Online Bill of Entry amendment process becomes contactless with electronic fee levy and ICETAB-enabled paperless examinations.
Measures enable online filing of Bill of Entry amendments via ICEGATE and upgraded remote filing software, with system queuing for officer approval and auto approval limited to additions in the supporting documents table. Amendment fees are entered in a mandatory fee field, editable by designated officers, and upon approval are automatically included in the duty challan for electronic payment through ICEGATE; the System will notify importers/customers of approval or rejection and fees levied. ICETAB tablets and a forthcoming app will support paperless cargo examination and direct upload of reports and images into ICES.

Contactless bill of entry amendment process enables online filing and electronic fee payment with mobile paperless examination.
The Bill of Entry amendment process is now electronic: amendments may be filed via ICEGATE or upgraded remote filing software, queued for officer approval with supporting-document additions auto-approved, and other changes requiring officer approval. An amendment-fee field in the approval form records fees levied by the Appraiser (editable by Group AC/DC and mandatory with zero if none); approved amendments have fees automatically included in the duty challan for electronic payment through ICEGATE and the System emails importers/customs brokers about approval or rejection and any fees or reasons for rejection.

COVID-19 tax assessment timelines extended, with phased disposal, email notices, and social distancing safeguards for pending VAT cases.
COVID-19 disruption led to extension of the time limit for tax assessment and reassessment proceedings under the U.P. VAT framework. Assessing authorities were directed to classify pending cases, prepare phased disposal plans, and follow social distancing precautions. Where hearings had already been completed before lockdown, no fresh notice was required and orders could be uploaded online. Show-cause notices were to be consolidated where possible, issued by email in suitable cases, and hearings were to be scheduled carefully to avoid repeated office visits.

Import payment timeframe extension: remittance period for normal imports extended due to COVID disruptions, banks must notify constituents.
Remittance completion period for normal imports has been extended from six months to twelve months from shipment date for imports made on or before July 31, 2020 due to COVID 19 disruptions; exclusions include import of gold/diamonds/precious stones/jewellery and cases where amounts are withheld as guarantees. Authorised Dealer Category I banks must notify constituents. Directions are issued under the Foreign Exchange Management framework and without prejudice to other legal permissions or approvals.

Voluntary Retention Route extension - FPIs granted additional time to meet committed investment threshold and reset retention period.
FPIs allotted VRR investment limits in the noted reopening period are granted an additional three months to invest 75% of their Committed Portfolio Size. Where this extension is used, the retention period for the investments committed at allotment is reset to begin from the date the FPI invests 75% of CPS. The instruction follows prior VRR directions and is issued under the foreign exchange statute, without prejudice to other required permissions.

Port of registration inclusion: Gopalpur added to Sea Ports list, enabling registration under Foreign Trade Policy schemes.
The Director General of Foreign Trade amends Para 4.37 of the Handbook of Procedures 2015-2020 to add Gopalpur to the Sea Ports list, thereby making Gopalpur a recognised port of registration for the schemes administered under the Foreign Trade Policy.

Incidence of National Calamity Contingent Duty clarified for Brand Rate duty drawback calculations; stakeholders urged to follow CBIC instruction.
Instruction communicates that National Calamity Contingent Duty (NCCD) must be accounted for in calculating the Brand Rate for duty drawback and directs importers, exporters and other stakeholders to consult Instruction No. 5/2020-Cus dated 12.05.2020 issued by the Joint Commissioner (Drawback), CBIC. Stakeholders are asked to implement the prescribed treatment and report any difficulties to the Deputy Commissioner, Customs (Prev.), Jamnagar.

Post-default curing period flexibility allows CRAs to upgrade ratings after cure, subject to published policies and oversight.
Revision permits CRAs generally to upgrade a cured default to non-investment grade after a 90-day satisfactory performance period, while allowing case-by-case deviations subject to a detailed, published policy. Deviations must be reported to the Ratings Sub-Committee half-yearly with rationale. CRAs must also publish a policy for upgrading defaults to investment grade and may consider scenarios that fundamentally change credit risk, such as technical defaults, management change, acquisition, large long-term fund inflows, or regulatory benefits.

Acceptance of undertaking in lieu of bond extended; upload to e Sanchit required and bond submission deadline deferred.
Temporary acceptance of an undertaking in lieu of a customs bond under Section 143AA is extended and the deadline for submission of the proper bond is further extended; the relaxation will be reviewed by the CBIC at the end of the lockdown. The undertaking must be submitted from the registered email ID of the IEC holder or authorised customs broker and must also be uploaded on e Sanchit. All other conditions in Circular No.17/2020 remain unchanged; the notice is to be publicised and treated as a standing order, with implementation difficulties to be reported to the Additional/Joint Commissioner of Customs.

Listing of winding-up mutual fund schemes enables optional investor exit via dematerialised trading on stock exchanges with prescribed listing formalities.
Units of mutual fund schemes under the winding-up process shall be listed on recognized stock exchanges as an optional exit route for investors, subject to listing formalities; initial trading will be in dematerialised form and AMCs must enable transfer of units held as Statement of Account or unit certificates.

Disclosure of material COVID 19 impact: listed entities must report timely, non selective operational and financial effects to investors.
Listed entities should assess and disclose the material impact of the CoVID 19 pandemic on operations and financials, using existing materiality guidelines. Disclosures should be timely, adequate, non selective, and may include operational disruption, restart schedules, measures taken, and quantitative/qualitative effects on capital, profitability, liquidity, debt servicing, assets, internal controls, supply chain, demand and contractual risks; entities should update prior disclosures as material developments occur and include pandemic impact in periodic financial statements where possible.

Import of milk and milk products into India must be accompanied by a veterinary certificate with specified attestations.
All consignments of milk and milk products, including edible lactose, must be accompanied by a veterinary certificate from the exporting country's competent authority attesting that source animals were not fed ruminant-derived meat or bone meal, that animal rennet was not used, that processing achieved temperatures to destroy specified zoonoses, that animals were not exposed to BGH/BST or recent estrogenic treatment, and that residues and toxins comply with Codex limits; customs must insist on the certificate at all entry points, examine consignments on arrival, take samples, and the Department of Animal Husbandry will act at the importer's cost for nonconformity.

Mandatory electronic payment requirement exempted for businesses with only B2B transactions when virtually all receipts are non-cash.
Section 269SU mandates that specified persons must offer prescribed electronic payment modes-Debit Card powered by RuPay, UPI and UPI QR Code. The circular exempts a specified person with only B2B transactions (no retail customers) from section 269SU if at least ninety five percent of aggregate receipts in the previous year, including sales, turnover or gross receipts, are received by modes other than cash.

IRP/RP registration and GST compliance extensions clarified, covering registration procedure, return filing, export timing and ITC 04 filing.
Clarification extends timeframes and prescribes procedures for GST compliance during the COVID 19 period: IRP/RP registration time is extended and corporate debtors with prior complete return filing need not obtain fresh registration; changes in IRP/RP are treated as amendments to authorized signatory; merchant exporter export timing is extended where the original window fell within the affected period; and furnishing of FORM GST ITC 04 for the quarter ending March is extended to the later permissible date.

Paperless import clearance: PGA LPCOs must be uploaded on e SANCHIT; beneficiary uploads barred after cut off.
The notice adds two Registrar of Newspapers document types to e-SANCHIT and requires PGAs to upload digitally signed LPCOs, centralising LPCO uploads with PGAs. Beneficiary uploads on e-SANCHIT are deactivated from the stated cut-off, although the newly enabled PGA must upload LPCOs issued within the prior 15-day window and may upload earlier LPCOs to enable beneficiary use. Beneficiaries must ensure correct ICEGATE e-mail registration because PGAs will communicate LPCO information and IRNs via those addresses; the Public Notice 02/2020 is modified accordingly.

e-SANCHIT electronic LPCO submission: RNI must upload authorizations; beneficiary uploads disabled, ensure ICEGATE email registration.
RNI is added as a PGA on e-SANCHIT to upload digitally signed LPCOs; beneficiary uploads of previously issued LPCOs are disabled from 31.05.2020. RNI must upload LPCOs issued during the 15 days prior to the cut-off and may upload earlier documents to enable beneficiary use. Beneficiaries must ensure correct email addresses in ICEGATE because PGAs will communicate LPCO information via those registered emails; Board's email-based auto registration for limited e-SANCHIT functions applies.

Hedging of foreign exchange risk: implementation deferred; offshore non deliverable rupee directions remain effective as previously scheduled.
Directions on hedging of foreign exchange risk originally to come into effect on June 1, 2020 are deferred and will now be effective from September 1, 2020; Directions on banks' participation in offshore non deliverable rupee derivative markets remain effective from June 1, 2020. The Circular is issued under the statutory foreign exchange framework and preserves any permissions required under other laws, addressed to Authorised Dealers Category I.

Electronic sealing requirement for customs bonded warehouses rescinded pending fresh comprehensive public consultation and review of modalities.
The Board has rescinded previously issued but not yet operationalised circulars mandating RFID and other electronic sealing for deposit in and removal of goods from Customs bonded warehouses, and will prepare a comprehensive circular placing revised modalities on the public domain for stakeholder inputs prior to finalisation.

Upload Drug Controller licence in eSanchit to secure online clearance of pharmaceutical imports and avoid processing delays.
Importers and customs brokers must upload Drug Controller licences, NOCs and related approvals into eSanchit for clearance of pharmaceutical consignments requiring Assistant Drug Controller approval; the measure relies on the Single Window/automated customs data routing to eliminate physical interface, reduce dwell time and avoid queries, and trade associations are asked to publicize the requirement with a contact provided for implementation difficulties.

Relaxation in timelines for regulatory compliance provides extended filing and operational relief for market participants during pandemic disruptions.
The circular extends compliance timelines for trading members, clearing members and depository participants by amending earlier SEBI circulars: specified monthly and quarterly obligations and listed items are extended largely until June 30, 2020; the period of exclusion for another set of provisions is March 23, 2020 to June 30, 2020; and certain items receive a two month extension from their due date. All other conditions of the earlier circulars continue; market infrastructure entities must notify members and publish the circular.