Exports under LUT now open to all registered persons except certain prosecuted taxpayers, with 3 day deemed acceptance.
The notice extends the facility of export under a Letter of Undertaking (LUT) to all registered persons except those prosecuted for offences with tax evasion above rupees two hundred and fifty lakhs; LUTs are valid for the financial year, may be withdrawn if export timelines and payments under rule 96A are not met, and bonds (where required) must be accompanied by a 15% bank guarantee for prosecuted persons. FORM GST RFD-11 (downloadable until portal availability) must be submitted to the jurisdictional Deputy/Assistant Commissioner; self-declaration of compliance will be accepted with post-facto verification, and LUT/bond are deemed accepted if not processed within three working days.

Bond/Letter of Undertaking clarifications for exports: circular guidance issued requiring dissemination to trade associations and exporters.
Clarification on procedures for furnishing Bond/Letter of Undertaking for exports is transmitted via Circular No. 8/8/2017-GST for information, guidance and necessary action; trade associations and regional advisory committee members are requested to publish and disseminate the Circular among their members to ensure compliance with the furnishing requirements.

Place of importation definition clarified; transaction value to include costs up to place of importation and documents required.
The Rules define "place of importation" as the customs station where goods are brought for clearance for home consumption or removal to warehouse, and stipulate that the transaction value under section 14 of the Customs Act includes costs incurred up to the place of importation; all relevant documents evidencing such costs must be submitted before cargo clearance.

Customs valuation rules: definition of place of importation narrows includible costs and excludes domestic transhipment charges.
Notification No. 91/2017 defines place of importation as the customs station where goods are cleared or warehoused and provides that costs incurred up to that place are relevant for transaction value. Loading, unloading and handling charges at delivery to the place of importation shall not be added to CIF; only charges to deliver goods to the place of importation are includible consistent with WTO Article 8. Provisos clarify computation of freight and insurance when only cumulative FOB-plus values are known. Transhipment costs within India are excluded from the transaction value to ensure uniform treatment across modes.

Appointment of Standing Counsels for indirect tax litigation; panel framework, term limits and engagement conditions clarified.
Appointment of a fresh panel of Senior and Junior Standing Counsels to represent the Central Board of Excise & Customs in indirect tax litigation before various High Courts and fora for the term 03.10.2017-08.06.2019, subject to existing instructional terms; lists counsel by High Court/bench, records panel totals, permits field formations to avail counsel across designated enforcement units, and notes administrative concurrence.

Extension of time for composition scheme stock intimation granted; deadline extended for filing Form GST CMP-03.
The deadline for furnishing details of stock held immediately before the date from which the option to pay tax under the composition levy is exercised in FORM GST CMP-03 is extended, pursuant to sub rule (4) of rule 3 of the CGST Rules read with section 168 of the CGST Act and on the Council's recommendations, as communicated in Order No. 04/2017 dated 29.09.2017.

FPI investment limits in government securities revised, raising sector and long-term category caps for the quarter.
Revision of FPI investment limits for the October-December 2017 quarter increases the upper caps for central Government securities and creates a higher separate cap for Long Term FPIs; SDL-General and SDL-Long Term caps are also enhanced. All existing allocation and monitoring conditions continue to apply. The circular takes effect immediately under Section 11(1) of the Act and requires custodians and depositories to inform FPI clients and implement the revised caps.

Export LUT eligibility expands to registered persons, subject to prosecution safeguards, annual validity, and bond compliance requirements.
Export without payment of integrated tax may be made under a Letter of Undertaking by registered persons, except those prosecuted for tax evasion above the prescribed threshold. The LUT is valid for the financial year but is withdrawn on failure to meet export and payment conditions, and restored upon payment. Pending portal availability, FORM GST RFD-11 may be filed before the jurisdictional officer. Bond users must provide the prescribed bank guarantee and maintain a running bond covering outstanding export tax liability. LUTs and bonds not accepted within three working days are deemed accepted.

Export under Letter of Undertaking expanded to all registered persons with clarified GST procedural and compliance safeguards.
The facility to export without payment of integrated tax by furnishing a Letter of Undertaking (LUT) is extended to all registered persons except those prosecuted for specified offences above the statutory tax-evasion threshold; LUTs are valid for the financial year, must be submitted via FORM GST RFD-11 on the common portal with acceptance evidenced by an ARN, and may be withdrawn if export timelines or payment conditions are not met. Bonds, where required, must be accompanied by a bank guarantee, running bonds must cover self-assessed export tax liabilities, and exporters must retain records for inspection.

Hazardous waste import controls require MEFCC permission and DGFT/DIPP authorization before used tyres are shipped to India.
Imports of used tyres and related rubber waste are restricted and require prior permission from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and licensing/authorization by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade or Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion; second hand goods (except capital goods) are restricted under the Foreign Trade Policy and need specific authorisation. Shipping lines and agents must ensure requisite permissions and licenses are submitted before loading consignments bound for India, with noncompliance attracting action under customs and other laws, and these directions serve as a standing order.

Direct Port Delivery procedure: No Use Bond and RFCL sampling required before fertilizer consignments receive out of charge.
Prescribes a controlled DPD clearance process for fertilizer consignments: importers must submit a No Use Bond and may repack pending RFCL testing; assessing officers provisionally assess, require RFCL sampling before clearance and verify FCO compliance; importers must use CFS DPD mode, give advance intimation with CFS stacking code, and obtain OOC from the RMS Facilitation Centre which will release containers based on the No Use Bond and valid FCO certificate while CFS gate officers ensure RFCL sampling endorsement.

Amendment of shipping bills after LEO but before shipment must be processed by docks officers under prescribed guidelines.
Requests to amend or convert shipping bills received after issuance of the Let Export Order but before shipment must be handled by Docks officers following the guidelines in Para 2 A.A and 2A.2 of the referenced public notice; difficulties are to be reported to the Deputy/Assistant Commissioner, and the directions constitute a standing order for officers and staff.

Composition levy option: deadline extended for intimation of pre-option stock in FORM GST CMP-03 under Assam rules.
Extension of the time limit for furnishing details of stock held immediately before the date from which the option for the composition levy is exercised in FORM GST CMP-03, under sub rule (4) of rule 3 of the Assam Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017, by order of the Commissioner of State Tax, extending the period for intimation of prescribed stock particulars within the new final date specified by the Commissioner.

Extension of time for FORM GST TRAN I submission for taxpayers affected by portal technical difficulties; deadline extended.
Extension of time for submission of FORM GST TRAN-I is authorised for registered taxpayers who could not file by the due date due to technical difficulties on the common portal; the Commissioner, on the Council's recommendation, extended the filing period until 31 January 2019 and the implementing circular is available on the CBIC website.

Transitional credit treatment for reverse charge service tax must be claimed in Form ST-3 then carried into GST TRAN-1.
Where reverse charge service tax was paid after 30 June 2017 but by 5/6 July 2017 for services received and paid before 1 July 2017, the credit must be entered in Part I of Form ST-3 (specified entries) with linked Part H entries; if ST-3 was already filed the credit should be included in a revised ST-3 within the revision period. ST-3 returns for April-June 2017 filed up to 31 August 2017 are deemed filed on 31 August to allow revision, and once reflected in ST-3 the amounts may be carried into Form GST TRAN-1. Non-ACES registrants may use non assessee registration to make payments.

Endorsement on shipping bills dispensed for containerized cargo as EGM serves as proof; bulk cargo still requires endorsement
The Commissioner of Customs, Cochin, dispensed with the requirement of endorsement on the shipping bill for containerised cargo because the Export General Manifest (EGM) constitutes sufficient proof of export, following ICTT Vallarpadom operations and Board Circular No.56/2016; endorsement remains necessary for bulk cargo, and stakeholders should report implementation difficulties to the Additional Commissioner.

Officer designation for affidavit acceptance: assigns specific officers to receive affidavits under GST rate notifications within jurisdictional limits.
Assignment of authority under the Gujarat Goods and Services Tax Act designates specific officers to receive affidavits referenced in the annexures to the State tax (Rate) notifications; delegated functions are specified in a schedule and confined to the officers' territorial jurisdiction unless otherwise stated.

Record retention: officials must e-file and retain hard and scanned copies of specified tax and court records.
Officials must adopt the e-filing module where possible and preserve specified tax and court records both as hard copies and by systematic scanning. Required categories include dealer registration folders, court and sub-judice files, statutory forms, audit and enforcement records, seized documents, legislative amendments and orders, and disclosures relating to dealers. Records are to be kept in safe custody of the concerned ward/branch/office to ensure traceability and availability when required.

Empanelment of chartered engineers for valuation of second hand machinery; applications, verification, and performance reporting required.
Invitation for empanelment of chartered engineers to value second hand imported/exported machinery within the New Custom House jurisdiction; applicants must submit prescribed proforma with self attested professional credentials and experience proofs. Applications will be scrutinized by Customs and referred to the Institute of Engineers (India) for eligibility verification; empanelment will be finalized on receipt of recommendations. Empanelled engineers will be published and must submit prescribed half yearly Self Appraisal Reports to assess continued fitness for the panel.

Self-sealing procedure for exporters enables approval-based factory stuffing with e-seals and risk-based customs verification and intimation.
Establishes a trust based self sealing procedure replacing supervised sealing: exporters must notify the Superintendent (SSP), be GST registrants (subject to DGFT status holder exception), and submit IEC, GSTIN, premises ownership/lease, company profile, two year shipping history and authorised signatory details with identity and bank signature verification. SSP/Inspector inspects premises and reports within 48 hours; the Principal Commissioner may grant permission valid across customs stations. Exporters must intimate planned stuffing one day ahead, present self sealed containers with prescribed documents for seal verification and LEO, and comply with risk based examination; non compliance may lead to withdrawal of permission.