Exemption from Biometric Aadhaar authentication amended to replace wording with proviso reference and made retrospective.
The Central Government amends Notification No. 27/2022 Central Tax by substituting the words "provisions of" with the words "proviso to" in order to clarify the textual reference to the exemption from biometric Aadhaar-based authentication under rule 8(4B) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017; the amendment is declared to be deemed to have come into force on the date of the principal notification.

Aadhaar authentication requirement for GST registration ties application date to Aadhaar verification and mandates biometric verification.
Applicants (except those separately notified) opting for Aadhaar authentication for GST registration must undergo Aadhaar authentication at submission, with the application date being the date of Aadhaar authentication or fifteen days from Part B submission of FORM GST REG 01, whichever is earlier. Applications flagged by portal risk analysis must then complete biometric Aadhaar authentication, photograph capture for individuals or notified persons for non-individual applicants, and original-document verification at a Commissioner notified Facilitation Centre; applications are complete only after these steps.

Revocation of GST registration: extended limited window to apply subject to filing returns and payment of dues.
Registered persons whose GST registration was cancelled on or before 31 December 2022 and who failed to apply for revocation within the time under section 30 may apply for revocation up to 31 August 2023 only after furnishing returns due up to the effective cancellation date and paying the tax, interest, penalty and late fee shown in those returns; no further extension is available. This class includes persons whose appeals under section 107 were rejected for failure to meet the time limit in section 30(1).

Late fee waiver: excess fees waived and full waiver where state tax is nil if returns filed in amnesty window.
The amendment inserts a proviso waiving late fee amounts in excess of two hundred and fifty rupees and fully waiving late fees where the total state tax payable in FORM GSTR-4 is nil, for registered persons who failed to furnish returns for quarters July 2017-March 2019 or financial years 2019-20-2021-22 by the due date but who furnish those returns between 1 April 2023 and 30 June 2023.

GST compensation cess adjusted to specified per unit retail price rates for tobacco and pan masala, with R defined as retail sale price.
Amends the Schedule to the principal notification by substituting specified per unit entries for multiple tariff items relating to tobacco, pan masala and related products, inserting new entries for homogenised/reconstituted tobacco and pan masala categories, and updating certain tariff classifications; per unit rates are expressed in terms of R denoting retail sale price.

Late fee waiver for delayed GSTR-4 returns allows excess fees to be waived if filed within the specified filing window.
For registered persons who failed to furnish FORM GSTR-4 for specified earlier periods but file between 1 April 2023 and 30 June 2023, the amendment provides that the late fee payable under section 47 of the CGST Act in excess of two hundred and fifty rupees shall be waived, and the entire late fee shall be waived where the total central tax payable in the return is nil.

Foreign Trade Policy notified, establishing a new regulatory framework and coming into force to govern foreign trade.
Notification announces the Foreign Trade Policy, 2023 as a new regulatory instrument issued under the Foreign Trade (Development & Regulation) Act, 1992. The Central Government, through the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, has notified the Policy and specified its commencement, thereby placing the Foreign Trade Policy, 2023, into force and establishing the framework for export import regulation and trade governance.

Commencement of Section 163 brings the Finance Act provision on compensation cess into force as notified by the Central Government.
Section 163 of the Finance Act, 2023 is brought into force by a Central Government notification under clause (b) of sub-section (2) of section 1 of the Finance Act, 2023, appointing the day on which the provision concerning the compensation cess regime shall come into operation by Notification No. 01/2023-Compensation Cess issued by the Department of Revenue.

Inclusion of unlabelled Rab in the GST notification schedule expands the listed goods and alters applicable classification.
The notification amends the Schedule to the earlier Commercial Taxes and Registration Department notification by inserting Rab, other than pre-packaged and labelled as an item against Serial No. 94, Column (3). The amendment is made under the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act and is stated to be effective from the first day of March, 2023.

Inclusion of courts and tribunals under the Tamil Nadu GST notification expands specified entities and alters clause scope.
Amendment substitutes the words ", State Legislatures, Courts and Tribunals" for "and State Legislatures" in clause (h) of the Explanation to Notification No.II(2)/CTR/532(d-16)/2017, thereby expressly including Courts and Tribunals among the entities referenced; issued under the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and effective retrospectively from 1st March, 2023.

Entities conducting entrance examinations to be treated as educational institutions for limited GST classification purposes.
Authorities, boards or bodies set up by the Central or State Government, including national testing agencies, that conduct entrance examinations shall be treated as educational institutions for the limited purpose of providing services by way of conduct of entrance examinations, with the amendment operating from 1 March 2023.

Exemption of deposits: scope expanded to include electronic use and effective date deferred by customs notification amendment.
The amendment inserts the word electronic after 'used for making' in paragraph 1(III) of Notification No.19/2022 Customs (N.T.), thereby specifying electronic use within the exemption description, and substitutes the implementation date in paragraph 2 with a later date, deferring the notification's commencement, effected through Notification No.19/2023 Customs (N.T.).

Exemption of deposits under section 51A(4) for specified imports/exports and baggage granted temporarily, excluding electronic payment deposits.
Exemption is granted from all provisions of section 51A of the Customs Act, 1962 for deposits relating to goods at customs stations without automated systems, goods through International Courier Terminals, accompanied baggage, and deposits other than those used for electronic payment of customs duty, integrated tax, GST Compensation Cess, interest, penalty or fees; the exemption is effective from 1 April 2023 until the notification's substituted terminal date.

Advance Ruling authority appointment: member substituted, appointing Joint Commissioner as replacement under GST framework.
The Government amends the Kerala Authority for Advance Ruling notification to substitute Shri. Abraham Renn S, I.R.S., Additional Commissioner-1, with Shri. Abdul Latheef K, Joint Commissioner (Audit), Thrissur, effecting a change of member under the Kerala State Goods and Services Tax rules as set out in S.R.O. No. 443/2023 dated 29th March, 2023.

Health cess exemption for X ray machine components maintained; concessional imports require compliance with specified end use import rules.
The notification amends notification 8/2020 Customs by omitting the figures "564A, 564B, 564C" and inserting a new entry listing goods for use in the manufacture of X ray machines (including static user interfaces, diagnostic tables, vertical buckys, tube suspensions, high frequency X ray generators, grids, multileaf collimators/irises, medical grade monitors, flat panel detectors including scintillators, and X ray tubes). Importers must follow the Customs (Import of Goods at Concessional Rate of Duty or for Specified End Use) Rules, 2022. The amendment takes effect 1 April 2023.

Customs exemption for FSMPs used in rare disease treatment permitted on import subject to certified medical authorization.
A new tariff entry S. No. 607B exempts from basic customs duty Drugs, Medicines or Food for Special Medical Purposes (FSMP) used for treatment of rare diseases specified in List 38, provided imported for personal use and accompanied by a certificate from specified health authorities as prescribed in newly inserted Condition 115; failure to produce the certificate or acceptable undertaking will render the importer liable to pay duty. The amendment also inserts List 38 enumerating specified rare diseases and makes related updates to medical and textile machinery concession entries.

No-deduction certificate under section 195: electronic filing via TRACES with AO processing and administrative approval required.
Notification prescribes electronic submission of Form 15C and Form 15D on the TRACES portal for certificates under section 195(3). Applicants must register/login and submit forms with supporting documents using digital signature, electronic verification code, Aadhaar authentication or mobile OTP (digital signature only for overseas applicants). Applications are assigned to TDS AOs in International Taxation; CPC(TDS) will retrieve prior ITRs, PAN demand, audit reports and assessment orders to assist processing. AOs may seek clarifications online, recommend approval or rejection under Rule 29B, and forward cases to the Range Head and CIT for administrative approval. On final approval the AO generates a system certificate on TRACES, which the applicant must share with deductors.

PAN inoperative for non-intimation of Aadhaar, reactivation subject to fee with refunds limited and higher withholding.
PAN becomes inoperative where a person allotted PAN by the cut-off has not intimated Aadhaar by the deadline; reactivation requires payment of the prescribed fee and Aadhaar intimation, after which the PAN becomes operative within thirty days. While inoperative, refunds are not made and no interest is payable for the affected period; higher rates apply for tax deduction and tax collection at source in accordance with sections 206AA and 206CC. The Board will specify the effective date for these consequences and the DGIT (Systems) will specify verification formats and procedures.

Appointment of airport for customs operations: Mopa added for unloading of imports and loading of exports.
The CBIC amends Notification No. 61/94 Customs (N.T.) to designate Mopa airport in Goa as an authorized location for the unloading of imported goods and the loading of export goods or any class of such goods, with Dabolim renumbered as item (a) and Mopa inserted as item (b).

Exemption for residential renting clarified: personal-capacity rentals by registered proprietors qualify; a specific schedule entry is omitted.
The amendment inserts an explanation to clarify that the exemption for renting of residential dwelling covers services to a registered person who is the proprietor of a proprietorship concern when the proprietor rents the dwelling in his personal capacity for use as his own residence and the renting is on his own account and not that of the proprietorship concern; additionally, a specified earlier entry in the schedule is omitted and the amendment is given effect from the date stated in the notification.