Certificate of Origin Non-Preferential: address of Bharat Chamber of Commerce updated in official list, affecting issuance records.
The Director General of Foreign Trade amends Appendix 2E of the Handbook of Procedures to replace the address and contact details for Bharat Chamber of Commerce at Sl. No. 7 under West Bengal, updating the authorised agency entry for issuance of Certificate of Origin (Non-Preferential) and making the new address the operative contact for future issuance.

Priority clearance of COVID-19 medical imports required; customs directed to expedite consignments and report difficulties.
All Customs formations are directed to give top priority to clearance of imports relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, including RT PCR laboratory equipment, medical equipment and oxygen-related equipment, and to sensitise staff to expedite these consignments; any implementation difficulties must be reported to the Board.

GST registration functions are allocated among State Tax officers by territorial jurisdiction, taxpayer category, and applicable pecuniary limits.
GST registration functions under the Rajasthan Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 are assigned to specified State Tax officers. Joint Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners and Assistant Commissioners in regular Circles or Wards are authorised for registration-related functions within their territorial jurisdictions. Joint Commissioners and Deputy Commissioners in regular Circles handle registration functions for casual taxable persons and non-resident taxable persons undertaking supplies. Specified functions remain subject to applicable pecuniary limits, and the relevant Additional Commissioner (Administration) may reallocate work where an assigned officer is unavailable.

COVID-19 relaxation of functional targets shifts enforcement to intelligence-based checks and revised physical verification timelines.
Monthly functional targets for Mobile Squad and Enforcement Units were kept in abeyance due to the second wave of COVID-19. Enforcement was to proceed on an intelligence-based footing using GST, E-Way Bill and ComtaxUP data, with vigilance and caution. The instruction for physical verification in all GST registration cases was also relaxed, and verification for registered persons generating E-Way Bills for inward or outward supplies exceeding Rs. 50 lakh was to be completed within 20 days of registration.

Relaxation of listing procedures extended; issuers must complete refunds by the next business day and ensure registrar data accuracy.
SEBI extends specified one time procedural relaxations for Rights Issues to apply for issues opening up to September 30, 2021, provided issuers and Lead Managers continue to comply with the remaining conditions of the May 6, 2020 circular. Issuers, Lead Managers, Registrars and other intermediaries must ensure refunds for un allotted or partially allotted applications are completed by the business day after the basis of allotment and that refund instruction data is error free, with prompt remediation of any technical rejections.

CSR funds eligibility expanded to include makeshift hospitals and temporary COVID care facilities, subject to CSR Rules and state consultation.
CSR funds may be used for setting up makeshift hospitals and temporary COVID care facilities as eligible activities under Schedule VII items for promotion of health care and disaster management, provided companies consult State Governments and comply with the Companies (CSR Policy) Rules, 2014 and related CSR circulars.

Immediate reporting of sensitive customs seizures: notify senior Board members promptly and prevent any leaks to the press.
Field formations must promptly send a preliminary report on important or sensitive seizures and commercial frauds to the Chairman and Zonal Member/Member (Investigation) without waiting for conclusion of search, seizure, or arrest proceedings; a formal detailed report may follow. During searches, seizures, or arrests nothing may be leaked to the press or outside agencies by any means until the Board officially discloses the information.

Warehousing norms for commodity derivatives: accreditation, financial safeguards and mandatory monitoring to ensure good delivery.
Clearing Corporations must establish comprehensive warehousing norms to ensure good delivery for physically settled commodity derivatives, including transparent accreditation of WSPs and assayers, fit-and-proper and governance requirements, prescribed financial safeguards (security deposits and incremental financial security deposits with monitoring and coordination with WDRA), facility and operational standards for agricultural and metal commodities, mandatory SOPs, sampling/assaying protocols, periodic and surprise audits, fortnightly physical reconciliation with electronic records, and extensive public disclosures and grievance mechanisms.

Committee of creditors request compels resolution professional to convene or place proposed matters when members reach prescribed voting threshold.
Where members representing the prescribed voting threshold request convening of a committee of creditors meeting, the resolution professional shall forthwith convene the meeting or place the proposing note on the agenda of a scheduled meeting; such request must include a note proposing matters or issues and relevant documents. Requests below the prescribed voting threshold must be considered expeditiously on merits by the resolution professional, who may then convene a meeting or place the note for consideration in an ensuing meeting. Notices must list matters, voting issues and relevant documents.

Electronic customs processing enables shipping bill retransmission and digital examination instructions while requiring origin certificates for preferential imports.
ICES enables AMEND-role officers to retransmit Shipping Bills to the RBI's EDPMS where export details are not reflected. Examination instructions are no longer printed on the first copy of a Bill of Entry and are emailed to the importer or Customs Broker after goods registration. For India-Mauritius CECPA preferential imports, CAROTAR-related Bill of Entry particulars apply, and the Certificate of Origin must be uploaded on eSanchit with the corresponding IRN declared for covered items.

E-way bill compliance for split consignments triggers detention and transit action under GST transport rules.
Action under section 129 is to be taken where goods are transported in violation of section 68 and rule 138. If a seller splits a consignment exceeding the prescribed value into multiple invoices below the threshold for the same buyer and does not generate E-Way Bill-01, the consignment is to be treated as a rule 138 violation. For perishable, hazardous, or time-sensitive goods, the payment period under section 129(6) may be reduced, disposal may be made under rule 141(2), and the proceeds are to be kept in FDR form and adjusted against tax, interest, penalty, or other dues.

Tariff Rate Quota allocation allows additional sugar exports to UK under notified TRQ conditions and certification requirements.
Allocation of an additional quantity of raw/refined sugar to the United Kingdom for the 2020-21 TRQ cycle permits export under the Tariff Rate Quota mechanism subject to the Foreign Trade Policy and existing TRQ notifications; the allocation is to be operated through the designated implementing agency and exporters must follow the notification-specific reporting framework and prescribed certification protocols.

Mutual fund reporting obligations revised: quarterly compliance and trustee reporting schedules and formats updated effective from specified reporting periods.
AMCs will discontinue Bi-monthly and Half-yearly Compliance Certificates and instead submit a prescribed Quarterly Report to trustees by the 21st calendar day following each quarter. AMCs must also submit a complete quarterly Compliance Test Report to the regulator on the same timetable. Trustees must file a revised Half Yearly Trustee Report to the regulator, including corrective steps for non-compliance, within two months for half-years ending September and March. QR and CTR apply from the quarter ending June 2021; HYTR applies from the half-year ended March 2021.

Delegated litigation-signing powers permit designated senior officers to execute specified tribunal filings subject to prior approval.
Delegation of litigation-signing powers authorises Special Commissioners, Additional Commissioners and Joint Commissioners to sign departmental replies, affidavits, counter-affidavits and appeals. The authority covers filings before the National Company Law Tribunal, Debt Recovery Tribunal and National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, subject to prior approval of the Commissioner (State Tax).

Form C concessional purchases are restricted to resale and manufacturing, excluding mining, electricity and telecommunications use.
Concessional Central Sales Tax purchases against Form C are available only where specified goods are intended for resale or for use in manufacture or processing for sale. Petroleum crude, high speed diesel, motor spirit, natural gas, aviation turbine fuel and alcoholic liquor for human consumption cannot be purchased inter-State against Form C for use in mining, electricity generation or distribution, or telecommunications networks. The communication is clarificatory and is not intended for legal interpretation of statutory provisions.

Late cut relief for MEIS applications: no late cut for eligible 2019-20 export claims filed by the prescribed deadline.
The Handbook of Procedures is amended to permit MEIS applications for shipping bills with Let Export dates in the 2019-20 financial year to be submitted up to a prescribed deadline without any late cut; applications submitted after that deadline will be subject to the standard late cut rules and the normal last-date mechanism for belated claims.

Deemed export refunds: recipients may claim tax refund while availing ITC, with portal debit required to avoid dual benefit.
Recipients of deemed export supplies may claim refund of tax paid and are not precluded from availing input tax credit on the same invoices; the portal, however, requires debit from the electronic credit ledger to prevent dual benefit. The earlier circular's restriction on recipients foregoing ITC when claiming refund is modified: recipients must furnish an undertaking identifying invoices and returns and declaring the supplier has not claimed refund, while supplier-filed refunds still require specified documentary undertakings.

Regulatory reporting by AIFs: quarterly activity and leverage reports required in revised formats via the regulator's online portal.
Alternative Investment Funds must submit standardized quarterly activity reports to the securities regulator in revised formats via the regulator's intermediary portal; Category III AIFs must also file quarterly leverage reports in prescribed formats. Separately, any changes to private placement memoranda and fund/scheme documents must be intimated to investors and the regulator on a consolidated basis within one month of the financial year end, with explicit reference to revised sections and pages.

Facilitation helpdesk for faceless assessment grievances provides a single escalation channel for urgent Bill of Entry clearance concerns.
The Turant Suvidha Kendra at Nhava Sheva functions as a Facilitation Helpdesk for grievances concerning clearance of Bills of Entry filed at the port within Mumbai Customs Zone-II. Stakeholders may contact the Superintendent or Appraising Officer through personal contact, email or telephone. An Additional Commissioner of Customs is designated as the nodal officer and single escalation point for urgent Bill of Entry clearance grievances. Implementation difficulties may be raised with the Additional or Joint Commissioner of the Turant Suvidha Kendra.

Jurisdiction over non-Income tax direct tax appeals allocated to designated Commissioners, to be notified by principal chief commissioners.
The Faceless Appeal Scheme, 2020 notifications apply only to the Income tax Act, 1961 and do not confer faceless appeal jurisdiction on other Direct Tax Acts. The Board has approved designation of specific Commissioners of Income tax (Appeals) in each Principal Chief Commissioner region to exercise jurisdiction over appeals under those other Direct Tax Acts; Principal Chief Commissioners must notify the designated Commissioners and forward copies to the Board. The designation is effective from 25th September 2020 or from creation of the designated post, whichever is later.