Authorized Economic Operator programme: encourages AEO certification to secure expedited customs facilitation and supply chain benefits.
The notice advises importers, exporters and trade intermediaries to apply for certification under the Authorized Economic Operator programme to obtain an internationally recognised security mark and tiered operational benefits. AEO tiers (AEO LO for non traders; AEO T1/T2/T3 for traders) are subject to eligibility under CBEC Circulars. Benefits include Direct Port Delivery/Entry, deferred duty payment for higher tiers, mutual recognition advantages, expedited drawback/refund/adjudication processing, paperless declarations and acceptance of self certified origin documents. Applications are to be submitted to JNCH or the Directorate of International Customs and JNCH will hold workshops and has nominated a Client Relationship Manager.

Line of Credit supports Kenyan agricultural mechanization; exports must be majority India sourced and comply with FEMA declaration and remittance rules.
Exim Bank's Government of India supported Line of Credit to Kenya finances exports of eligible goods and services for an agricultural mechanization project, requiring that a substantial majority of contract goods and services be supplied from India with a limited portion procured abroad. Shipments must be declared on the Export Declaration Form; agency commission is not payable under the LoC though exporters may pay commission from their own resources or Exchange Earners' Foreign Currency Account after realization. AD Category I banks must notify exporters, facilitate permitted remittances, and obtain full LoC details from Exim Bank. Directions issued under the Foreign Exchange Management Act remain subject to other legal permissions.

Duty drawback rates amended: enhanced, reduced and reclassified items under Customs schedule, effective from 25 January 2018.
Amendments revise All Industry Rates (AIRs) of Duty Drawback effective 25 January 2018, enhancing drawback caps for specified marine products, rubber articles, leather goods, wool yarns/fabrics, glass handicrafts, bicycles and certain man-made textile nets, reducing caps for certain chemicals, and deleting tariff item for Polypropylene Mats with reclassification under tariff item 460101 at the existing rate; notice provides administrative contacts and declares directions as a standing order for implementation.

IGST refund processing requires accurate GST return and shipping bill matching to trigger automated disbursal.
Smooth processing of IGST refunds on exports requires accurate matching of data between GST portal returns and customs shipping bills; timely filing and correction of return entries (including amendment facilities) and submission of full documentary evidence with refund applications enable automated sanction. Refund of unutilized Input Tax Credit must be applied for on the common portal where claims debit the electronic credit ledger, generate an ARN, and the printed form together with supporting documents must be submitted to the jurisdictional officer for processing.

MRP relabelling permission allows stamping or stickering reduced retail prices on pre packaged unsold stock after GST rate change.
Permits manufacturers, packers and importers of pre packaged commodities to declare a changed retail sale price (MRP) on unsold stock by affixing an additional sticker, stamping or by online printing where input credit adjustments or GST rate reductions reduce the retail price; permission preserved original MRP while allowing an additional indication of reduced price and was extended by the Director of Legal Metrology up to 31 March 2018.

Nominated agency list update: State Trading Corporation added to Appendix 4B, recognising it under the FTP nominated agencies.
Corrigendum incorporates State Trading Corporation of India Ltd. into Appendix 4B of the Handbook of Procedures 2015-20 by adding it at Sl. VI of Part C, thereby formally recognising it among the nominated agencies under the Foreign Trade Policy; the corrigendum refers to the revised Appendix 4B as enclosed.

GSTIN jurisdiction transfer procedure sets approval levels, reporting formats, and compliance requirements for trader reassignment.
GSTIN transfer of traders to the correct jurisdiction was regulated through a structured administrative process for movement between tax assessment offices, divisions and zones. Within a division, transfer from one tax assessment office to another was to be made by the Division Sub State Admin after approval of the concerned Joint Commissioner (Executive). Within a zone, transfer from one division to another was to be made by the Zone Sub State Admin after approval of the concerned Zonal Additional Commissioner. Where workload required an additional Sub State Admin, the proposal was to be sent to headquarters in the prescribed Excel format with specified officer particulars.

All Industry Rates of Duty Drawback amended to adjust export incentive rates and tariff classification consequences.
Amendments revise the All Industry Rates (AIRs) of Duty Drawback, increasing rates/caps for specified marine products, rubber articles including tyres, leather articles, wool yarns and fabrics, glass handicrafts, bicycles and certain man made textile nets, while reducing rates/caps for specified chemical tariff items; a Drawback Schedule entry for polypropylene mats was deleted and those goods retained under an alternate tariff heading consistent with the Customs Tariff Act, with the existing rate/cap. Issuance of public notices/standing orders and reporting of implementation difficulties to the Board are directed.

Export Promotion Cells centralize customs handling of export work, replacing GST officer processing and assuming jurisdictional files.
Formation of Export Promotion Cells to centralize customs-related export work previously handled by Central Excise/GST officers. New Cells at Bengaluru (East I, East II, South, Central), Mysore and Chitradurga are assigned specific jurisdictions, office locations and officer contacts. These Cells will take over related files from the GST Commissionerates immediately, officers will report to the Additional Commissioner of Customs, and trade is requested to utilise the Cells for customs work and report difficulties to the Commissioner.

Budgetary support under GST for erstwhile area based exempt units enables refundable credit after verification and PFMS disbursal.
The scheme provides refundable budgetary support to units formerly covered by area based excise exemptions in specified hill and northeastern states; eligible units must be GST registered, file quarterly returns with tax paid, register under the scheme and submit supporting documents. Claims are computed from cash ledger debits for central and integrated tax, reduced for inputs from composition dealers, and adjusted where multiple units operate under one GSTIN using certified allocation data. Registration yields a unique ID and vendor validation; sanctioned amounts are paid via PFMS after verification and inspection, with provisional sanction possible if inspection cannot be completed.

Authorized Economic Operator programme expands advance authorizations on self declaration and tightens application and compliance procedures.
Amendments to the Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Programme expand facilitation by permitting AEO-certified exporters to apply for Advance Authorization on self-declaration where SION or ad-hoc norms are absent or additional inputs are used. The Commissioner, Directorate of International Customs is designated AEO Programme Manager; applications go to jurisdictional Chief Commissioners with copies to the Programme Manager. Financial solvency for the prior three years, absence of insolvency or customs duty defaults, and specified solvency certificates are required. Certificate validity, disclosure of show-cause notices, site reporting, and nomination of Client Relationship Managers are also revised.

Movement of containerised imports now governed by ICES v1.5 CFS and Gate modules with bonded auto debits and electronic gate controls.
ICES Version 1.5 introduces CFS and Gate modules at Kolkata (Port) requiring MLOs and CFS operators to register yearly renewable continuity bonds (CO by MLOs; TR by CFSs). IGM filing will carry CFS and bond details to trigger auto debiting of bond amounts and generation of a system "Movement No." Customs officers approve movements in ICES; Gate Module entries at terminal and CFS create gate passes and effect automatic TR bond recredit on receipt, while CO bond recredit and cancellation are reconciled by the Container Cell on submission of export details.

Authorized Economic Operator programme changes decentralise processing and set solvency, validity, and compliance requirements.
Amendments revise the Authorized Economic Operator framework to decentralise application processing to jurisdictional Chief Commissioners while designating the Commissioner, Directorate of International Customs as AEO Programme Manager supported by zonal officers. Applicants must demonstrate three years' solvency, be free from insolvency or customs duty default, and provide tier-specific solvency certificates. The validity of certificates is three years for T1/T2 and five years for T3/LO. AEO applicants' legal-compliance details will be posted online with field formations required to respond to zonal AEO cells; zonal cells must nominate a Client Relationship Manager. Advance Authorisation on self-declaration is permitted for AEO exporters where input norms are absent or additional inputs are used.

Customs transshipment from Pune ACC requires approved transshipment permits, bonds, double locked custody, and ICES 1.5 electronic processing.
Facility for export transshipment from ACC Pune requires filing the Shipping Bill and obtaining Let Export Order at origin; carrier/transhipper must secure an approved Transshipment Permit and register a Continuity Transit Bond/BG in ICES 1.5, which is debited on approval and re credited after proof of onward export. Physical custody at gateway requires a double locked custodian warehouse, Customs verification of packages against TP/AWB/SB, loading under Customs supervision, and electronic messaging between origin and gateway for permit, SB and EGM processing; ETP approval also triggers IGST refund processing.

Foreign Direct Investment rules revised to liberalize sectoral entry routes, ownership limits, and compliance requirements.
Amendments revise FDI entry routes, ownership limits and compliance across sectors: joint audit requirement when an international-network auditor is specified; 100% automatic FDI for investing NBFCs, while CICs and other investing companies require Government approval and RBI CIC compliance; competent authority for applications from countries of concern assigned to DIPP for automatic-route security-clearance cases; civil aviation carrier foreign investment capped with effective control retained by Indian nationals; real-estate broking classified as non-real-estate business allowing 100% automatic FDI; 100% automatic FDI in single brand retail with brand, sourcing and transitional global-sourcing conditions; removal of certain power exchange restrictions; expanded medical device definition; and rules for equity issuance against imports and pre operative expenses with specified documentation and reporting.

Container scanning: non-intrusive inspection required and supervised physical examination for suspicious AFTWZ-bound containers.
Pilot project requires RMCC-selected AFTWZ bound containers to be scanned at designated mobile or fixed scanners; the EIR will record selection and scanner type and must accompany containers. AFTWZ/Carrier must bring selected containers for scanning and submit EIRs with CSD endorsements to the DC/AC. CSD will endorse scanning outcomes on the EIR and email images of suspicious containers to AFTWZ, which must conduct supervised full physical examination and return results to CSD and the system. Unscanned containers due to operational issues will be diverted for supervised examination with EIR endorsement.

Attendance directive for Group A officers requires presence at Customs Day investiture ceremony to ensure official participation.
A departmental circular issues an attendance directive requiring all Group A officers posted in the Board to attend the Customs Day and Investiture Ceremony, communicated as an internal administrative instruction from the Department of Revenue, Central Board of Excise & Customs and issued with Board approval.

Export Promotion Circles established to centralize customs functions, shifting specified duties from Excise/GST to local customs.
Export Promotion Circles are constituted within Ahmedabad customs to undertake customs functions hitherto performed by Excise/GST formations - including drawback administration, concessional import processing, issuance of end use and installation certificates, EOU/EHTP/STP related customs work, and sealing of containerized cargo - effective immediately; Annexure A lists controlling offices, EPC addresses and territorial jurisdictions for implementation, and stakeholders are invited to report difficulties to the department.

Verification of State-run lottery tickets required; designated Assistant Commissioners must inspect and countersign statements immediately.
Designated Assistant Commissioners must visit the specified printing presses to physically verify printed lottery tickets against invoices and countersign statements prepared by State Lottery officials; for unsold tickets after each draw, the Assistant Commissioners of the named Special Circles and specified Assistant Commissioners of State Tax must inspect unsold tickets at district Lottery Department offices and countersign the prepared statements, with these measures effective immediately.

Filing of returns under GST: calendar set, edit facility allowed pre-offset, reduced late fees, reconciliation deferred.
Filing of returns under GST requires monthly FORM GSTR-3B by all registered persons and FORM GSTR-1 on monthly or quarterly basis depending on self-assessed aggregate turnover; quarterly filing is available up to Rs.1.5 crore turnover but monthly filing may be elected for the year. Late fees for July-September were waived; reduced daily late fees apply from October. Errors in FORM GSTR-3B may be corrected using the edit facility prior to offsetting; otherwise adjustments must be made in subsequent returns, amendments to FORM GSTR-1, refunds claimed where necessary, or payments/reversals made with interest. System reconciliation with GSTR-1/2 is deferred pending notification.