Integrated GST rate schedules are amended from 1 November 2026. Animal or vegetable fertilisers and organic fertilisers, when pre-packaged and labelled, fall under the 5% schedule, including registered sea-weed extract based bio-stimulants. Retreaded tractor tyres are separately inserted in the 5% schedule. Retreaded or used pneumatic rubber tyres other than retreaded tractor tyres, along with solid or cushion tyres, tyre treads and tyre flaps of rubber, fall under the revised 18% entry.

Unaccounted Basmati-rice purchases linked to undisputed sales warrant taxation only of a reasonable profit element, estimated at 5%, rather than the full purchase value. A separate gross-profit addition for related alleged sales suppression and a separate addition of profit already embedded in disclosed gross profit would duplicate the same income and should be excluded. Freight and gifts-and-compliments disallowances cannot rest merely on cash payments and year-on-year comparisons where turnover also increased and no excessive expenditure is established. A new creditor challenge requiring facts absent from the record cannot be adjudicated at the appellate stage.

Input tax credit for a portable cabin office room in a manufacturing plant is considered available where the cabin is not immovable property, so the blocked-credit restriction under section 17(5)(d) is inapplicable. HSN reporting may be reviewed for cement, steel or sand inputs that indicate blocked-credit exposure. The restriction is described as applying only where expenditure is capitalised in the books, with revenue treatment under income-tax suggested.

Displaying a donor's name at a charitable organisation does not constitute a supply of service for consideration where it is only an expression of gratitude and does not advertise or promote the donor's business. GST does not apply where the recipient is charitable, the payment is genuinely a donation or gift, and the purpose is philanthropic without commercial gain. The absence of a reciprocal obligation and of any business reference distinguishes donor recognition from taxable advertising.

Central GST rate schedules are revised by placing pre-packaged and labelled animal, vegetable and organic fertilisers, including specified registered seaweed extract-based bio-stimulants, in Schedule I at 2.5%. Retreaded tractor tyres are also inserted in that schedule. Schedule II at 9% covers retreaded or used pneumatic rubber tyres other than retreaded tractor tyres, together with solid or cushion tyres, tyre treads and tyre flaps of rubber. The revised classifications take effect from 1 November 2026.

Rule 14B warehouse-based registration permits a person having a physical presence and registration in a home State or Union territory to obtain, against the same PAN, one registration in another State or Union territory without physical presence by declaring a tax-collecting electronic commerce operator's warehouse as the principal place of business. Eligibility is confined to intended supplies of goods through that operator, the prescribed monthly output-tax cap, operator consent, and Aadhaar authentication where applicable. Registration follows operator consent, biometric Aadhaar authentication, document verification, and physical verification in the home State; specified failures halt processing, cause rejection, or result in deemed approval.

Revisionary jurisdiction under section 263 cannot be based on an alleged failure to initiate penalty for search-related undisclosed income where the assessment record already shows that notice under section 271AAB was issued. Income disclosed during a search and regular assessment additions attract distinct penalty regimes: section 271AAB applies to search-related income, while section 271(1)(c) applies to regular additions. Overlooking the existing section 271AAB notice does not establish that the assessment is erroneous and prejudicial to the Revenue; revision on that premise is invalid.

Dried legumes receiving only mild heat treatment without added ingredients remain under HS 0713, attracting 5% GST when branded and packed in a unit container and otherwise remaining exempt. Almond milk falls under the residual tariff item and attracts 18% GST, while all mechanical sprayers attract 12% GST. IGST exemption for qualifying leased imports is subject to bond, service-tax payment, disposal restrictions and re-export conditions. Parts for solar water heaters qualify for 5% GST, and parts solely or principally used with specified medical devices are classified with those devices and attract 12% IGST.

A registered person obtaining a favourable appellate or other forum order against a refund rejection must file a fresh FORM GST RFD-01 application under the category for assessment, appeal, or other orders. Amounts already debited from the electronic credit ledger for the original claim need not be debited again. The application must contain order particulars and supporting orders. The proper officer processes the permitted refund amount, issues FORM GST RFD-06 and FORM GST RFD-05, and re-credits any remaining rejected balance subject to the prescribed undertaking and absence of a higher challenge.

Registered persons who inadvertently filed a NIL refund application may reapply for the same period through the "Any Other" category with the required supporting documents. Reapplication requires a prior NIL claim and, for unutilised input tax credit refunds relating to exports, SEZ supplies, or inverted tax structure, no later-period claim under the same category. The proper officer determines eligibility and admissible refund, may require debit through FORM GST DRC-03, and then issues the refund and payment orders.

Rule 48(4) e-invoicing requirements are expanded to include supplies received from unregistered persons where the recipient must pay tax under the reverse charge mechanism, and imports of services. The expanded coverage applies from 1 January 2027 and places these inward supplies within the e-invoicing framework alongside business-to-business supplies and export supplies.

GST appellate practice concerns repeat tax proceedings, enforcement procedure, and export input tax credit refunds. A further notice for a completed tax period is questioned where relevant facts were available in earlier proceedings and no suppression was alleged. E-way bill enforcement for internal stock transfers requires use of prescribed forms and statutory procedure. Export refund claims require compliance with Rule 92(3), including REF-08 and an opportunity of personal hearing before rejection. Timely use of appellate remedies within the applicable limitation period is emphasised.

Under the Income-tax Act, 2025, the Central Government, the Board, or an income-tax authority empowered to grant an assessee's approval may withdraw it at any time, even without an express withdrawal power in the underlying provision. Withdrawal requires recorded reasons and a reasonable opportunity of being heard. The corresponding 1961 provision has broadly the same effect, although its requirements for reasons and an opportunity to show cause are placed in a proviso.

Family-business governance should separate ownership from management, ownership returns from employment remuneration, family money from business money, and family discussions from business decisions. Working family members should receive market-based, role-linked salaries, while ownership returns should be paid through dividends. Family-related payments, loans and asset use require documentation, arm's-length terms and clear accounting. Succession planning should use objective candidate assessment, staged delegation and a formal handover, supported by aligned wills, company articles and shareholder agreements.

Omission of Rule 96(10) without a saving clause prevents its export-refund restrictions from governing proceedings pending on 8 October 2024. The prior applicability of the rule during the export period does not preserve pending enforcement. Departmental authorities must process affected IGST refund claims without invoking the omitted restriction, while verifying payment records, prior re-credits, refund applications, and other statutory requirements. Claims for interest and penalty require separate examination of their legal basis and admissibility.

Section 17(5)(d) blocks input tax credit on construction of resort or hotel buildings used as the taxpayer's own business setting, even where taxable accommodation, restaurant or event services are supplied. The retrospective substitution of plant and machinery for plant or machinery, together with the definition excluding buildings and civil structures, prevents treating the resort building as plant. Credit remains item-specific: construction inputs are blocked, whereas movable assets may qualify if invoice-wise evidence establishes that they were not used for construction.

Funding-round term sheets should be assessed as allocations of exit proceeds, governance rights and risk, not only valuation. The Waterfall Test should model shareholder payouts at sale values below, equal to and above post-money valuation. Liquidation preferences, including participating or multiple preferences, can materially reduce founder returns, while anti-dilution protections, especially full-ratchet provisions, can reallocate ownership after a down round. Cap tables should model future financing, option-pool top-ups and convertible instruments, and protective provisions should be examined for investor veto rights.

Entry 52B applies the higher Compensation Cess rate only when engine capacity, length, ground clearance and popular SUV identity are cumulatively met. Although the later amendment expressly specifies unladen ground clearance, the Tribunal treated that standard as consistent with the earlier entry because no laden measurement could be implied. Manufacturer promotional material may establish SUV identity, but technical certificates remain evidentiary and must be assessed against the taxing entry.

Written partnership, LLP and founder agreements should convert foreseeable disputes over ownership, decision-making, contributions, intellectual property, exits, contingencies and cash use into agreed procedures. The SPLIT-UP framework addresses shares and vesting, management authority and reserved matters, capital and work commitments, assignment of business intellectual property, exit and valuation arrangements, unexpected events, and policies for working-capital retention and distributions. Deadlock provisions may use mediation, a casting vote or buy-sell mechanisms, while exit terms may provide rights of first refusal and lawful restrictive covenants.

Rectification of the register of members under Section 59 is a summary remedy available only to a person who already holds a validly issued share certificate. It cannot establish an initial share entitlement, validate a defective certificate, or compel issuance of a certificate. Where no valid certificate, allotment material, board resolution, register entry, or established privity of contract exists, a disputed claim to shares requires adjudication through an appropriate civil or arbitral forum. Procedural rules cannot enlarge the statutory jurisdiction under Section 59.