Legal undertaking (LUT) acceptance in lieu of bank guarantee enables clearance of PSC re export imports without BG insistence.
Acceptance of a Legal Undertaking (LUT) in lieu of a Bank Guarantee (BG) is authorised for imports by Production Sharing Contract holders on a re export basis under the EXIM Policy. Specified petroleum operation goods are duty exempt subject to an undertaking to pay any duty, fine or penalty; essentiality certificates from the Directorate of Hydrocarbons support clearance. Customs are directed to accept LUTs and not insist on BGs for such imports, and to report any difficulties to the Board.

Duty drawback applicability to brass handicrafts clarified; rate covers all qualifying brass artwares despite missing tariff heading.
Application of duty drawback to artistic brass handicrafts/artwares under SS Nos. 74.20 and 74.21 is clarified: the rates are intended to compensate duties on the input material (brass) and therefore apply to all items of brass that qualify as handicrafts or artwares; absence of specific Customs Tariff Headings against those serial entries is deliberate and does not restrict entitlement.

Duty drawback on brass builder hardware applicable despite absent tariff heading; claims should be allowed and decided accordingly.
The drawback rate under SS No.74.17 for Brass Builder Hardware is intended to compensate duties on the brass input and applies to all items qualifying as Builder Hardware; the absence of a corresponding Customs Tariff Heading is deliberate and does not bar entitlement. Drawback claims should be decided accordingly and public notices and standing orders issued to inform trade and guide officials.

Drawback scope for bags clarified to include all textile and similar bags, enabling claims under the notified drawback entry.
The circular clarifies that SS No.63.09 of the Drawback Table covers all kinds of cotton/polyester/rayon bags and cotton storage bags with or without lining or trimming of any textile material, noting an oversight in listing only a single Customs Tariff Heading and directing that drawback claims for other types of bags be decided in accordance with the broader description used to determine the rate.

Initial offer period reduction and prescribed portfolio disclosure accelerate investor information and unclaimed funds rules.
SEBI mandates operational and disclosure measures for mutual funds: reduction of the initial offer period for open ended schemes and expedited dispatch of account statements; a prescribed half yearly portfolio disclosure format with marks for NPAs and illiquid securities and specified footnotes; rules for investment, claimant treatment and management fee cap on unclaimed redemption/dividend amounts with disclosure requirements; limitations on scheme chargeable expenses and required disclosure of significant expense items; and committee based approval for unrated debt investments subject to preapproved parameters and trustee reporting.

Directorate name change: references to the former designation now read as Central Excise Intelligence in Board communications.
Change of designation of the Directorate General from Directorate General of Anti Evasion to Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence, to be construed in existing and future decisions, orders, letters, instructions and circulars issued under the Central Excise Act, 1944 and related rules, unless the context otherwise requires.

DTA sale entitlement: Development Commissioner permissions for EOUs must be honoured, permitting DTA clearance on payment of applicable duties.
An EOU/EPZ unit's DTA sale permission granted by the Development Commissioner on the basis of half year physical exports is valid provided the unit fulfils the Minimum Net Foreign Exchange requirement and pays applicable excise duties; refusal by Central Excise to honor such permission is not correct and the unit may clear the permitted goods into the domestic tariff area on payment of duties as prescribed by law.

Deemed foreign territory status enables duty-free imports to SEZ units, while DTA clearances are treated as imports under customs valuation.
SEZ units are deemed foreign territory for duties and taxes: supplies from DTA are deemed exports and movements from SEZ to DTA are treated as imports. Units enjoy duty-free import/procurement for manufacturing and related activities (excluding prohibited goods), with document-based clearances, bonding for temporary removals and job-work, special rules for gem and jewellery, mandatory accounting and reporting, DTA sales subject to duty and customs valuation, and monitoring by a Development Commissioner-Customs committee with recovery and penal action for defaults.

Seizure limitation: restrict seizures of gem and jewellery to cases with prima-facie evidence and require prompt release.
Seizure of gem and jewellery stock is to be limited to cases with prima-facie evidence or absolute necessity; where offences are technical or unlikely to lead to confiscation or prosecution, goods should be detained pending investigation under the Customs Act and investigations completed expeditiously. If seizure is necessary, authorities must seek to lift it promptly after completing formalities to protect revenue, submit a detailed report explaining the reasons for seizure and non-release to the Ministry, and ensure procedural safeguards to prevent long-term retention that harms exporters and trade finance.

Fast Track Scheme: simplified striking-off process with affidavits, notarisation option and indemnity bond substitution for clearances.
The circular permits directors of companies that have been inactive since incorporation or for a long period to use sworn affidavits (sworn before a Magistrate or a Notary Public with seal) and a prescribed indemnity bond in place of tax and excise clearance certificates when applying under the Fast Track Scheme for striking off the company's name under section 560; model affidavit and indemnity bond forms set out directors' declarations, asset/liability disclosures, undertakings to indemnify third parties and signature/witness requirements, and the Scheme's period is extended by one month.

MRP-based excise valuation extended to additional commodities; implementation directed and field officers to guide manufacturers.
Extension of the MRP-based valuation scheme under Section 4A by Notification No. 52/2000 (N.T.), prescribing specified abatement percentages against MRP for sixteen additional excisable goods and directing that the notification come into force on the first of December, with trade notices issued and field officers instructed to guide manufacturers to adopt the new assessment procedure.

Foreign exchange release limits set; passport endorsement rules differ for business and private travel under regulatory framework.
The Reserve Bank prescribes ceilings for foreign exchange sales by Full Fledged Money Changers for private and business travel (excluding Nepal and Bhutan). Authorised persons need not endorse amounts sold for business travel on passports but may record details under stamp, date and signature if requested; endorsement on the passport is mandatory where foreign exchange is sold for a private visit. Directions are issued under the Foreign Exchange Management Act and contraventions attract penalties.

Risk containment measures mandate exposure controls and margining for rolling settlement and related CNS/CFRS/ALBRS products.
Gross exposure is the aggregate of a member's open positions comprising net positions of the previous four trading days, positions created on the day and net positions of the next five settlements; gross exposure margin is calculated on the worst case highest net outstanding position for unsettled days. Mark to market margins applicable under account period settlement apply to rolling settlement. Existing per scrip and member aggregate limits continue for CFRS and ALBRS, the account period margin structure applies to CFRS, ALBRS and CNS (CNS margins on sell side only), and exchanges shall consolidate T 2 deferral positions to identify scrips attracting incremental margins.

Exemption from bank guarantee for status hotels allows import of cars under EPCG; other licence holders must provide BG.
Hotels holding status certificates may import cars and microbuses under the EPCG scheme without executing a bank guarantee (BG) equal to the duty saved amount; both status and non status hotel and tourism licence holders may apply for imports under the scheme, but all applicants except the expressly exempted status hotels must submit a BG equivalent to 100% of the duty saved amount.

Recovery of inspection fees to be effected under section 142 via Customs on request from plant quarantine authorities.
Recovery of inspection fees and arrears under the Destructive Insects and Pests Act, 1914 shall be recovered using the Customs recovery provisions. Customs officers must act on requests from Plant Quarantine Authorities to recover dues under section 142 of the Customs Act, and issue Public Notices or Standing Orders to inform concerned officers; implementation difficulties are to be reported to the Board.

Export fraud prevention: tighten shipping bill examination by specifying package details, circling declared values, banning correction fluids.
To strengthen detection of export frauds in manual shipping bills, examination reports must note examined package numbers; dock shed staff must record declared FOB value (figures and words), quantity and declared net weight on the reverse of duplicate/triplicate shipping bills; assessing officers must circle declared value, quantity and weight in red ink; correcting fluids and erasures are prohibited and limited corrections must be struck through and re inscribed with exporter/agent authentication. Implementation is to be effected via Public Notices and Standing Orders, with difficulties reported to the Board.

Uniform margin requirement replaces stratified slabs for carry forward and lending-borrowing positions and mandates investor education.
SEBI instructed exchanges to replace stratified margin slabs with a uniform margin for carry forward positions in the Modified Carry Forward System (MCFS) and for trade positions in the Automated Lending and Borrowing Mechanism (ALBM). It also directed exchanges to undertake educational and awareness programmes to familiarise investors with new products including Carry Forward under Rolling Settlement (CFRS), Automated Lending and Borrowing under Rolling Settlement (ALBRS) and Continuous Net Settlement (CNS).

Market infrastructure update: compulsory rolling settlement scrips to receive CNS, CFRS and ALBRS facilities after exchange notice.
SEBI directed that fifteen scrips traded in the compulsory rolling settlement shall be enabled for Continuous Net Settlement (CNS), Carry Forward under Rolling Settlement (CFRS) and Automated Lending and Borrowing Mechanism under Rolling Settlement (ALBRS), and instructed eligible exchanges to announce commencement dates for these facilities after providing due notice to the market.

DEPB coverage limited: embroidered and metallised-yarn textiles excluded unless specific entry; ladies' dress defined by length.
DEPB coverage for textile entries excludes embroidered products and items containing metallised yarn unless a DEPB entry specifically covers them; ladies' dress means a one-piece garment with length from the thigh to the ankles, and field formations are to follow this clarification to avoid improper DEPB credit.

Compulsory dematerialized trading requires companies to establish depository connectivity before mandatory market settlement in dematerialised form.
Companies must establish connectivity with both depositories and observe a three month interval after confirmed connectivity before their scrips become subject to compulsory dematerialized trading. Scrips of companies that fail to establish connectivity by the scheduled date are to be traded only in the trade for trade settlement window until depositories confirm connectivity, after which they revert to normal trading and eventually to compulsory dematerialized trading following the three month period.