Indirect Tax
Goods and Services Tax
FinMin notifies establishment of 31 State benches of GST Appellate Tribunal
Excerpts from various sources
The Ministry of Finance has notified the constitution of 31 State benches of GST Appellate Tribunals across India. Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Goa will have three benches, while two benches would be set up in Rajasthan, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Gujarat, respectively.
Foreign Trade Policy
DGFT issues clarification on 'pre-import condition' under the Advance Authorization Scheme
Trade Notice No. 27/2023 dated 25 September 2023
The DGFT has issued a clarification on the treatment to be given for certain exportimport scenarios concerning the regularization of imports that could not meet the 'pre-import condition' under the Advance Authorization Scheme from 13 October 2017 to 9 January 2019. The same is as follows:
| Sr. No. | Issue raised | Clarification |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | In case of Advance Authorizations under which exports have been made in the said period but the import is made on or after 10 January 2019, the pre-import condition will be considered violated. | Pre-import conditions will not be considered to have been violated. |
| 2. | If Advance Authorizations were issued on or prior to 9 January 2019 and imports were made on or after 10 January 2019, whether pre-import condition will be applicable. | Pre-import conditions will not be applicable. |
| 3. | If against an Advance Authorization, imports were partly made up to and including 9 January 2019 and remaining imports were made thereafter, whether the latter will be subject to pre-import condition. | In such a scenario, the imports made on or after 10 January 2019 will not be subject to pre-import conditions. |
| 4. | In case of imports made under Advance Authorization on payment of IGST and Compensation Cess, whether pre-import condition will be applicable. | In such a scenario, the imports will not be subject to pre-import conditions, irrespective of the date of import. |
DGFT issues clarification on 'pre-import condition' under the Advance Authorization Scheme
Notification No. 33/2023 dated 26 September 2023
The government has notified an extension of the RoDTEP Scheme for exports made from 1 October 2023 to 30 June 2024. Accordingly, the existing rates for items covered under the said Scheme would continue subject to the budgetary framework provided under paragraph 4.54 of Foreing Trade Policy 2023.
Customs
CBIC implements ex-bond Shipping Bill in ICES 1.5
Circular No. 22/2023-Customs dated 19 September 2023
The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBIC) has developed the design and workflow of an 'ex-bond shipping bill' on the Indian Customs EDI System (ICES) for processing the export of goods from a bonded warehouse. This type of shipping bill can only be used for the export of warehoused goods. It is not meant for the exports under the MOOWR Scheme, except where the imported goods are exported as such. Furthermore, no incentive such as Drawback, RoDTEP/RoSCTL benefit, Advance/EPCG authorization, etc., shall be available for such cargo and the shipping bill would be a free shipping bill.
CBIC implements backend functionality to restrict IGST refund route for specified goods
Circular No. 24/2023-Customs dated 30 September 2023
The DG Systems CBIC has developed a backend functionality to restrict the IGST refund route for ineligible categories of goods. The checks have been enabled at the shipping bill level and accordingly, even if one invoice contains an item that is restricted for export on payment of IGST, the shipping bill containing such items will not be allowed to be filed.