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.

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.

RoDTEP inclusion expands eligible HS 5208 tariff lines for export incentives from a specified date in March.
Eighteen tariff lines under HS Heading 5208 for specified cotton woven fabrics are added to Appendix 4R, making them eligible for RoDTEP. The notification prescribes a uniform RoDTEP rate, a per unit cap and uses square metre as the unit of quantity; it is issued under powers conferred by the Foreign Trade Act and Policy and applies to exports from a specified March 2023 effective date.

Exemption for renting of residential dwelling clarified to cover proprietors renting personally for their own residence; an entry omitted.
Amendment clarifies that the exemption for renting of residential dwelling to a registered person covers cases where the registered person is the proprietor and rents the dwelling in his personal capacity for use as his own residence, and where such renting is on his own account and not that of the proprietorship concern; additionally, S. No. 23A and its entries are omitted, with effect from the effective date of the corresponding Central Tax (Rate) notification.

GST rate amendment: substitution lists peppermint and other mint essential oils and applies to all persons from aligned effective date.
The amendment substitutes entry 3A in the State Tax (Rate) notification to list specified HS subheadings and to describe certain essential oils other than citrus - including peppermint and specified other mint oils - and states the substitution applies to any registered and any unregistered person, with the notification deemed operative from the effective date of the corresponding Central Tax (Rate) notification.

GST rate amendment: broadens feed classification and adds husk of pulses entry, effective from central notification date.
The state notification substitutes the schedule entry for animal and agricultural feeds to include shrimp and prawn feed, poultry and cattle feed, grass, hay, straw, supplements and additives, wheat bran and de-oiled cake (other than rice bran), and inserts a new schedule entry for husk of pulses and related concentrates, with the amendment effective from the effective date of the corresponding central tax notification.

GST rate amendments revise commodity descriptions for ethyl alcohol, feed residues, fruit drinks and school kits altering state tax treatment.
Amendment to Notification No. 01/2017 substitutes schedule entries to clarify classifications: ethyl alcohol supplied to Oil Marketing Companies or petroleum refineries is specified for blending with motor spirit; bran, sharps and residues from cereals or leguminous plants are redefined with explicit exclusions; fruit pulp or fruit juice based drinks and mathematical/geometry/colour boxes are reclassified in Schedule II; and denatured ethyl alcohol is included in Schedule III except for supplies to Oil Marketing Companies or petroleum refineries for blending. The notification takes effect concurrent with the related Central Tax (Rate) notification.

GST rate amendment adds rab not pre-packaged or labelled to state tax schedule with effect from central notification.
The State tax rate notification is amended to insert "Rab, other than pre-packaged and labelled" into the Schedule against the relevant serial number, enacted under section 11(1) of the Chhattisgarh GST Act, 2017, and deemed effective from the effective date of the corresponding Central Tax (Rate) notification.

Tax Rate Amendment: inclusion of rab (other than pre-packaged and labelled) into state GST schedule, altering tax coverage.
Amendment to the State GST rate notification inserts Rab, other than pre-packaged and labelled as item (iii) against S. No. 94, column (3) of the Schedule, amending Notification No. 02/2017-State Tax (Rate). The change, made on the recommendation of the Council and notified by the Finance Department, is effective from 1st March, 2023.