Overseas investments by Alternative Investment Funds now permitted under amended FEMA rules, allowing SEBI-registered AIFs to invest abroad.
Indian Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) may undertake overseas investments under the A.P.(DIR Series) Circulars No. 49 and 50 of 2007 subject to SEBI registration; Regulation 26 of the relevant FEMA notification has been amended by Notification No. FEMA.326/RB-2014, effective from its Gazette publication. Authorised Dealer (Category I) banks are to inform constituents and customers; directions issued under Sections 10(4) and 11(1) of FEMA, 1999 and without prejudice to other statutory permissions.

Appointment of Special OHAs to hear mismatch objections, reassigning hearing responsibilities among assistant commissioners.
Authorises specified Assistant Commissioners to act as Special OHAs to hear objections relating to the 2A-2B mismatch for 2012-13, replacing previously assigned officers for the listed wards, with certain assignments effective during the incumbent's leave; all other provisions of the earlier circular remain unchanged.

Dispatch by speed post: trade documents and authorisations sent on request within one working day of receipt.
When an applicant lacks an I-Card and requests postal delivery, the office will dispatch the requested documents/authorisations by speed post, to be effected within one working day from receipt of the request.

Service of Demand Notice: additional counter copy for hand collection; Audit Memo copies also provided to allow response time.
In addition to postal dispatch, an additional copy of the Demand Notice will be sent to the counter for hand collection; likewise, the CAV Section will send an extra copy of the Audit Memo to the counter so parties may collect these memos in person and be given sufficient time to respond.

Audit of Service Tax Accounts amended: notification updates rules and advises assessees on revised audit requirements.
A government notification amends Rule 5A of the Service Tax Rules, 1994 to revise the audit framework for service tax assessees; the trade notice informs taxpayers of Notification No. 23/2014, advises assessees of the changed audit requirements and procedural obligations, and directs stakeholders to official sources for the full text of the amendment.

FDI in railway infrastructure permitted under automatic route; equity beyond security-sensitive threshold referred to Cabinet Committee on Security.
DIPP authorised FDI in specified railway infrastructure activities under the automatic route subject to conditions, listing permitted activities such as suburban corridor PPPs, high speed trains, dedicated freight lines, rolling stock manufacture and maintenance, electrification, signaling, freight and passenger terminals, industrial park rail infrastructure and Mass Rapid Transport Systems; equity beyond the security-sensitive threshold is to be referred to the Cabinet Committee on Security.

Foreign direct investment permitted higher participation in defence with capped portfolio investment and mandatory allocation and monitoring.
Revision permits Foreign Direct Investment up to 49% under the government route in defence subject to Press Note 7 (2014 Series) conditions; portfolio and FVCI investment collectively capped at 24% of total equity with NRI portfolio investment not exceeding 10%, portfolio investment under automatic route. Listed defence investee companies must allocate sub limits for RFPI (including QFI and FII), NRI and FVCI within the 24% and inform the Reserve Bank for monitoring. Items not on the finalized defence list and most dual use items do not require an industrial licence; FEMA principal regulations were amended accordingly.

Foreign Direct Investment policy alignment brings Consolidated FDI sectoral conditions into FEMA regulations, requiring dealer bank notification.
Annex B to Schedule 1 of the Foreign Exchange Management (Transfer or Issue of Security by a Person Resident outside India) Regulations, 2000 has been revised to align sector descriptions, entry norms, sectoral caps and conditions for FDI under the Automatic and Government routes with the Consolidated FDI Policy Circular of 2014. The Reserve Bank effected these changes via the Tenth Amendment Regulations, 2014, and directed Authorised Dealer Category I banks to inform their constituents; the directions are issued under sections 10(4) and 11(1) of FEMA, 1999 and remain subject to other statutory permissions.

Line of Credit for Niger enables export financing subject to Indian content requirements, shipment declarations and FEMA compliance.
Exim Bank's Line of Credit to the Government of Niger finances eligible goods, machinery, equipment and consultancy services from India for a potable water project, requiring at least 75 percent Indian supply content and permitting up to 25 percent foreign procurement. The Credit Agreement sets distinct periods for opening Letters of Credit and disbursement for project and other supply contracts; shipments must be declared on GR/SDF forms. No agency commission is payable under the LOC, though exporters may use own funds or EEFC balances for commission subject to AD Category I bank compliance. Directions are issued under FEMA and do not prejudice other statutory approvals.

FDI in construction sector: revised policy permits full foreign investment under automatic route with updated area, capitalization, and exit rules.
The revision permits full foreign equity under the automatic route for construction development projects while recalibrating minimum area and capitalization requirements, specifying that minimum FDI must be brought within a defined period from statutory approval of building/layout plans, allowing subsequent tranches up to ten years or until project completion, tying exit or repatriation to project completion or development of trunk infrastructure, and imposing duties on investee companies and local approving authorities to obtain approvals, develop infrastructure, and monitor compliance; certain project types and affordable housing commitments are carved out.

Digital VAT compliance: new DVAT server modules enable composition checks, practitioner enrollment, online amendments and refund claims.
The circular implements DVAT server enhancements: a Composition Dealer verification link; online VAT Practitioner enrollment with fee payment and email intimation; Annexure 2A updates for central purchases for 2012-13; filing of Form DVAT 21 for refund claims where excess tax was deposited; improved SMS acknowledgements including TIN; an auto-amendment module except for constitution, authorized signatory and principal place changes which require supporting documents or field verification; hiding of certain mismatch reports at dealer login; electronic delivery of Registration Certificates to dealer logins with hardcopy issuance by wards; and real time migration of Form DVAT 43 data to ward in charge.

Submission of tax-related certificates required for remittance of assets under FEMA amendments; AD banks must follow CBDT instructions.
Submission of auditor certificates and tax-related declarations is mandatory for remittance of assets under the amended Foreign Exchange Management (Remittance of Assets) Regulations; AD Category I banks must ensure compliance with the revised tax certification formats and procedural conditions referenced in the A.P. (DIR Series) guidance.

Duty drawback rates updated, revising caps, tariff classifications and procedure for Brand Rate declarations.
All Industry Rates of Duty Drawback were revised effective 22.11.2014, retaining a determination methodology based on broad average parameters and adjusting residuary and ad valorem rates and caps. Tariff entries were rationalized and new specific entries created; many DEPB incorporated items saw reduced rates. For project exports with ARE I, a cap equal to the ad valorem rate applied to one and a half times the ARE I value must be recorded in Departmental Comments before Let Export Order. Claims under the AIR Schedule preclude Brand Rate fixation; exporters seeking Brand Rate must declare identifier "9801" in the shipping bill and apply separately to Central Excise.

Cenvat credit ineligibility for sugar and clean energy cesses: issue protective notices to deny such credits and report cases.
Cenvat credit eligibility is confined to duties specified under the Cenvat Credit Rules; non specified taxes and cesses, including sugar cess and clean energy cess, are not eligible for credit. To protect revenue, protective Show Cause Notices denying Cenvat credit for such non specified cesses must be issued and matters reported to headquarters for adjudication and follow up.

Retail cut-off bidding in OFS: retail investors can bid at cut-off price with proportionate allocation and cash margin requirement.
Sellers may permit retail investors to bid at a cut-off price alongside price bids; sellers must announce a floor price by 5 pm on T 1, exchanges will decide retail-eligible quantities based on that floor price, and no indicative price will be published for the retail portion. Margins for cut-off bids are at the floor price; retail bids below cut-off are rejected, bids at cut-off are allocated proportionately on oversubscription, and any unsubscribed retail portion may be allocated to non-retail. Clearing corporations shall collect 100% cash margin for retail bids and settlements shall follow normal secondary market processes.

Deferment of export procedure for certified organic products: implementation deferred to 18 December 2014 to allow transition.
The Director General of Foreign Trade has deferred the effective date of the procedure for export of certified organic products notified in Public Notice No. 73 (RE-2013)/2009-2014, so that the procedure will come into effect from 18/12/2014 to provide a transition period for implementation.

Designation of Export Commissioner: Deputy/Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise (Exports) appointed for merchant exporters under export rules.
The Assistant/Deputy Commissioner, Central Excise (Technical), Pune IV is designated as Deputy/Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise (Exports) to perform export related functions for merchant exporters within Pune IV Commissionerate under the Central Excise Rules, pursuant to the Board's circular and commissionerate restructuring; stakeholders are requested to circulate this appointment.

Scrutiny assessment procedures adjusted for flood-affected taxpayers: verify damage, avoid punitive additions, and consider hardship in recovery.
Advisory directs assessing authorities to verify flood impact with district administration and, where records are destroyed, complete pending scrutiny assessments on available materials; avoid high pitched additions for non production of books; restrict third party verification to appropriate cases and use special audit or surveys only with substantial merit and prior CIT approval; consult prior years' scrutiny records to infer business trends; decide recovery actions case by case considering post flood financial condition; act expeditiously and sensitively and issue a press note for affected taxpayers.

Due date extension for income tax returns under section 119 provides relief to Jammu & Kashmir assessees affected by floods.
Exercising powers under Section 119, the Central Board of Direct Taxes extends the due date for furnishing returns of income and for obtaining and furnishing statutory audit reports for assessees in Jammu & Kashmir covered by Explanation 2 clauses (a) and (aa), in consequence of flood-related disruption, and directs distribution of the order to departmental offices and stakeholders for publicity and compliance.

Withdrawal of gold import restrictions ends prior scheme, restoring normal import rules for nominated banks and agencies.
All prior instructions implementing the 20:80 gold import scheme are withdrawn with immediate effect; the scheme and its restrictions on gold import by nominated banks, agencies and entities cease to apply, AD Category I banks must notify their constituents, and the directions are issued under powers of the central foreign exchange statute without prejudice to permissions required under other laws.