Status of closed assessments cannot be altered; pending cases must be decided under the Section 37B order.
Board orders under Section 37B do not change the status of assessments already finally closed; they do not operate retrospectively to reopen finalised assessments. Where cases remain pending decision, those cases must be finalised in terms of the applicable Section 37B order, and the principle set out in the earlier clarification is equally applicable to subsequent like orders.

Baggage clearance: Transfer of residence under Rule 15 grants Chapter II allowances through Rule 16.
The Board finds that the benefits of Rules 4, 5 and 9 are subsumed within Rule 16 of the Baggage Rules, 1994; therefore, a person fulfilling the conditions for Transfer of Residence under Rule 15 is entitled to Chapter II allowances by operation of Rule 16 and need not invoke Chapter II separately.

Instruction numbering system for customs circulars centralises issuance and monitoring to ensure traceability and receipt by field offices.
Mandatory instruction numbering system requires all general customs circulars and communications to field formations to obtain a running serial number from Customs-III, which will centrally maintain a register recording the serial number, subject and Board file number. Numbers are assigned annually and appear on the top right corner; two copies of each circular must be supplied to Customs-III. The requirement covers specified customs sections and precludes issuance of general instructions to field formations without prior numbering from Customs-III.

Deduction of tax at source on rent not required for government payees; exempt authorities need a certificate.
Deduction of tax at source on rent payments is not required where the payee is the Government. For statutory authorities and local authorities whose income is exempt, tax need not be withheld on rent if the payer is satisfied of their exempt status on the basis of a certificate issued by the authority.

Duty Drawback Scheme compilation instructs circulation of a procedural manual to ensure uniform export drawback administration and compliance.
Compilation of Duty Drawback Scheme instructions consolidates administrative and procedural guidance issued by the Central Board of Excise & Customs into a manual for operational use by customs field formations and the exporting community, and directs its distribution to promote uniform administration and compliance with drawback processing requirements.

Manufacture classification: conversion of cast iron granules into powder treated as manufacture, making product dutiable.
Conversion of cast iron granules, turnings or borings into cast iron powder by magnetic separation, pulverisation and sieving changes the product's character and end use; under the Section and Chapter Notes distinguishing granules, powders and waste, that conversion amounts to manufacture and the resulting cast iron powder is dutiable.

Selective filing of appeals: limit departmental appeals, defer to CIT(A) factual findings unless perverse, and enforce review reporting.
Mandate selective filing of appeals: appeals to appellate tribunals must be filed only after careful scrutiny, complying with existing instructions on monetary limits and accepting CIT (Appeals) findings of fact unless perverse. CCITs/DGITs must perform monthly reviews of appeals on questions of fact and samples of others, submit consolidated statistical quarterly review results by the prescribed deadline, and thereafter furnish quarterly reports by the end of the following month.

Value threshold for customs adjudication requires Collector to handle cases when post investigation value exceeds declared value.
Cases of under valuation of imported goods must be adjudicated by the Collector of Customs when the value of the offending goods ascertained after investigation exceeds the statutory threshold, even if the value declared by the importer was below that threshold; Additional and Deputy Collectors must not adjudicate such matters.

Additional excise duty on exported TV sets is not chargeable; export consignments should not attract AED and prior guidance is withdrawn.
Levy of Additional Excise Duty on television sets was imposed in lieu of a domestic licence fee and does not extend to exported sets; demands for AED on exported TVs are unsustainable, pending assessments should be finalised accordingly, and prior circulars instructing levy on exports are withdrawn.

Import prohibition: cartographic inaccuracies depicting disputed territories bar entry under customs import restrictions.
The government directed customs to refuse entry to the specified encyclopedia edition because certain maps depict Jammu & Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh as "Occupied by India," and, in consultation with the Ministry of Home Affairs, instructed denial of import under the applicable customs notification with suitable action by authorities.

Concessional classification of three-wheeled auto rickshaws covers goods vehicles where they meet tariff heading criteria.
The concessional entry in Notification No. 162/86-C.E. extends to three-wheeled auto rickshaws and chassis that satisfy the description of being three-wheeled and that fall under any of the tariff headings listed at Sl. No. 5, including the heading for motor vehicles for the transport of goods; goods-carrying three-wheeled rickshaws such as delivery vans, pick-up vans and auto-trailers qualify where the tariff description is met, and field formations should settle pending disputes accordingly.

Garnetting and carding of duty paid textile waste do not constitute manufacture, so no further excise duty is leviable.
Garnetting restores twisted thread waste to a fluffy fibrous condition and carding aligns staple and waste fibres into web or sliver; both primarily disentangle and restore fibres. The Board clarifies that these processes applied to duty-paid waste of filaments and staple fibres do not amount to manufacture for central excise purposes and therefore do not attract further excise duty on the resulting material; pending assessments and disputes should be finalised on this basis.

Diplomatic baggage: Baggage Rules govern clearance; ad hoc duty exemptions may be considered for premature recalls.
Clearance of baggage of diplomatic officers and other central government officials on return to India is governed by the Baggage Rules, 1994; earlier 1951 instructions are withdrawn. In specified cases where the Baggage Rules do not provide appropriate duty relief, such as Transfer of Residence for officials recalled prematurely in the public interest, the Ministry of Finance will consider ad hoc exemptions on merits.

Import of firearm restricted; one firearm allowed on transfer of residence subject to baggage rule conditions and non disposal.
Import of firearms is prohibited under the Exim Policy, but a narrow administrative exception permits one firearm to persons transferring residence to India who satisfy baggage/instruction conditions; that firearm may not be disposed of during the holder's lifetime, and no additional firearm may be imported under other Baggage Rules provisions.

Duty-free import flexibility extended to writing instruments, subject to actual user condition and restricted transferability.
Notification 199/94 extends duty free import of inputs listed in input output norms for writing instruments under the Value Based Advance Licensing scheme, permitting imports without direct nexus between export product and imported materials. It imposes an actual user condition: transferability or disposal endorsements are allowed only to manufacturers of writing instruments upon fulfillment of export obligations. Field officers must ensure compliance and disallow concessions, demand duties and notify licensing authorities where transfers reach non manufacturers.

Advance Licence verification: shipping bills must include scheme specific AR 4 declarations and Central Excise certification before processing.
Processing of shipping bills under Duty Exemption schemes requires furnishing the Ministry's specified declarations and an AR-4 that names the export scheme and contains a Central Excise Superintendent certified declaration on availment of Central Excise rule benefits; merchant exporters and Self Removal cases must produce equivalent AR-4 certifications, and where manufacturers are outside Central Excise control a territorial Superintendent's certificate must accompany the shipping bill.

Modvat credit entitlement clarified: invoices issued by specified persons up to the year-end accepted for credit regularisation.
Modvat credit may be regularised for inputs in stock where invoices were issued by specified persons during the transitional period, if permissible under the controlling notification. The Board clarifies that its circular and notification allow Assistant Collectors to accept specified documents issued up to the end of the calendar year, and that credit under the rule may be allowed where invoices were issued by the specified persons up to year-end.