Exemption for specified public utility services to Governmental Authority expanded; nil-rate applied and Indian Railways added.
Amendment inserts a new Chapter 99 entry exempting services to a Governmental Authority-water supply, public health, sanitation conservancy, solid waste management, and slum improvement and upgradation-as nil-rated; it also adds the Ministry of Railways (Indian Railways) alongside the Department of Posts in several existing notification entries.

Exemption for government-provided essential services: supplies like water and sanitation to governmental authorities now tax-exempt.
A new nil-rated exemption (Chapter 99, serial 3B) covers services supplied to a Governmental Authority consisting of water supply, public health, sanitation conservancy, solid waste management, and slum improvement and upgradation; related amendments also add national rail services alongside postal services in existing entries.

Input tax credit limitation restricts credit to the prescribed state tax rate where supplier charges a higher rate.
Amendment imposes a limitation on input tax credit for input services in the same line of business: where a supplier charges state tax at a rate higher than the prescribed lower rate, the recipient may claim input tax credit only to the extent of tax paid or payable at that prescribed lower rate; an illustrative motor cab example demonstrates application. The amendment also substitutes wording and omits specified items in the Table and removes two serial entries from the Annexure: Scheme of Classification of Services, with the changes effective from the stated commencement date.

Input tax credit restriction where supplier charges a higher central tax rate than recipient, limiting credit to recipient's applicable tax rate.
Amendment imposes a restriction on input tax credit where a supplier of input service in the same line of business charges central tax at a rate higher than that charged to the recipient: credit on the input service shall be limited to the tax payable at the recipient's rate, with an illustrative example clarifying that excess tax charged upstream cannot be claimed. The notification also substitutes and omits certain entries in the rate Table and deletes specified serial entries from the Annexure, effective from 20 October 2023.

Input tax credit restriction: credit limited where supplier charges higher UTGST than the reduced rate, affecting service supplies.
The notification inserts provisos limiting input tax credit where a supplier of input service in the same line of business charges Union Territory tax at a rate higher than the reduced rate on the outward supply, permitting credit only to the extent of tax computed at the reduced rate on the input service. It also substitutes wording and omits specified entries at serial number 34 and omits serial numbers 696 and 698 from the Annexure. The amendments amend Notification No. 11/2017 and take effect from 20th October 2023.

Tax classification: food preparation of millet flour now specified under Goa GST, excluding pre-packaged and labelled products.
The Government amends the Schedule to Notification No. 38/1/2017-Fin(R&C)(2/2017-Rate) by inserting a new entry for food preparation of millet flour in powder form containing a majority of millets by weight, excluding products that are pre-packaged and labelled; the amendment is made under the Government's amendment powers on Council recommendation and comes into force from the date specified in the notification.

Export permission for Non-Basmati White Rice to specified countries granted through designated exporter under foreign trade policy.
Export permission is granted for Non-Basmati White Rice (HS code 1006 30 90) to Nepal, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Republic of Guinea, Malaysia, Philippines and Seychelles through National Cooperative Exports Limited (NCEL), under powers of the Foreign Trade (Development & Regulation) Act, 1992 and provisions of the Foreign Trade Policy, 2023, with country-wise quantities allocated as listed in the notification.

Export restriction on sugar extended beyond current date; EU and USA quota exports allowed under prescribed procedure.
Restriction on export of Raw, White, Refined and Organic sugar under specified HS classifications is extended beyond the prior cutoff date until further orders under the Foreign Trade (Development & Regulation) Act and Foreign Trade Policy. Exports to the European Union and United States under CXL and TRQ quota mechanisms remain permitted provided the prescribed Public Notice procedures are followed; all other conditions of the antecedent notification continue to apply.

GST registration, input tax credit reconciliation and recovery rules tighten bank-account compliance, return filing, appeals and information sharing.
The amendment requires registered persons to furnish bank-account details within the prescribed period and restricts FORM GSTR-1 filing or invoice furnishing facility access for non-compliance. Registration may be suspended for significant return-data anomalies or breach of bank-account requirements. Rule 88D introduces electronic intimation in FORM GST DRC-01C where input tax credit availed in FORM GSTR-3B exceeds credit reflected in FORM GSTR-2B beyond prescribed thresholds, requiring payment with interest or a reasoned response within seven days. Unresolved differences may be subjected to demand proceedings.

Client due diligence strengthened: mandatory reliable independent identification and group-wide AML information-sharing with confidentiality safeguards.
The rules require reporting entities to verify clients and beneficial owners by using reliable and independent sources of identification, obtain purpose and nature-of-relationship information, and implement group-wide AML and terror finance programmes with policies for protected intra-group information sharing and safeguards against tipping-off.

Special Additional Excise Duty reduction on diesel exports changes the export duty rate effective 18 October 2023.
The notification amends Notification No. 04/2022 Central Excise by substituting the entry at Serial No. 2, Column (4) of the Tariff Table with a revised per litre rate for diesel exports, thereby reducing the Special Additional Excise Duty on exported diesel. The change is made under section 5A of the Central Excise Act, 1944 read with section 147 of the Finance Act, 2002, and comes into force on 18 October 2023.

Excise rate reduction for petroleum crude and aviation turbine fuel lowers notified per unit duties effective October 18.
Amendment to Notification No. 18/2022 Central Excise substituting Table entries: S. No. 1 column (4) replaced with "Rs. 9050 per tonne" and S. No. 2 column (4) replaced with "Rs. 1 per litre"; the amendment (Notification No. 34/2023) takes effect on 18 October 2023.

Notification date extension: operative date in a State GST notification moved later, with deemed retrospective effect preserved.
Amendment substitutes the operative date in Notification No. 08/2023 State Tax by replacing "30th day of June, 2023" with "31st day of August, 2023," made under the statutory power of the Lieutenant Governor on the Council's recommendation, and declares the notification to be deemed in force from the 30th day of June, 2023.

Special-procedure deadline extension retrospectively replaces the June deadline with an August deadline under goods and services tax administration.
The time limit specified under Notification No. 06/2023-State Tax is extended by substituting 31 August 2023 for 30 June 2023. The substituted deadline is deemed operative from 30 June 2023, and references to the earlier deadline in the relevant framework stand replaced accordingly.

Notification amendment inserts operative effective date and deems retrospective application of the specified special procedure.
The amendment inserts the words "with effect from 1st day of January 2024" into Notification No. 1487-F.T. immediately after the phrase notifying the special procedure, and declares that such insertion shall be deemed to have been inserted with effect from the 31st day of July, 2023.

E-commerce operator obligations: require enrolment, bar inter-State sales by unregistered sellers, and report supplies electronically.
Electronic commerce operators required to collect tax at source must allow supplies by exempted unregistered persons only if an enrolment number is allotted on the common portal, must not permit inter-State supplies by those persons, must not collect tax at source for such supplies, and must furnish details of those supplies electronically in FORM GSTR-8; where multiple operators are involved, the operator who finally releases payment is treated as the electronic commerce operator for these obligations.

Tax collection at source requirement: e commerce operators must block interstate supplies by composition taxpayers and remit collected tax.
Electronic commerce operators required to follow a special procedure for supplies by composition taxpayers: they shall not permit inter State supplies by such persons, shall collect tax at source on those supplies and remit the tax to Government as per the statutory remittance mechanism, and shall furnish details of the supplies in FORM GSTR-8 on the common portal, effective from 1 October 2023.

GST amendment on online gaming, specified actionable claims, compliance deadlines and retrospective Schedule III treatment reworks tax administration.
Amendments to the Uttarakhand Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 introduce definitions for online gaming, online money gaming, specified actionable claims and virtual digital asset, and deem platform operators arranging such supplies to be suppliers liable under the Act. The Act also expands registration, return-filing, refund, assessment, appellate tribunal, penalty, prosecution, compounding and information-sharing provisions, while making retrospective changes to Schedule III for specified actionable claims and preserving the operation of other laws regulating betting, casino, gambling, horse racing, lottery and online gaming.

Substitution of notified officer: Shri Ajaykumar Waman Bonde named Joint Commissioner of State Tax under Maharashtra GST.
The Government amends the original finance department notification to substitute the Sr. No. (1) entry, designating Shri Ajaykumar Waman Bonde, Joint Commissioner of State Tax, by Notification No. MGST-1023/C.R.53/Taxation-1 dated 16th October, 2023, recorded in the Maharashtra Government Gazette.

Non-resident rupee account holders may trade government securities, with consideration and proceeds routed through those accounts.
Persons resident outside India maintaining specified rupee accounts may purchase or sell dated Government Securities and treasury bills, subject to applicable terms and conditions. Purchase consideration must be paid from funds held in the relevant rupee account. Sale or maturity proceeds, net of applicable taxes, must be credited to that rupee account.