Quality control for milk exports now requires pre-export inspection and approval, aligning exports with international health standards.
Pre-export quality control and inspection for milk and milk products are mandated under the Milk and Milk Products (Quality Control, Inspection & Monitoring) Rules, 2020. Exporters must obtain establishment approval based on a Food Safety Management System; certain consignments require consignment-wise inspection. A health certificate is required only if the importing country demands it. Customs must verify the Export Inspection Council approval or a Certificate of Inspection. Authorities are directed to sensitize officers and to align earlier orders with current international health and trade standards.

Voluntary trading account freeze empowers investors to request account blocking to prevent fraudulent trading under a regulatory framework.
The circular requires trading members to provide a voluntary freezing/blocking facility allowing clients to request account suspension, with specified request modes, acknowledgement procedures, processing timeframes, and mechanics for implementing and lifting freezes. Stock exchanges must ensure implementation, amend rules where necessary, establish reporting requirements for trading members, and report compliance to the regulator. The measure is issued under Section 11(1) of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act and Regulation 30 of the SEBI (Stock Brokers) Regulations to enhance investor control and prevent fraudulent trading activity.

Extension of validity of Pre-Shipment Inspection Agencies allows continued recognition under Foreign Trade Policy provisions and Handbook relaxation.
Extension of recognition validity for Pre-Shipment Inspection Agencies under the Foreign Trade Policy 2023, relaxing Para 2.52(c) of the Handbook of Procedures and preserving recognition status for agencies listed in the policy appendices and Aayat Niryal Forms that were due to complete their three-year tenure at the end of 2023.

Foreign investment restrictions in AIFs require exclusion of sanctioned or high AML risk beneficial owners, limiting further capital contributions.
The circular tightens investor eligibility for Alternative Investment Funds by redefining beneficial ownership thresholds and imposing disqualifications: investors or beneficial owners must not be on the United Nations Security Council Sanctions List and must not be residents of jurisdictions identified by the Financial Action Task Force as having strategic AML/CFT deficiencies. AIF managers are prohibited from accepting further capital contributions from investors who fail these conditions, with immediate effect, thereby necessitating enhanced due diligence and ongoing monitoring to ensure compliance.

Dematerialization of AIF investments required, with custodians and standardized custody reporting to enhance transparency and oversight.
SEBI mandates dematerialization of AIF investments and the appointment of custodians, with specified conditions for associates acting as custodians, and requires standardized reporting of investments under custody to enhance transparency, reduce risks associated with physical securities, and strengthen oversight through operational and technological adjustments by AIFs and managers.

Import restrictions on specified IT hardware require valid import authorisation, while parts and certain exemptions remain available.
The DGFT classified laptops, tablets, all in one PCs, ultra small form factor computers and servers under HSN 8471 as restricted, permitting import only against a valid Import Authorization; exclusions include desktop computers under the same chapter, spare parts and components, SEZ captive use imports, and IT hardware strictly incidental to capital goods, while importers may obtain multiple authorisations and amend quantities within value constraints.

GST rate classification on imitation zari yarn clarified to cover metallised film-based yarns while excluding refunds on specified film inputs.
Imitation zari thread or yarn manufactured from metallised polyester film or metallised plastic film, whether used alone or blended with other fibres, is classified within the reduced GST rate category for imitation zari; however, polyester (metallised) film and plastic film inputs are not eligible for refund on account of rate inversion.

GST applicability on transport, composite supply and pure agent treatments clarified, plus job work and governmental exemptions defined.
Services of passenger transport and renting of motor vehicles with operators where fuel is included attract GST at 5% with input tax credit within the same line of business; electricity bundled with renting or maintenance is a composite supply taxed with the principal supply while electricity supplied as a pure agent is excluded from the supplier's value; job work for processing barley into malt attracts 5% GST; exemptions for DMFTs and horticulture services/supplies to the public works department are addressed under governmental-authority exemption criteria.

Place of supply clarifications alter GST treatment for cross border transport, advertising spaces and co location services.
Clarification sets out revised criteria for determining the place of supply for transportation of goods, advertising services involving physical spaces, and co location (server/hosting) services; the omission of a prior IGST provision requires reassessment of place of supply rules for cross border transportation, while the circular also specifies treatment for outdoor advertising and IT hosting to ensure uniform GST chargeability, invoicing and compliance across field formations.

Electronic Cash Ledger interest waiver enables regularization of manually cleared Bills of Entry after payment integration is completed.
The notice requires stakeholders to identify unpaid challans associated with manually issued Out of Charge Bills of Entry, pay the requisite duty through the Electronic Cash Ledger within prescribed timeframes, and enable system reconciliation so that Bills of Entry are regularized. It provides for waiver and refund of interest paid, conditional on compliance with payment deadlines and successful integration of payments into the customs systems.

Body-worn cameras for customs boarding officers mandated; recording from gangway to de-boarding, with safety exceptions and pre-notice.
Mandate requires Boarding Officers to wear a jacket bearing name and badges and a right side Body Worn Camera that records audio visual footage from approach at the gangway until de boarding; officers must notify the Shipping Agent/Line in advance, devices are standalone without wireless/SIM, and vessel Safety Officers may designate unsafe areas for non use subject to endorsement and cross verification by higher customs authorities.

Renewal of recognition secures conditional authorisation for clearing and settlement of repo and reverse repo transactions in debt securities.
Renewal of recognition is granted to AMC Repo Clearing Limited for a one year period, authorising it to clear and settle repo and reverse repo transactions in debt securities traded on a recognized stock exchange. The renewal is conditioned on compliance with regulatory rules and directions and restricts the Clearing Corporation to activities solely related to clearing and settlement of eligible repo and reverse repo transactions.

Liberalizing silver imports: expanding free actual user access and enabling bullion exchange imports to boost industrial inputs.
Amendment to import policy for silver under Chapter 71 of ITC (HS) 2022 classifies semi manufactured silver as Free on an Actual User basis for specified manufacturing sectors and permits R&D imports by government or recognised institutions; it also revises HS code treatment to allow qualified jewellers to import via a recognised bullion exchange, expanding import access beyond nominated agencies.

Concessional import duties on specified edible oils extended, preserving customs and AIDC exemptions to support supply and affordability.
Notification No. 02/2024 amends Notifications Nos. 48/2021 and 49/2021 to extend the concessional import duty treatment and the exemption from the Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess for specified edible oils, preserving customs duty relief for listed soybean, palm and sunflower oil categories to maintain lower import costs and supply continuity.

Export duty on molasses imposed to secure domestic supply for ethanol blending and reduce fuel import reliance.
A 50% export duty has been added to the Second Schedule of the Customs Tariff Act, effective January 18, 2024, using the government's urgent power to levy export duties, to restrict molasses exports and increase domestic supply for ethanol production and to address sugar shortages and fuel-import dependence.

Anti-dumping duties protect domestic industry by allowing provisional and retrospective measures and circumvention checks on dumped imports.
Anti-dumping duties under the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 define anti-dumping duties, margin of dumping, export price and normal value, and set methods to determine dumping when direct comparisons are infeasible. The statute provides anti-circumvention and duty-absorption rules, permits provisional duties based on preliminary findings and retrospective duties in certain large cases, and allows conditional exemptions for consignments to export-oriented units and special economic zones.

Anti-dumping duty continuation on Meta Phenylene Diamine from China preserves domestic industry protection under sunset review recommendation.
Continuation of anti-dumping duty on Meta Phenylene Diamine from China follows a sunset review finding continued dumping and injury to the domestic industry; the government imposed differentiated per-metric-ton duties on a named Chinese producer and other exporters, including imports from other countries exported via China, to be levied for a five-year period unless earlier revoked, superseded or amended and payable in Indian currency.

Special Additional Excise Duty reduction may lower government revenues and influence fuel pricing and consumption.
Notification No. 03/2024 amends Notification No. 18/2022 by reducing the Special Additional Excise Duty on production of petroleum crude, directly altering the statutory excise rate and thereby affecting government excise revenue, oil company margins and pricing incentives, potential consumer fuel prices given other tax and market factors, and environmental consumption incentives.

Wrongful invocation of bank guarantees not upheld where arbitration covers claims; liquidator may refile under insolvency law.
The appellate tribunal found the liquidator's claims, including allegations of wrongful invocation of bank guarantees, were encompassed by pending arbitration and upheld deletion of the concessionaire from the insolvency-era causative-misconduct application, while permitting the liquidator to file a fresh insolvency application should subsequent arbitration facts necessitate separate action.

Provisional assessment compliance: non-deliberate document delays without revenue impact warrant nominal penalties under provisional assessment rules.
The tribunal examined Regulation 5 penalties for delayed document submission under the Customs (Provisional Duty Assessment) Regulations, noting absence of mala fide conduct and no revenue implication. Emphasizing proportionality, the tribunal treated non-deliberate, revenue-neutral delays as warranting a nominal sanction rather than the maximum prescribed penalty, balancing enforcement of document-submission requirements with the factual context of compliance.