Registration procedure for duty credit scrips requires NO ALERT endorsement and DGFT online verification before licence registration.
Registration requires presentation of the original licence/scrip for a NO ALERT endorsement after internal alert list check, submission of the endorsed original with prescribed authorization and identity documents, retrieval of DGFT website confirmation of genuineness, generation of a checklist with job number for licence holder verification, and endorsement of a registration number by the Superintendent/Appraiser before returning the licence.

On-line filing of annexure returns now permits importing expanded excel annexures to simplify dealer return submissions.
The Department updated its off-line utility to permit direct import of Annexure 2A and 2B in an expanded excel format with minimal codification; the excel templates and instructions are available on the Department website and dealers may use the new off-line block or continue to import data in the previously specified excel format.

Repatriation requirement for ECB proceeds: rupee intended funds must be credited to domestic rupee accounts and not parked abroad.
ECB proceeds intended for rupee expenditure must be repatriated immediately and credited to borrowers' Rupee accounts with Authorised Dealer Category I banks; only proceeds for foreign currency expenditure may be retained abroad. Retained funds may be parked in highly liquid, rated instruments; repatriated rupee funds are prohibited from investment in capital markets, real estate or inter corporate lending.

All-in-cost ceiling for external commercial borrowings revised; medium term pricing cap raised and effective immediately until review.
Revision of the all-in-cost ceiling for External Commercial Borrowings adjusts the ceiling measured over the six month benchmark for borrowings with average maturities of three to five years while leaving longer term ceilings unchanged; the revision takes effect immediately as a temporary measure until March 31, 2012, subject to review, and all other ECB policy provisions remain unchanged.

Foreign Currency-INR swap cap removed, allowing AD Category I banks to intermediate OTC swaps for customer hedging without the prior net supply limit.
AD Category I banks may undertake OTC Foreign Currency-INR swap transactions as intermediaries by matching corporate counterparties' requirements to facilitate hedging, and the earlier regulatory cap on net supply of foreign exchange in the market for such swaps has been removed; banks should notify their constituents and remain subject to any other statutory permissions.

On-line registration mandatory for RCMC uploads; failure to upload by deadline bars manual RCMC acceptance.
Export Promotion Councils, Commodity Boards and Authorities must upload RCMC data onto the DGFT server by 30 November 2011; failure to complete online registration and uploads would have triggered mandatory electronic registration and disallowance of manual RCMC/Registration Certificates, and the DGFT has extended the final deadline to 30 November 2011 with no further extensions permitted.

Draft Letter of Offer format updated; merchant bankers must use the revised format for regulatory takeover filings.
The circular revises and prescribes an updated format for submission of the Draft Letter of Offer under the takeover regulations; merchant bankers are instructed to follow this updated format when submitting the Draft Letter of Offer to the regulator, and the revised template and instructions are made available on the regulator's website under the legal framework and takeovers categories.

Foreign investment in infrastructure debt funds permitted on repatriation basis with eligibility, maturity, lock in and caps.
Permits repatriation basis foreign investment into IDFs set up as NBFCs or SEBI registered mutual funds, by specified SEBI registered sovereign, multilateral, pension, insurance, endowment funds, FIIs, NRIs and SEBI registered HNIs; eligible instruments include rupee units and rupee or, for qualifying investors, foreign currency denominated bonds. All investments require an original five year maturity and a three year lock in (with intra non resident trading allowed). Foreign currency bonds must meet ECB conditions, hedging is permitted under FEMA, and quantitative limits apply to non NRI investments while NRIs face no cap for rupee securities.

Penalty for export shortfall allows removal from defaulter list upon verification and prescribed payment by exporters.
Names of exporters are removed from the defaulter list after documentary re verification and payment of the prescribed penalty to the concerned Regional Authorities; 48 firms in Annexure 1 were de listed. Exporters whose shipments exceed the tolerance of plus or minus five percent may obtain removal by paying a penalty comprising a fixed component plus a percentage of the shortfall beyond the five percent allowance, following re verification with the issuing RC authority.

GR declaration procedure for mid sea trans shipment: exporters may use vessel master's GR form in lieu of Customs certification.
The Reserve Bank prescribes a tailored GR declaration procedure for mid sea trans shipment by Indian deep sea fishing vessels: exporters may submit a GR form signed by the Master in lieu of Customs certification recording composition, quantity, export value and date of transfer; Bill of Lading details may substitute for Shipping Bill particulars; GR forms must be supported by an international cargo surveyor certificate, indicate the Ministry of Agriculture Letter of Permit number, be serialised by Customs at a registered or approved port, and the period for realisation and repatriation runs from the master certified transfer date or invoice date, whichever is earlier.

Mandatory online filing requirement extended for monthly VAT returns; tax deposit obligations and penalties remain applicable.
Mandatory online filing of Annexure 2A and 2B is required for all dealers filing monthly returns for October 2011; online submission deadline extended to 09.12.2011 and hard copy filing deadline extended to 12.12.2011. Tax due must be deposited according to statutory provisions and penalties for late payment remain applicable.

Exchange of Information proforma revised and a separate Transfer Pricing proforma proposed to standardise international tax information requests.
Requests for foreign tax information under mutual agreements must follow prescribed checklists channelled through the FT&TR Division of the CBDT; a separate Transfer Pricing proforma is to be developed alongside improvements to the general Exchange of Information proforma. Submission rules require Commissioner/Director to address requests to designated Joint Secretaries by geographic allocation, with separate proformas for each taxpayer and each country, and duplicate checklists where multiple countries are involved. Annexures specify required data elements for general information and detailed banking information.

Negative list taxation for services: defines taxable economic activities and sectoral carve-outs pending place-of-supply rules.
Proposal shifts service taxation to a Negative List, retaining the broad definition of "service" but confining levy to transactions by persons independently carrying out economic activities for consideration. It excludes employees acting under employment contracts and non commercial or gratuitous activities, preserves Central power to declare services, and specifies a revised Negative List across government services, social welfare, finance, transport, construction, education and health. Implementation requires Place of Taxation/Supply Rules and allows targeted exemptions and notified exceptions for operational clarity.

Increase in FII debt limit enables additional investment via competitive bidding with entity caps and bidding rules.
Increase in FII investment ceilings for government securities and listed corporate bonds will be allocated through a BSE competitive bidding process, subject to SEBI bidding rules with specified modifications: per-entity allocation caps for incremental limits and for unutilized long-term government debt, a minimum bid amount, custodians' obligation to remit bidding fees within a short period after the auction, and adherence to the existing utilization timeframe for allotted limits.

Set-off of export receivables against import payables: AD Category I banks may allow set offs under prescribed documentary and reporting safeguards.
AD Category - I banks are delegated authority to allow set-off of export receivables against import payables only where imports comply with the Foreign Trade Policy, invoices/bills of lading/airway bills and exchange control copies of Bills of Entry for home consumption are submitted, import payments remain outstanding, consent for set-off exists from the same overseas buyer/supplier, transactions are reported in 'R' Returns, GR forms are released only after full adjustment/receipt of export proceeds, and ACU country transactions are excluded.

Prohibition on overseas forex remittances: unauthorized internet forex trading payments are not permitted and banks must block facilitation.
Remittance or deposit of funds by residents for overseas foreign exchange trading through internet portals is not permitted under the Foreign Exchange Management Act. Authorised Dealer Category-I banks must exercise heightened vigilance over margin payments and accounts used to collect such monies, publicise the restriction, and ensure compliance with KYC and AML obligations; residents remitting funds for such trading may be proceeded against for contravention of foreign exchange law.

Foreign Direct Investment: issue or transfer of participating interest in oil fields to non-residents treated as FDI and must be reported.
Issue or transfer of participating interest/rights in oil fields to non-residents is to be treated as Foreign Direct Investment under the FEMA Regulations; transfers must be reported as 'other' under Para 7 of Form FC-TRS and issuances as 'other' under Para 4 of Form FC-GPR, with implementing amendments to the Regulations to be notified separately.

Single IEC per PAN: additional IECs must be surrendered or will be blocked if not surrendered within the specified period.
Directive requiring surrender of additional Importer-Exporter Codes issued against a single PAN, reaffirming that only one IEC is permitted per PAN under Para 2.9 of the Handbook of Procedures 2009-14, and directing firms to surrender extra IECs within the specified period or have those IECs blocked.

Single premises registration requires online ST-1 filing with supporting premises, identity, PAN and bank proofs within seven days.
A uniform procedure requires online submission of ST-1 via ACES and filing the signed ST-1 printout with the jurisdictional Registration Cell within seven days together with specified proofs for the premises, identity, PAN and bank accounts; upon grant an ST-2 printout signed by the Superintendent is issued. Transfers or address changes require Annexure-II disclosures and submission to both old and new jurisdictions; duplicate PAN/director proofs are not required if unchanged. After new registration, the earlier registration must be surrendered and the new jurisdiction informed within two months.

All-in-cost ceiling for trade credit increased, effective immediately, as a temporary measure subject to subsequent review.
Revision of the all-in-cost ceiling for trade credits into India increases permissible margins over the relevant benchmark for defined maturities; the ceilings include arranger, upfront and management fees, handling/processing charges, out-of-pocket expenses and legal costs. The change is effective immediately, communicated to Category I Authorised Dealer banks for onward notice to constituents, is temporary and subject to review, and issued under powers conferred by the foreign exchange statute while other trade credit policy aspects remain unchanged.