officers on par with CBIC.
Amendments expand the reward framework to include recovery of dues under CGST and IGST for calculating reward amounts; permit officers of other Departments/Agencies who assist in relevant investigations to be eligible for rewards if they hold rank equivalent to or lower than Additional Commissioner of Customs & Central Excise; revise Apex Reward Committee composition for high-value informer rewards to include Principal DGRI/DGGSTI and any two Principal Chief Commissioners/Chief Commissioners; update agency nomenclature; and make the amendments applicable to pending cases and advance reward recommendations.

Mandatory registration on ICEGATE for e-SANCHIT PGA uploads; beneficiaries must register to receive IRN notifications.
e-SANCHIT under SWIFT requires PGAs to upload licences, permits, certificates and other authorisations (LPCOs) to the system; a unique Image Reference Number (IRN) will be generated and communicated to the beneficiary via the email id registered with ICEGATE, and beneficiaries must register on ICEGATE to receive notifications and access PGA-uploaded documents; after PGA implementation beneficiaries cannot upload those documents themselves.

Waiver of penalty for late bill of entry filings after e-Sanchit outage, allowing affected importers to file without late charge.
Waiver of penalty for late filing of Bills of Entry caused by non-functioning of the electronic submission module: for consignments whose Import General Manifest was filed immediately prior to the outage and whose Bills of Entry were due during the outage window, no late-presentation charge will be levied; affected parties should report any difficulties to the designated customs official.

Customs duty on cruise consumption: vessels must declare and pay duty; domestic passengers cannot buy duty-free aboard.
Cruise vessels must pay customs duty on consumed stores, including alcohol, based on vessel self-assessment and declaration; domestic passengers on domestic sectors cannot purchase duty-free goods aboard and must pay duty on any on-board purchases upon disembarkation. Chief Commissioners may authorize escorts when necessary despite a general policy of no escort on domestic legs. The term Indian Customs waters is extended to the Exclusive Economic Zone, but Section 12 governs dutiability; calling at an Indian port or consuming stores during territorial transit or port stay creates liability, while mere passage without calling does not.

Anti profiteering requirement: businesses must pass input tax credit benefits to customers; complaints may be filed for enforcement.
Anti profiteering obligations require CST/GST taxpayers to transfer the benefit of reduced tax burden or available input tax credit to purchasers by means of a commensurate reduction in prices. Noncompliance may attract penalties and administrative sanction including cancellation of registration. Buyers are directed to verify supplier invoices and to file written complaints with copies of invoices to specified Commissionerate officers for investigation and enforcement.

eSANCHIT integration requires PGA-uploaded authorizations with IRN notifications to beneficiaries via ICEGATE registration.
Implementation of mandatory electronic submission through eSANCHIT requires PGAs to upload licences, permits, certificates and other authorizations and generates a unique Image Reference Number (IRN) communicated to beneficiaries using the email registered on ICEGATE; beneficiaries must register on ICEGATE and, once PGA uploads are in place, will not be permitted to upload those PGA-originated documents themselves.

e-SANCHIT integration: beneficiaries must register on ICEGATE to receive PGA-uploaded LPCOs for faceless paperless clearances.
Customs has implemented e-SANCHIT under SWIFT to enable PGAs to upload LPCOs directly, generating a unique IRN communicated via the beneficiary's ICEGATE-registered email. Importers were mandated to upload regulatory documents electronically; export extension is piloted. After PGA rollout beneficiaries must register on ICEGATE to receive PGA-uploaded documents and will be precluded from uploading those LPCOs themselves. Guidance on ICEGATE registration is available on the ICEGATE website and operational issues may be reported to the Deputy Commissioner (EDI) at the Custom House, Visakhapatnam.

Registration requirement for authorised carriers mandates pre-effective compliance with amended sea cargo manifest and transhipment regulations.
The amendment brings the Sea Cargo Manifest and Transhipment Regulations into force on the notified commencement date and requires authorised carriers filing Arrival/Departure Manifests to register under the amended Regulations prior to that date; all stakeholders must comply with the new procedural and reporting requirements and report implementation difficulties to the Commissioner.