Shore tank receipt principle directs customs duty be levied on cargo measured in shore tanks, not on ship ullage reports.
Assessment of imported bulk liquid cargo for customs duty shall be based on shore tank receipt (dip measurement in shore tanks into which cargo is pumped) where such custodial shore measurement exists; provisional assessments are to be finalized accordingly. Where cargo is not discharged into shore tanks and is cleared directly under a white Bill of Entry, assessment may continue on the basis of the ship's ullage survey. Master/Agent penal liability for shortages remains determined by comparing ship discharge ullage with load-port ullage or Bill of Lading quantity.

Assessment of gold and silver in SEZs at effective duty rate, with tariff-rate penalties for willful evasion.
Gem and jewellery units in SEZs shall have gold and silver assessed at the effective rate of duty as per notification No.80/97-Cus instead of the tariff rate, with bond values calculated accordingly. In cases of clandestine removal, collusive evasion, or willful misstatement or suppression of facts, fines and penalties will be imposed so as to equal duty at the tariff rate; a Public Notice is to be issued and implementation difficulties reported to the Board.

Import of pets allowed with health certificate and quarantine examination; no import licence or sanitary permit required for two pets.
Import of dogs and cats as baggage is allowed up to two per passenger without import licences or sanitary permits if passengers produce an official health certificate from the country of origin and the animals are examined by the Quarantine Officer; certificates must confirm absence of specified diseases and show rabies vaccination details.

Duty-free removal of production scrap for job-work permits conversion and return under revised EOU subcontracting rules.
EOUs are permitted to remove brass borings and production scrap into the Domestic Tariff Area for job work conversion into ingots/bars and return to the supplying EOU without payment of duty, subject to the procedural safeguards prescribed in the subsequent procedural circular and the subcontracting permissions under the prevailing export/import policy.

Duty-free import eligibility for leather purses and wallets affirmed under the 1% scheme, subject to notification conditions.
Purses and wallets made of leather are treated as included within "handbags and similar containers all made of leather" under condition 21A of Sr. No. 167A of Customs Notification No. 21/2002 Cus.; embellishments specified at Sr. No. 167A used in their manufacture are eligible for duty free import under the 1% scheme provided the notification's conditions are met, and a Public Notice and standing order are to be issued for implementation.

Transfer of unutilized duty-free goods: may be sold in DTA on duty payment or transferred as import to other units.
The Exim Policy provision permits an EOU/EPZ/STP/EHTP unit unable, for valid reasons, to utilise duty free imported or DTA procured goods to sell them in the domestic tariff area on payment of applicable duties or to transfer/sell them to another such unit; such transfers must be treated as imports by the recipient and endorsed on all transfer documents, and the disposal is to be exceptional with valid reasons recorded.

Transhipment permit issuance on Saturdays permitted to allow Saturday filings and require ports to publish implementation notices.
Issuance and filing of Transhipment Permit at gateway ports are authorised on Saturdays to enable receipt of transhipment applications and issuance of permits on that day; Customs Houses must implement the change, issue a Public Notice and Standing Order to inform stakeholders, and report any implementation difficulties to the Board.

Customs procedure for inland waterway exports: Haldia inspects and seals cargo, Namkhana verifies seal and issues Let Export Order.
Export shipments to Bangladesh may be loaded and examined at a designated storage and berth within Haldia Dock Complex, where Customs Officers will examine, load and seal cargo; exporters must file documents at LCS Namkhana, and the LCS will verify the Haldia seal and complete processing, including issuing the Let Export Order.

Special entitlement of duty free import: SEZ manufacturing units may clear specified goods to DTA without payment of duty.
Manufacturing units in SEZs may clear manufactured goods into the Domestic Tariff Area against the special entitlement of duty free import of goods under paragraph 7.8(c)(iv) of the Exim Policy without payment of duty, subject only to eligibility for the goods specified in the controlling customs notification and compliance with the notification's conditions.

Adjudication powers expanded for Additional and Joint Commissioners; higher thresholds allow more frontline officers to decide show cause notices.
Adjudication powers of Additional and Joint Commissioners of Customs are increased: in collusion, wilful misstatement or suppression cases Additional Commissioners may decide show cause notices up to an enhanced duty threshold and Joint Commissioners up to a raised lower threshold. For cases where the extended period is not invoked, the value limit (value of goods) for adjudication by both Additional and Joint Commissioners has been raised to a higher ceiling. Public Notices or Standing Orders are to be issued and implementation difficulties reported to the Board.

Customs valuation inclusion of royalties: royalty and license payments must be added to import value so duty is assessed accordingly.
Royalties and license fees required to be paid in connection with imported cinematographic films must be added to the price actually paid or payable under the Customs Valuation Rules, 1988, where such payments are not already included, so that Customs duty is levied on the intrinsic value of the films inclusive of related royalty/license payments; the earlier notification limiting duty to the cost of the print plus freight and insurance has been rescinded, and assessing officers are to apply this valuation treatment.

Non-speaking appellate order not treated as binding precedent; reasoned judgments required for precedential effect.
A supreme appellate order dismissing an appeal in limine in GMMCO is a non-speaking order and, per the Law Ministry's view citing prior authorities, a decision without reasons does not constitute a ratio decidendi and therefore should not be given binding effect as precedent; the Department of Revenue directed circulation of this opinion to officers for information and action.

Drawback rate revision: selected Drawback Table entries amended to update descriptions, rates, caps and conditions effective immediately.
Revision of duty drawback entries in the All Industry Drawback Table amends descriptions, rates, caps and conditions for select entries following industry representations; a subsequent notification implements these amendments and requires updating the printed Drawback Table and the Drawback Automation Tool (DAT) drive to reflect the changes effective as notified.

Custodian bond requirement revised to rest on average duty with supporting security; government undertakings exempted from deposit.
Custodians must execute a bond equal to the average duty on goods likely to be stored for the short-term storage period, supported by a bank guarantee, Government bond, or cash deposit equal to a prescribed proportion of that average duty; Central and State Government undertakings are exempt from the requirement to furnish the supporting bank guarantee or cash deposit. Existing bonds and guarantees may be revised and the change should be notified by public notice or standing order, with implementation difficulties reported to the Board.

High seas sale valuation: use last buyer's contract price for customs assessment when it exceeds declared CIF plus standard charges.
Valuation for high seas sales treats the last buyer as the importer; a standard 2% addition to CIF is generally applied as high seas sale charges but documented actual charges exceeding 2% must be added, and if the actual high seas sale contract price is known and exceeds CIF plus those charges the actual contract price shall be taken as the value for duty assessment.

Transaction value acceptance for identical auto components allows dual pricing, subject to scrutiny for related party transfer pricing.
Acceptance of transaction value allows dual prices for OE and spare auto components when each price represents the bona fide transaction value; the department must prove price is not the sole consideration to reject declared value, and significant differentials in related party imports should prompt transfer pricing and intrinsic value scrutiny.

Classification of palm stearin requires chemical distinction between triglyceride fractions and free fatty acids for correct tariff assignment.
Palm stearin as a fraction of palm oil composed essentially of triglycerides (glycerides/esters of fatty acids) should be classified as a vegetable fat/oil fraction, whereas stearine/stearic acid products that are free or mixed monocarboxylic fatty acids are classifiable as industrial fatty acids. Triglycerides and free fatty acids are chemically distinguishable by tests such as the ester value. Goods declared as "palm stearin" or "crude palm stearin" may be chemically examined to verify their nature before tariff classification.

Stevedoring charges excluded from assessable import value as they are covered by loading/unloading allowance under customs valuation rules.
Stevedoring charges, representing unloading onto land, must not be included separately in the assessable value of imports because they are covered by the standard loading/unloading and handling allowance under the customs valuation framework; field formations should finalise provisional assessments and report implementation difficulties to the Board.

Logging of DEEC books: Customs to complete pending entries using triplicate shipping bill and bank realisation certificate.
Logging of DEEC books must be completed expeditiously by Customs based on the original triplicate copy of the DEEC shipping bill and the bank realisation certificate; where originals are unavailable Customs shall issue duplicate original triplicate shipping bills from available records, and exporter declarations or earlier test reports may be accepted when current test reports are missing.

Classification of metal oxide varistors as resistors under the customs tariff confirmed; not classed as surge arrester parts.
Metal oxide varistors imported for use in surge arresters are classifiable under the Customs Tariff heading for resistors rather than as parts of surge arresters; the Board, following the applicable section note and WCO advice under the General Interpretative Rules, clarified that surge arrester-specific headings do not apply to these varistors and invited reports of any difficulty in applying the guidance.