Cargo dwell time publication required monthly by CFSs; data must be posted online and submitted to customs.
CFSs must compute and publish monthly cargo dwell time separately for export and import-average difference between "gate in time" and "gate out time" for normal clearances-in the prescribed format, update it on their website, and communicate the data to Customs by the 5th of the succeeding month for display on JNCH by the 10th. Non-submission will be shown as "Not Submitted." CFSs must also email monthly details of consignments not cleared within 24 hours of OOC; best-performing CFSs will be publicly benchmarked and awarded Certificates of Recognition, and non-compliance will be pursued through ADC/JC (PG).

SMTP issuance for rail-bound ICD cargo enables early transfer and automated transmission despite vessel discharge status.
SMTPs for cargo bound to ICDs by rail may be issued before full vessel discharge to expedite transfer and must be strictly complied with by all officers. Where the online system errs, the Boarding Section is authorised, alongside the Import Noting Section, to approve the IGM number so SMTPs are automated and transmitted to shipping lines, terminals and ICD customs without waiting for full discharge, including on weekends and holidays; operational issues should be reported to the Additional/Joint Commissioner.

Rotation Number procedure: email prescribed spreadsheet; customs will record in ICES and return the allotted rotation number promptly.
Prescribes a simplified administrative procedure for obtaining a Rotation Number for outbound vessels: shipping lines must email the prescribed Annexure A spreadsheet to the designated customs address; customs will record entries in the ICES system, generate and annotate the Rotation Number on the same form, and return the completed form. Electronic submissions should originate from the shipping line domain or include a scanned signed application if that is not possible; a contact is provided for technical difficulties and a calendar-year-wise numbering and file-naming convention is prescribed.

Online generation of IEPF challans mandatory; file Form IEPF I with SRN or offline challans will be rejected after deadline.
Companies remitting amounts to the Investor Education & Protection Fund must generate challans online only via the MCA21 portal and file Form IEPF I citing the SRN of the online challan; challans not generated on the MCA21 portal will not be accepted after the specified cutoff, and companies and nodal officers must follow the online generation and SRN based filing procedure for transfers to the Fund.

GST Council approves Chapters I-IX with amendments: 20% rate cap, composition rules, reverse charge and deferred cross-empowerment decision.
The Council approved Chapters I-IX (Sections 1-46) of the Draft Model GST Law with specified amendments: exclude Jammu & Kashmir from Section 1(2); revise the definition of agriculture and merge agriculturist definitions; raise the statutory rate cap to 20% (CGST and SGST); allow composition by intimation with turnover cap not less than Rs. 50 lakh and set composition rates at 1% for traders and 2% for manufacturers; apply reverse charge on supplies from unregistered persons; extend the payment period for input tax credit reversal from three to six months; set TDS threshold at Rs. 2.5 lakh; defer decisions on ITC for capital goods and cross-empowerment.

Spread margin withdrawal must occur by the start of tender period or expiry day, tightening risk management timing.
Withdrawal of spread margin benefit for spread positions must occur no later than the start of the tender period or the start of the expiry day, whichever is earlier, replacing the prior deadline that permitted withdrawal by an earlier expiry related day; exchanges must update risk management norms and notify members and publish the change on their websites.

Benami property prohibition: investigators must gather specified evidence and refer suspected benami assets for attachment and action.
Investigating officers under the Income tax Act must collect evidence relevant to the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, focusing on identification of legal/apparent and beneficial owners, whether property is held for another's benefit, source of funds, transactions in fictitious names, denial of ownership, and untraceable consideration providers. If there is prima facie belief a property is benami, after controlling officer approval the information must be forwarded to the Initiating Officer within 60 days to enable attachment and other action under the Act.

Outsourcing by authorised couriers: prior intimation suffices for pick up, local delivery, official transport and housekeeping.
The Board relaxed the requirement under Regulation 13(j) so that for pick up or local delivery of courier packages, transportation for officials, and housekeeping activities, authorised couriers need only provide prior intimation to Customs rather than obtain written permission; this applies to functions before entry inwards/after clearance of imports and before carting in/after 'Let Export' of exports. The authorised courier must exercise due diligence before outsourcing, while permission remains necessary for other core activities to protect supply chain integrity and revenue.

Express Cargo Clearance System rollout enables automated courier clearance under electronic declaration regulations, governed by CBEC systems oversight.
Rollout of the Express Cargo Clearance System (ECCS) as a pilot at CSI Airport, Mumbai enables automated assessment and clearance under the Courier Imports and Exports (Electronic Declaration and Processing) Regulations, 2010. ECCS is provided on a public-private partnership turnkey basis, will interoperate with ICES/ICEGATE, operate under jurisdictional customs control, and vests all ECCS intellectual property, including source code and documentation, in the Central Board of Excise and Customs. Operational governance, security, change management, continuity and training requirements will be specified by the Directorate of Systems & Data Management.

Container scanning procedure requires cancellation of out of charge and examination where containers are held or marked suspicious.
Where OOC is given at the JNCH facilitation centre but at the CFS gate pass stage the Bill of Entry or any container is found under hold by an investigating agency or marked suspicious by CSD, the CFS must withhold gate pass issuance, refer the Bill of Entry to the AC/DC(Import, Docks) to cancel the out of charge and conduct further examination; DPD containers continue to follow the Facility Notice scanning priority and clearance endorsement by CSD, and if no scanning list is generated the Public Notice 15/2013 procedure applies.

Annual Return requirement suspended for the 2015-16 excise and service tax period owing to GST implementation.
Amendments replaced Central Excise Forms ER 4 to ER 7 with an Annual Return and amended Rule 7 of the Service Tax Rules to prescribe an annual return. Due to GST implementation, the Board directed that the prescribed Annual Return need not be filed for the year 2015-16; relevant circulars and notifications are available on the department website and trade may report difficulties to the department.

Gate automation and parking plaza procedures require electronic customs approvals and live monitoring for container entry and exit.
The SOP mandates that factory stuffed and CFS containers be routed through Parking Plazas for document verification, electronic pre gate transactions and issuance of RFID BATs or PINs; Customs in Parking Plaza cabins shall verify documents, grant LEO where applicable and contemporaneously record clearance in the Terminal Operating System or e Form 13. Terminals must provide Customs cabins and live TOS feeds for monitoring; gate entry/exit requires BAT/PIN verification and CISF checks, with interim manual endorsements where automation is pending.

Co-location connectivity allowed between exchanges and brokers; outsourced colocation remains exchange's responsibility with fair access.
SEBI mandates direct connectivity between colocation facilities of recognised stock exchanges and between a broker's servers across such facilities, to be offered fairly to colocated brokers. Colocation services outsourced to third parties are deemed provided by the stock exchange, which retains control and accountability and must submit quarterly compliance reports after board consideration. LAN-based access by brokers or data vendors falls within the definition of colocation, and all provisions of the earlier colocation circular apply, excluding commodity derivatives exchanges.

Digitalisation of customs documentation reduces routine printouts, permitting electronic challans and system-transmitted shipping and BOE copies.
Routine paper printouts in customs clearance are discontinued where electronic transmission and system integration suffice: GAR7/TR-6 challans will not be printed by default as ICEGATE and bank e-payment confirmations provide electronic records; transhipment permits and certain Shipping Bill copies (Exchange Control and Export Promotion) need not be printed when digitally transmitted and integrated with central monitoring systems; Exchange Control copies of Bills of Entry are discontinued except where manual processes or lack of system interconnectivity require physical copies. Paper copies remain available on demand.

Paperless customs processing: default discontinuation of routine printing of certain challans and shipping and exchange-control copies.
Notice mandates default discontinuation of routine printing of GAR7/TR-6 challans, TP copies where electronic transmission exists, Exchange Control and Export Promotion copies of Shipping Bills, and Exchange Control copies of Bills of Entry due to electronic e-payment confirmations and integration with IDPMS/EDPMS; printed copies remain available on demand.

Paperless customs clearances: routine printing of several import/export documents discontinued, with printouts provided only on demand.
Routine printing of GAR-7/TR-6 challans, TP copies where electronic transmission exists, Shipping Bill Exchange Control and Export Promotion copies, and Exchange Control copies of Bills of Entry is discontinued by default because electronic transmission, ICEGATE e-Payment confirmations and IDPMS integration supply required data; printouts remain available on demand and manual printing may continue where systems are not interconnected or manual BOEs are used.

Demonetization legal tender cessation: exchange window and bank credit rules raise questions about seizure of demonetized notes in tax searches.
Cessation of legal tender for old high denomination bank notes from 9 November 2016 is coupled with an exchange or deposit facility up to 30 December 2016, permitting crediting of equivalent value to bank accounts without a specified limit and providing for further deposit facilities; the clarification examines whether demonetized notes continue to be seizable as valuables/assets during searches or requisitions under the Income-tax Act.

Sale of seized gold may be routed through RBI approved public sector banks and national trading companies under existing conditions.
Sale of seized or confiscated gold found ripe for disposal may be routed through all Public Sector Banks approved by the central bank to import and sell gold, and through national trading companies, while all other conditions in the Ministry's earlier disposal letter remain applicable; customs houses must take urgent steps to dispose accordingly.

Port gate automation procedures require Customs electronic endorsement before terminal entry and controlled TT movement.
Standard operating procedures require that factory stuffed containers eligible for direct port entry be routed through the Parking Plaza for document verification, survey/photo capture and issuance or confirmation of Bay Allocation Tickets, with Customs in the plaza issuing the Let Export Order (LEO) and simultaneously endorsing clearance in the Terminal Operating System or e Form 13; only TTs cleared by Customs may exit the plaza and proceed to terminal gates where BAT swipe or PIN verification and CISF checks control physical entry and outbound closure. For imports, Customs access to ICES and terminal systems enables verification of Out Of Charge for DPD releases and monitoring of other container movements, with interim manual endorsements specified until gate automation is operational.

Refund claims under CENVAT Credit rules: submit only prescribed documents for export services; authorities may request more evidence.
Refund claims under the CENVAT credit framework must comply with Notification 27/2012 CE (NT); required enclosures include Customs certified ARE I with shipping bill and bill of lading for goods, Bank Realization Certificates for services, and an Annexure A I auditor's certificate. Trade must submit only these documents with Form A, while Assistant or Deputy Commissioners retain the power to request additional documents where claim information appears incorrect or insufficient before sanctioning refund.