Export licence requirement for sandalwood de-oiled spent dust; exports restricted, subject to documentation and wildlife verification.
The Director General of Foreign Trade requires that exports of Sandalwood De-oiled Spent Dust be effected only against an Export Licence issued by the Directorate, with the Export Licensing Committee empowered to grant licences on merits and subject to conditions. Eligible exporters comprise State Government undertakings and public sector enterprises producing the by product, direct purchasers from them, and exporters authorised to export sandalwood oil, with spent dust exports linked to quantities of oil actually exported. Applications must include prescribed documentation and shipments require physical verification by the Regional Wildlife Warden, limited to specified ports.

Excisability of coal ash confirmed, treated as dutiable under tariff heading and duty realisation directed.
Coal Ash (Cinder) is an excisable good classifiable under Heading No. 2621.00, satisfies tests of marketability and distinct commercial identity, and is chargeable to the appropriate rate of excise duty; departments must ensure duty realisation for the period following removal of the prior exemption and settle pending assessments in light of these guidelines.

Service tax for Goods Transport Operator designated under a specific minor head for payment via TR 6 challans at bank branches.
Assessees providing Goods Transport Operator services must pay service tax under a designated minor head code and remit amounts using yellow TR 6 challans at designated State Bank of India branches within the Nagpur Commissionerate; the notice aligns this allocation with earlier trade notices on minor head coding for services.

Excisability of plant and machinery assembled at site: attracts central excise duty when marketable and movable.
The Board orders that plant and machinery assembled and erected at site attract central excise duty when the assembled article is a final product distinct from its components, is specified as excisable in the Central Excise Tariff, qualifies as goods by being movable and saleable despite attachment for operational efficiency, and is marketable even if removal and dismantling are required.

Misdeclaration of imports: enforcement urged to stop clearing distinct flint buttons as ophthalmic blanks for tariff benefit.
The circular directs customs authorities to treat imports of flint buttons cleared as ophthalmic blanks under a tariff concession as misdeclaration, to alert assessing officers to prevent misuse, to review past clearances of such goods, and to report any instances of misdeclaration to the Board to safeguard revenue.

Provisional assessment review required: immediate special review of cases in the call book and compliance with Board instructions.
Immediate administrative review required of Provisional assessment cases transferred to the Call book, reiterating that only four categories of cases may be so transferred (departmental appeals, court/tribunal injunctions, contested audit objections, or Board ordered pending cases). Commissioners must ensure strict compliance with Board circulars, undertake special review and follow-up to secure proper revenue, and furnish direct reports to the designated Commissioner within the period specified by the circular.

Sample clearance from export-oriented units permitted for display and courier export under sealed-procedure and duty compliance.
Clearance of samples by export oriented units into the Domestic Tariff Area for display or sale is permitted subject to undertakings to customs, payment of applicable duties where sale occurs, and debiting such clearances against DTA entitlements; for courier export, samples may be sealed before customs and handed to an authorised courier agent with proof of export required.

Anti-dumping duty on purified terephthalic acid clarified: exemption only when manufactured in Korea and exported by Kohap.
The notification requires both country of origin and named exporter to determine the applicable anti-dumping duty rate: only PTA manufactured in Korea and exported by M/s. Kohap Chemical Corporation is exempt. PTA exported by any other party, even if manufactured by M/s. Kohap Chemical Corporation in Korea, is liable to the higher notified anti-dumping duty. Past clearances contrary to this interpretation may be reviewed and demand notices issued.

Customs classification: populating a PCB does not automatically qualify imports for component rate of duty; factual assessment required.
The Circular removes an illustrative sentence that suggested populating a PCB automatically amounted to "working on" imported components and thus entitled importers to the component rate of duty. It states that the example was not intended to create an automatic rule; rather, whether components must be further worked upon is a question of fact for the assessing officer to decide based on the totality of imports, and accordingly the last sentence of paragraph 6 of the earlier Circular is deleted.

Exemption entitlement for EOUs: eligibility to claim textile additional duty exemption alongside central excise exemption affirmed.
Notification No. 8/97-CE exempts specified goods made in EOUs from excise duty to the extent of excess duty over like goods produced in India, while Notification No. 55/91-CE grants a full exemption from the Additional Duty of Excise (Textile and Textile Articles) for goods produced in EOUs; both notifications operate on different statutory duties and EOUs claiming 8/97-CE are eligible to claim 55/91-CE.

Posting trained excise officers: mandate placement and accountability to prevent procedural delays and harassment in export units.
Mandate placement of thoroughly trained Central Excise officers at Export Oriented Units where shortages exist, arranging training through NACEN and Export Promotion Councils and requiring Commissioners to hold regular meetings to verify officers' procedural competence; the officer in charge of EOUs is to be held accountable for unjustified delays and instances of harassment, which must be firmly addressed to protect export facilitation.

DEPB TRA facility expanded to permit imports at designated alternative ports, streamlining import clearance under DEPB scrips.
Extension of TRA facility allows DEPB scrip holders registered at specified seaports, airports and ICDs to import at any of the listed locations; other holders must import at their registration port. The TRA must be issued from the port of registration to the importing customs house and include description, value, quantity, DEPB serial number, date of issue and duty entitlement, with the receiving customs house reporting import details back to the issuing office for register entry.

Time-limit for finalising provisional assessments: initial period with specified extensions by Commissioner and Chief Commissioner under conditions.
All provisional assessments must be finalised within six months, with a Commissioner-granted six-month extension where necessary and further extensions by the Chief Commissioner on merit. At each extension the officer must be satisfied of sufficient reasons and monitor the case. Officers must ensure provisional clearances are backed by sufficient bonds and valid security for the full extension period; bank guarantees must be renewed or strict action taken. Upon finalisation, adjustments must be made within fifteen days and bonds/securities enforced if assesssee delay risks revenue.

Exemption from Central approval for managerial remuneration and introduction of deposits linked tiered loan ceilings for nidhis.
Notifications treat companies declared as nidhis or mutual benefit societies as member focused entities and (1) exempt them from Central Government approval for managerial remuneration where prescribed conditions are met; and (2) replace a uniform single borrower loan cap with a tiered, deposits linked ceiling structure prescribing multiple slabs for maximum advances to any one borrower.

Special Import Licence eligibility clarified; filing and jurisdiction rules require specific authority and declared combined applications.
The circular clarifies that Special Import Licence benefits under specified Handbook provisions are mutually exclusive and prescribes filing jurisdiction: EOU/EPZ units without DTA branches must apply to the Development Commissioner; entities with both EOU/EPZ and DTA offices must file a combined application with the Regional Licensing Authority and declare no prior SIL claim from the Development Commissioner; firms whose head office and branches fall under different Regional Licensing Authorities must aggregate export performance and apply to the Regional Licensing Authority of the registered/head office with a declaration of no parallel filings. It also confirms the temporal eligibility criteria introduced by the relevant Public Notice.

Classification of plastic casings: treated as other articles of plastics, not as pipes used for conveying fluids.
Plastic casing, cappings and their fittings used to enclose electrical wiring are not hollow one-piece tubes or pipes used for conveying gases or liquids; they are two-part enclosures not marketed as tubes and therefore fall outside the tubes-and-pipes tariff description and should be classed as other articles of plastics under the residual plastics heading.

Deemed export benefits not available to domestic suppliers for supply to power transmission projects under EXIM policy clarification.
The DGFT clarifies that the EXIM Policy deemed export concession for the power sector does not apply to supplies to power transmission projects, including transmission lines, substations, load dispatch and communication projects, and that domestic suppliers to such transmission projects are not entitled to the deemed export dispensation.

Classification of plastic irrigation components: general-use pipes classed as plastic articles, exclusive-use parts classed as equipment parts.
Plastic pipes and tubes that are not solely or principally for sprinkler irrigation are classifiable as articles of plastics under the plastics heading by application of the specificity rule and prior Board guidance. Pipe fittings of general use are classifiable as parts of general use under the appropriate metal or fittings chapters according to composition. Plastic parts modified or shaped exclusively for sprinkler equipment, having no other use, are classifiable as parts of sprinkler irrigation equipment.

Classification of traditional-system medicines: apply Ayurvedic criteria; alcohol-containing preparations fall outside central excise for taxation.
Products claimed to be medicines in the Unani, Siddha and Homeopathic systems are to be classified by applying the Board's criteria for Ayurvedic medicines mutatis mutandis, using the same compositional and classificatory approach; preparations containing alcohol are excluded from the Central Excise Tariff Act under the relevant chapter notes, and pending disputes/assessments should be settled in accordance with these guidelines.

Deeming of rescinded EOU notifications: earlier imports eligible for destruction under current notification; outside-zone destruction permitted with conditions.
Actions and imports under seven earlier EOU notifications are deemed to have been taken under Notification No.133/94-Cus, allowing imported goods to be destroyed under para 7(ii) and scrap/waste under para 7(iii); where in-zone destruction is precluded for safety or municipal reasons, the Commissioner may permit destruction outside the Zone subject to prescribed conditions.