Deemed export documentation relaxed: simplified acceptable certificates and shipping bill endorsement reduce compliance for EODC applications.
Amendment expands acceptable documentary proof for deemed exports under ANF-4F so that invoices or signed statements certifying item, quantity, value and date will suffice; a Project Authority Certificate may substitute excise/GST certification for non-excisable supplies or excisable supplies to non-excisable producers; CT-3/ARE-3 certified by excise/GST authorities can substitute for attested invoices for supplies to EOU/EHTP/STP/BTP; and where an intermediate supplier ships directly to port, a shipping bill with the intermediate supplier's name and the ultimate exporter's file or authorisation number must be furnished.

Pre-registration verification prevents bill trading by matching identity, contact and banking data before granting GST registration.
Any new registration application that matches cancelled-registration data on any of six parameters - place of business, PAN, mobile number, e-mail ID, authorised signatory, or bank account number - must undergo physical verification by the jurisdictional proper officer in the prescribed manner. The IT wing will provide the matching list daily to base-circle officers, and Deputy Commissioners (Territorial) are to monitor implementation to detect and deter bill traders at entry.

Exam attempt frequency revised to include a cooling-off period between attempts and a capped annual attempt limit.
The circular requires a mandatory cooling-off period between consecutive attempts for each candidate in the Limited Insolvency Examination and Valuation Examinations, producing a capped number of attempts within any twelve-month period. The requirement applies to examinations conducted under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board's regulatory framework and the Valuation Rules, and must be implemented by test administrators, professional agencies, registered valuer organisations and candidates for examinations held after the prescribed publication period.

Export duty on DTA to SEZ supplies requires filing a Bill of Export and payment before goods enter the zone.
Supplies from the Domestic Tariff Area to a SEZ unit attract export duty where leviable; SEZ units must file a Bill of Export on SEZ Online with requisite documents and a self-assessment of duty, have the Bill processed by the assessing officer, discharge the duty liability, and present an assessed Bill of Export plus proof of duty payment to the gate officer for entry of goods into the zone. Advance filing and payment are recommended to avoid delays.

Arbitration mechanism: stock exchange arbitration must be pursued after IGRC recommendations, with limitation governed by law.
Complaints of a civil nature between a member and a client must be referred first to the IGRC and/or the stock exchange arbitration mechanism; arbitrators appointed thereunder are competent to decide jurisdiction. A party dissatisfied with an IGRC recommendation must seek stock exchange arbitration within the prescribed challenge period from the IGRC recommendation. That challenge period applies only to IGRC challenged cases; if arbitration is initiated without using the IGRC, the limitation for filing is governed by the general law of limitation. Stock Exchanges and Depositories must amend bye laws and notify constituents accordingly.

Virtual meetings for REITs and InvITs extended, requiring compliance with prescribed VC/OAVM procedures until year-end.
Permission to conduct annual and other unitholders' meetings of REITs and InvITs via video conferencing or other audio-visual means is extended until December 31, 2022. The extension is granted under the applicable regulations and requires REITs/InvITs to comply with the procedure set out in Annexure-I of SEBI's June 22, 2020 circular when using VC/OAVM for meetings.

Commercial Sterility Test exclusion for UHT whipping cream: imported consignments shall not be subjected to that test.
Instruction requires that the Commercial Sterility Test in Table 2B of the FSS Regulations, 2011, shall not be applied to imported UHT whipping cream, because stakeholder input and the Scientific Panel determined the test is not feasible given the product's nature and storage conditions; Authorized Officers of FSSAI and Customs must ensure consignments are not tested for Commercial Sterility and report implementation difficulties to the Board.

Compulsory scrutiny selection for returns arising from search and seizure mandates administrative approval and central transfer after statutory notice service.
Procedures require prior administrative approval for compulsory selection of returns arising from search and seizure or requisition actions, and mandate transfer of such matters to Central Charges within a prescribed short period after service of statutory notices by the Assessing Officer; if not centralized, the Assessing Officer must serve a notice for return when a return is filed in response to the statutory communication, or a notice calling for information when no return is filed.

Specified violation power: registration and approval conditions in Form 10AC treated as updated, enabling cancellation for breaches.
The Circular clarifies that conditions in Form No. 10AC issued between 01.04.2021 and the Circular's date are to be read as substituted by Table 1 conditions effective 1 April 2022, aligning Form 10AC with Finance Act, 2022 amendments granting the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner power to examine and cancel or refuse cancellation of registration/approval for specified violations. It rectifies technical "provisional" headings to reflect substantive registration/approval and reproduces annexed standard conditions (income application, no non incidental business, separate books, no non genuine activity, compliance with law, truthful Form 10A, timelines and re registration/re approval obligations).

Change in control of portfolio managers requires SEBI prior approval, six month validity, and investor exit rights without exit load.
Change in control of portfolio managers requires prior approval via the SEBI Intermediary Portal; such approval is valid for six months and fresh registration following the change must be completed within that period. The portfolio manager must inform existing investors and offer an exit without exit load for at least 30 calendar days. For schemes requiring NCLT sanction, SEBI approval must be sought before NCLT filing, SEBI may grant a three month in principle approval, and after NCLT order the manager must file specified documents within 15 days for final approval.

Revocation of GST registration via appellate or court order now executable through a new electronic module on GST Pro.
A tested electronic module 'Revocation after Appeal / High Court Order' on GST Pro enables LGSTOs/SGSTOs to revoke cancelled GST registrations where appellate or High Court orders permit reversal. Proper officers must select the GSTIN, upload the appellate or High Court order PDF and the revocation proceedings, and complete actions using their Digital Signature Certificate. Officers with issues should raise grievances on GST Pro or contact the e-Governance section for assistance.

Export restriction on sugar requires specific permission from the Directorate of Sugar for exports under OGL.
Export of raw, white and refined sugar is placed in the Restricted category requiring specific permission from the Directorate of Sugar via issuance of Export Release Orders (EROs) processed through the National Single Window System or email in prescribed format with supporting contracts, bank documents or proof of advance payment. EROs are time limited, non amendable, published on the Directorate's website, and shipments already meeting prescribed port filing conditions remain permissible. Sugar mills must submit daily dispatch reports, obtain approvals before export dispatch, and breaches may attract blacklisting and penalties under the Essential Commodities Act and the Sugar (Control) Order.

Relaxation of additional fees: LLPs may file event-based e-forms due in late-February to May without penalty until June end.
Limited Liability Partnerships may file event-based e-forms due between 25 February 2022 and 31 May 2022 without payment of additional fees until 30 June 2022, as administrative relief in view of the MCA-21 transition; the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has directed implementation of this concession to promote compliance.

Export proceeds compliance: upload e BRCs for shipping bills with RoSCTL scrips to avoid repayment action.
Directive requiring upload of electronic Bank Realisation Certificates (e-BRCs) for shipping bills with RoSCTL scrips; rebate under RoSCTL is conditional on timely realisation of export proceeds and failure to upload e-BRCs will lead to recovery/repayment action under the FT(D&R) Act by jurisdictional Regional Authorities, with AD banks responsible for completing uploads.

Export prohibition on wheat triggers stricter RC issuance: mandatory LC verification and investigation of ante-dating, with enforcement referrals.
Prohibition on wheat exports requires RAs to physically verify all Letters of Credit, secure recipient-bank endorsement, and investigate instances where LC dates precede the prohibition but message exchanges post-date it for possible ante-dating. Ante-dated cases must prompt enforcement action and possible referral to investigative agencies; bank complicity will be addressed. RC applications that clear RA verification must obtain approval from a two-member Additional DGFTs committee at headquarters before RC issuance.

Stock exchange arbitration mechanism established SOP for disputes between listed companies/RTAs and shareholders, setting procedures, timelines and fee allocation.
The circular prescribes a Standard Operating Procedure for stock exchange arbitration of disputes between listed companies/RTAs and shareholders, making RTAs subject to arbitration, requiring listed companies to be joined where RTAs are involved, and directing arbitration only after exhaustion of complaint remedies including SCORES. It prescribes arbitrator composition, appointment timelines, hearing modalities, award and appellate timelines with limited extensions, fee and cost-allocation rules including refunds and subsidisation for small investor claims, record retention and public disclosure obligations, and enforcement/penalty frameworks for non-compliance.

Cybersecurity obligations for KYC Registration Agencies updated; enhanced VAPT and biannual cyber audit requirements imposed.
KRAs must identify, classify and board approve critical assets, maintain inventories of hardware, software and network resources, and subject new or critical systems to vulnerability scanning and penetration testing prior to commissioning. Periodic VAPT covering critical infrastructure must be conducted at least annually, by CERT In empaneled organisations, with final reports approved by the Technology Committee and submitted to the regulator. Vulnerabilities must be remediated immediately and closure certified within three months. KRAs must undertake comprehensive cyber audits twice per financial year and submit an MD/CEO compliance declaration with audit reports.

ASBA funds blocking ensures applications processed only after amounts are blocked, requiring intermediaries and exchanges to confirm.
The circular mandates that ASBA applications in public issues be processed only after application monies are blocked in the investor's bank account, requiring mandatory confirmation of blocked funds for acceptance on stock exchanges' electronic book-building platforms. All intermediaries, market infrastructure institutions, SCSBs and registrars must implement necessary systemic and procedural arrangements within the prescribed implementation period, with merchant bankers coordinating stakeholders. The requirement applies to all investor categories and modes of processing and is effective for public issues opening on or after the stated effective date.

Sabka Vishwas Scheme co-noticee declarations can be manually processed for issuance of Form SVLDRS-4 when main noticee dues are paid.
Where co-noticee declarations remain pending at Form SVLDRS-2 because system functionality to proceed to Form SVLDRS-4 is lacking, designated committees may issue the Form SVLDRS-4 (Discharge Certificate) manually for ARNs that fulfil all statutory eligibility conditions, provided the main noticee has paid dues; such manually processed cases must be reported to the Office of the Principal DG (Systems).

Microfinance objects restriction: include microcredit in company objects only if RBI net owned fund and related requirements are satisfied.
ROCs are directed not to permit incorporation of Section 8 companies with microfinance objects or subsequent alteration of main objects to include microfinance unless the company complies with the Net Owned Fund and other requirements laid down in the RBI Directions for NBFC MFIs; ROCs must examine incorporation and change of object filings to prevent circumvention.