The Schedule under Regulation 12 replaces "Associated Persons" with "Specified Persons" in regulation 17A(4) of the Debenture Trustees Regulations and in regulations 2(1)(ea) and 2(1)(ha) of the Self Regulatory Organizations Regulations. The amendments were inserted through F. No. SEBI/LAD-DOP/2026/319 dated 7 October 2026 and took effect on 8 October 2026.

Regulation 12 provides for amendment of the regulations specified in the Schedule to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Certification of Associated Persons in the Securities Markets) Regulations, 2007. Each scheduled regulation is to be amended only in the manner and to the extent set out in that Schedule.

Silver classified under ITC(HS) 71069221 may be imported only against a valid DGFT Import Authorisation, except where Policy Condition No. 7 exemptions apply. Nominated Agency, IFSCA Qualified Jeweller, or EOU status is not an additional eligibility condition unless expressly imposed by the Authorisation. The holder may import directly in its own name, subject to endorsed conditions. Import through IIBX is not mandatory for this classification unless specifically required by the Import Authorisation.

Section 58 establishes presumptive taxation for eligible businesses, specified professions and goods-carriage businesses. Eligible businesses and professions are subject to prescribed turnover or gross-receipt thresholds, including enhanced thresholds where cash receipts remain within stipulated limits. Income is computed at prescribed rates or amounts, or at higher actual profits claimed. Lower-profit claims may require books of account and audit where total income exceeds the maximum amount not chargeable to tax. Separate deductions are generally barred, except qualifying partner salary and interest for firms in the goods-carriage category. Departure from the eligible-business presumptive method triggers a subsequent period of ineligibility.

The Computer Forensic and Data Mining Laboratory under the Serious Fraud Investigation Office, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, New Delhi, is designated as an Examiner of Electronic Evidence within India for electronic-evidence examination. Its specialised forensic role covers Computer (Media) Forensics and expressly excludes Floppy Disk Drive examination from its designated scope.

Authorised Dealers must maintain a Foreign Exchange Risk Reserve for covered INR derivative contracts used to hedge current account transactions involving purchase of foreign currency against INR. The reserve, calculated at 20 per cent of the INR-equivalent notional amount, must be held as daily cash in India with the Reserve Bank until termination. Splitting transactions to avoid coverage is a violation, and daily reporting through CIMS is required.

Authorised Dealers may not permit rebooking of cancelled INR foreign exchange derivative contracts with any dealer, although rollover at maturity remains permissible. The threshold for specified derivative positions without establishing underlying exposure is USD 5 million equivalent outstanding at any time. For contracts hedging contracted exposures, Authorised Dealers must obtain and retain undertakings addressing hedging with other dealers, verify underlying exposure, and retain necessary documentation for at least two years.

Tax deduction at source applies to firms and limited liability partnerships paying or crediting partner salary, remuneration, commission, bonus or interest, including capital-account credits. Deduction is at 10 per cent when aggregate payments or credits during the relevant financial year exceed Rs.20,000, and applies to the entire amount. Under section 194T, deduction is made at the earlier of credit or payment.

Educational eligibility under row 6 of the Employees' Service Schedule is revised with effect from publication in the Official Gazette. The general qualification entry accepts Graduation with prescribed minimum marks, a Master's Degree or Post Graduate Diploma, or specified professional credentials. Aggregate grade points are converted under a defined 10-point scale where no institutional conversion method exists. The desirable advocacy-experience qualification for Grade A Legal Stream officers is omitted. Foreign Master's Degrees or postgraduate qualifications supported by specified equivalence certification are treated as meeting the requisite educational qualification.

MAT liability exceeding tax under the normal provisions meant that additions or disallowances under those provisions created no tax sought to be evaded for concealment-penalty purposes. For the relevant assessment year, the substituted Explanation 4 calculation mechanism for MAT cases operated prospectively from 1 April 2016 and did not apply. Penalty under section 271(1)(c) was therefore inapplicable, and deletion of the penalty was sustained.

Digitally or electronically signed certificates or documents shared from subscribers' Digital Locker accounts may be issued and accepted at par with physical documents. Where an issuer pushes a certificate or document into the system and a requester accesses or accepts it through a URI, it is deemed directly shared by the issuer electronically. Links leading to an issuer repository as the single source of truth enable automatic verification.

Customs sample-testing arrangements at the DYCC, JNCH Laboratory identify goods that cannot presently be analysed because required facilities are unavailable, including certain feed additives affected by non-functional HPLC equipment. The exclusions cover specified agricultural products, food preparations, medicines, bio-fertilisers, pigments, plastics, wood articles, textile waste, glass and precious stones. Specific difficulties may be brought to the Joint Commissioner of Customs in charge, and the operational decisions are to be treated as a Standing Order for officers and staff.

Penalty for concealment or furnishing inaccurate particulars is not leviable where an adjustment affects only normal taxable income but does not alter tax assessed on book profit under the minimum alternate tax regime. Tax under Section 115JB is payable on the higher of normal tax and prescribed book profit. Where the assessment is ultimately based on accepted book profit, an alleged excess deduction under normal provisions creates no tax sought to be evaded. Consequently, no penalty arises under Section 271(1)(c) when the disputed adjustment has no effect on book-profit tax liability.

Outside laboratory testing is temporarily permitted for import samples of animal feed additives/premix and edible-grade extra virgin oil at specified FSSAI-notified laboratories. The arrangement operates for six months. Importers or owners must bear the testing costs under section 145 of the Customs Act, 1962, and implementation directions have standing-order status for customs officers and staff.

Reassessment jurisdiction requires recorded reasons that accurately arise from the material available to the Assessing Officer. Where registered deeds showed that sales and purchases had been incorrectly reversed and a sale was treated as unexplained investment, the reasons disclosed non-application of mind and could not support a belief that income had escaped assessment. Jurisdiction must be assessed solely from the recorded reasons; later explanations cannot supplement or correct them. Such foundational factual errors are not technical defects protected by Section 292B. Consequently, the Section 148 notice was void from inception and the reassessment was invalid.

Section 263(1) requires every partnership firm and limited liability partnership to file a return for each relevant tax year irrespective of income or loss. Form ITR-5 generally applies, with Form ITR-4 (SUGAM) available to eligible resident firms using presumptive taxation. Filing due dates vary according to the residual category, audit requirement and transfer-pricing reporting. A firm's return does not replace each partner's separate obligation to assess and file an individual return where required.

UQC declarations in electronic Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills are standardised to improve import and export data quality. Statistical UQCs prescribed under the Customs Tariff Act are mandatory for every item in addition to invoice-based commercial units. Commercial UQC declarations must use only permitted codes for recognised measures; any other code will not be accepted. The restricted commercial-UQC framework takes effect from 20 August 2020.

Virtual personal hearings are mandatory for appellate, original adjudication and compounding proceedings under indirect tax laws, with hearing details and secure video-conference links communicated through official email. Parties must submit authorisation and identification documents electronically. Hearing submissions are recorded and emailed as a record of personal hearing, which may be corrected and returned within three days and is treated as an electronic document. Additional self-attested submissions may be emailed within three days. Exceptions to virtual hearing require written approval and recorded reasons.

Federal Bank's Core Banking Solution, payment-system switches and associated computer-resource dependencies are declared protected systems as Critical Information Infrastructure under section 70 of the Information Technology Act, 2000. Access is limited to persons authorised in writing by the bank, including designated employees, need-based managed-service-provider and vendor personnel, and case-specific consultants, regulators, Government officials, auditors and stakeholders. The designation takes effect upon publication in the Official Gazette.

Central Government designates the Central Forensic Science Laboratory, Kolkata, as an Examiner of Electronic Evidence within India under section 79A of the Information Technology Act, 2000. Its examination authority is confined to computer-media forensics and mobile-device forensics, establishing its electronic-evidence examination remit within those specified technical areas.