MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT NOTIFICATION New Delhi, the 25th September, 2026 G.S.R. 847(E).- In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 15 of the Code on Social Security, 2020 (36 of 2020), the Central Government hereby makes the following amendments in the Employees' Pension Scheme, 2026, namely:- In sub-paragraph (1) of Paragraph 7, the following clause shall be inserted, namely:- "(iii) who has been a member of the Employees' Pro... ... ...

Employer and employee contributions under section 29 of the Code on Social Security, 2020 become payable from 1 October 2026 for establishments throughout Niwari and 24 partially implemented districts in Madhya Pradesh. Employees of covered establishments in these entire district areas are to receive benefits under Chapter IV relating to the Employees' State Insurance Corporation.

Joint Commissioners of Income-tax (Appeals) and Additional Commissioners of Income-tax (Appeals) are placed under the control of the Principal Chief Commissioners of Income-tax or Chief Commissioners of Income-tax within whose jurisdiction they perform their functions. This substitutes the existing clause governing their subordination under the 1988 notification and takes effect from 30 September 2026, the date of publication in the Official Gazette.

Minimum Import Price condition of USD 111 per kg on the CIF value of ATS-8 imports under specified Chapter 29 ITC (HS) codes is extended until 30 November 2026. All other terms and conditions imposed under the earlier MIP measure continue unchanged, so imports of the specified chemical remain subject to the existing minimum-price requirement through that date.

Eligibility and validity timelines under Component II of the Resilience & Logistics Intervention for Export Facilitation (RELIEF) intervention are extended until 31 March 2027 for shipments intended for delivery or transshipment. The extension applies under the Export Promotion Mission and is intended to improve utilisation, facilitate trade resilience, support Indian exporters, and mitigate logistics challenges linked to the continuing West Asia Crisis. All other provisions governing the RELIEF intervention remain unchanged.

Approval under section 45(4)(b) authorises the Indian Institute of Health Management Research, Jaipur, to conduct scientific research as a university, college or other institution for the specified income-tax purposes. The approval applies for tax years 2026-27 to 2030-31, conditional on continuing SIRO approval in each relevant tax year, compliance with prescribed conditions, annual submission of Form 15 by 31 May following the tax year in which donations are received, and issuance of Form 16 donation certificates to donors.

Scientific-research approval is granted to Bhartiya Sanskriti Darshan Trust under the university, college or other institution category for the statutory donation-related provisions. Its continued applicability requires uninterrupted Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation approval for each effective tax year, compliance with prescribed conditions, annual filing of Form No. 15 by 31 May following the tax year in which donations are received, and issuance of Form No. 16 donation certificates to donors. The approval applies for tax years 2026-2027 through 2030-2031.

Voluntary Health Services, Chennai is approved as an "other institution" for scientific research under the Income-tax Act, 2025, enabling the specified tax treatment for donations. The approval applies for tax years 2026-2027 through 2030-2031, subject to continued Scientific and Industrial Research Organization approval for each relevant year. The institution must comply with prescribed rules, submit an annual donation statement in Form No. 15 by the required deadline, and issue donors Form No. 16 certificates stating the donation amount.

Master Circular consolidates the regulatory framework for debenture trustees and rescinds the earlier master circular while preserving prior actions, rights, liabilities, penalties, proceedings and pending applications. It requires portal-based registration requests and prior approval for change in control, and regulates business transfers, surrender, regulatory communications, and non-regulated activities through ring-fenced separate business units. Trustees must independently conduct security due diligence, issue prescribed certificates, validate charge creation and registration, and continuously monitor security cover, covenants, payments, ratings and defaults through the depository-hosted Security and Covenant Monitoring System. Issuers.....

The standard operating procedure for moving domestic or customs-cleared cargo with EXIM cargo between port terminals and hinterland ICDs/CFSs now extends to Gateway Distriparks Limited. Its operations require separate identification and stacking of domestic and EXIM cargo, pre-advice and train/container details, verification of container and seal particulars, and immediate reporting of discrepancies. Suspected tampering bars further processing without the proper officer's permission and may require full examination. Reworking or repacking requires permission; at least 50% of outbound cargo must be EXIM cargo. Weekly reconciliation, random Customs checks, an indemnity bond and custodian compliance responsibility apply. Violations may trigger action under applicable customs law. The amendment takes immediate effect.

Outstanding receivables from an overseas associated enterprise require arm's-length interest benchmarking by reference to the enterprise's residence and the currency of the receivable; LIBOR plus 200 basis points is preferred over Indian lending or deposit rates. Remittances substantiated by board and remittance records as investments should not be recharacterised as loans for imputed-interest adjustments. Interest on delayed service-tax payment is compensatory rather than penal and is deductible. Where no return was filed and the notice period remained open on the search date, the assessment is pending and abated, permitting additions without incriminating material.

Unsecured loan credits are not treated as unexplained cash credits where loan confirmations, lender PAN and tax-return records, audited financial statements, ledger accounts and bank statements establish the lender's identity, financial capacity and the genuineness of payments. Funds sourced from fixed-deposit maturity proceeds supported the lender's capacity, resulting in deletion of the loan addition. Sales commission expenditure requires confirmation from recipients and evidence of services rendered. In the absence of such substantiation, the commission disallowance remains, while the taxable computation excludes the unsecured-loan addition.

Penalties for concealment of income or furnishing inaccurate particulars under Section 271(1)(c) are unsustainable where returns filed in reassessment proceedings are accepted without additions or modifications. Acceptance of the returned income removes the factual foundation for alleging concealment or inaccurate particulars. On these facts, failure to file original returns does not independently sustain the penalty, and deletion of the penalties follows.

Payments to resident payees attract disallowance under section 40(a)(ia) only to the applicable 30% extent, rather than the full expenditure amount. Where the assessee has already made a suo motu disallowance at that rate, the computation should be aligned accordingly. Employee Labour Welfare Fund contributions already disallowed in the return cannot be added again in consequential computation, as this would duplicate the same disallowance. Tax computation must apply the disallowance appropriate to the payment type while eliminating duplicate additions.

Interest earned by a co-operative society on deposits mandated under the Karnataka Co-operative Societies Act for reserve-fund purposes has a direct nexus with its credit-facility business and qualifies for deduction under Section 80P(2)(a)(i), subject to verification of the compulsory deposit quantum. Interest from deposits exceeding statutory requirements may be taxable as Income From Other Sources. That interest must be computed on a net basis, allowing proportionate expenditure directly attributable to earning it. Assessment should distinguish compulsory deposits from voluntary or excess investments and apply the corresponding income treatment.

Renewal of charitable registration under Section 12AB cannot be refused merely because of surplus generation, land-sale profit, unexplained cash deposits, loan advances, or allegedly unsubstantiated expenditure where charitable objects and the genuineness of activities had already been accepted under Section 12AA. These matters concern verification of income and the application of funds, which must be examined during assessment proceedings rather than at the registration stage. Rejection on those grounds was unsustainable, and registration was required to be granted.

Delayed realisation of trade receivables from associated enterprises is treated as an independent international transaction because Section 92B includes deferred payments, receivables and business debt. Excess credit must therefore be transfer-pricing benchmarked. For foreign-currency receivables, a 60-day credit period and LIBOR plus 200 basis points apply after verification, requiring any interest adjustment to be recomputed on those parameters.

Jurisdictional validity of reassessment is in issue where a return was filed following a notice under Section 148(1) without a notice under Section 143(2). Clarification is required on the applicability and effect of the provisos to Sections 143(2) and 148(2), including treatment of a return filed after the period specified in the reassessment notice. The matter was listed for further hearing.

Reassessment proceedings for Assessment Year 2015-2016 were time-barred where the initial notice, notice under section 148A(b), and consequential reassessment order were issued on or after 1 April 2021. Under the binding interpretation of the relaxation legislation applicable to reassessment, proceedings for that assessment year could not be completed within the prescribed limitation period after that cut-off. The notices and resulting reassessment order were therefore legally unsustainable.

Invocation of Section 74(1) of the CGST Act is confined to cases involving fraud, wilful misstatement, or suppression of facts undertaken to evade tax. Non-payment or delayed payment of GST alone is insufficient. Investigations must yield material evidence of the relevant elements, and the show-cause notice must set out that evidence. A notice lacking foundational facts of fraud, wilful misstatement, or suppression cannot rest merely on delayed tax payment.