CBIC · India
CBIC Notification No. 80/2026-Customs (N.T.), issued 30 Sep 2026 and effective 1 Oct 2026, revises the fortnightly tariff (benchmark) values used to assess customs duty on palm oils, palmolein, crude soybean oil, brass scrap, gold, silver and areca nut. Importers should reprice bills of entry filed from 1 October against the new values, which apply regardless of invoice price.
CBIC Circular No. 42/2026-Customs (24 Sep 2026) makes it mandatory, from 1 November 2026, to declare an additional qualifier on export shipping bills for specified woven and knitted fabrics under HS Chapters 52, 55 and 60 — flagging Flame Retardant (FR001) vs non-FR (FR009) fabric. Textile exporters and CHAs must build it into shipping-bill filing.
CBIC Circular No. 43/2026-Customs (24 Sep 2026) clarifies that where CAROTAR 2020 conflicts with a trade agreement's rules of origin, the agreement prevails. Importers claiming preference need not routinely file Form-I or obtain confidential exporter data; a valid origin declaration suffices for India–UK CETA.
CBIC Circular No. 44/2026-Customs (28 Sep 2026) approves a new Special Notified Zone at the Surat Diamond Bourse, letting foreign mining companies import, view, auction and sell rough diamonds in Surat. It replaces the Ichhapore SNZ; stones arrive by air via Mumbai and unsold lots must re-export within 75 days.
Following a DGTR mid-term review, the Finance Ministry has revised anti-dumping duty on jute yarn/twine, hessian fabric and jute sacking bags from Bangladesh and Nepal via Notification No. 24/2026-Customs (ADD), 24 Sep 2026. Specified producers get a nil rate; others face higher duty for the remaining period of the original measure.
CBIC Circular 42/2026-Customs (24 Sep 2026) makes it mandatory, from 1 Nov 2026, to declare a flame-retardant qualifier (FR001/FR009 under Info Type "CHR") in shipping bills for specified fabrics under Chapters 52, 55 and 60. Textile exporters and CHAs must update filing practice.
CBIC Notification No. 31/2026-Customs (23 Sep 2026) cuts basic customs duty on crude and refined edible oils from 24 Sep 2026 — crude sunflower reportedly to nil, crude soybean and crude palm to 5% — to cool retail prices. Importers should reprice contracts and recheck bill-of-entry duty.
CBIC Notification No. 73/2026-Customs (N.T.), dated 1 Sep 2026, extends the Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment Regulations (SCMTR) compliance deadline to 31 October 2026 — the third extension in 2026. Shipping lines, agents, forwarders and CHAs should complete migration to electronic advance manifest filing before the parallel legacy run ends.
CBIC Notification No. 4/2026-Customs (CVD), issued 23 Sep 2026, imposes a definitive countervailing duty on calcium carbonate filler masterbatch (tariff item 3824 99 00) from Vietnam for five years, following a DGTR finding of subsidised imports. Producer-specific rates run from about USD 9.11 to USD 69.19 per tonne.
CBIC Notification No. 24/2026-Customs (ADD), dated 24 Sep 2026, re-quantifies anti-dumping duty on jute yarn/twine, hessian, jute sacking bags and sacking cloth from Bangladesh and Nepal, amending the 2022 notification after a mid-term review. Producer-specific rates run from nil to about USD 445/MT. Importers of jute goods should re-check exporter-specific rates before booking.
CBIC Circular No. 44/2026-Customs (28 Sep 2026) relocates the rough-diamond Special Notified Zone from Gujarat Hira Bourse to the Surat International Diatrade Centre at Surat Diamond Bourse. It permits duty-free import (by air cargo), viewing, auction and re-export of unsold rough diamonds under Kimberley Process rules, with 60/75-day repacking and re-export timelines. Relevant to gem & jewellery importers.
CBIC Circular No. 43/2026-Customs (24 Sep 2026) clarifies that where a trade agreement's rules of origin conflict with CAROTAR 2020, the agreement prevails. For India–UK CETA, a valid origin declaration is sufficient and Form-I is not a precondition for preferential claims. Importers need not obtain confidential supplier data; non-furnishing alone cannot deny preference.
CBIC Instruction No. 15/2026-Customs (9 Sep 2026) directs field formations to verify EPR registration on the CPCB Centralised EPR Portal before clearing imports of plastic packaging, plastic raw materials and goods in plastic packaging. Importers without a valid EPR Registration Certificate risk clearance delays.
CBIC has notified Campbell Bay and Car Nicobar (Andaman & Nicobar Islands) as customs locations for import and export cargo, reported via Notification No. 76/2026-Customs (N.T.) dated 23 Sep 2026 under Section 7(1)(a) of the Customs Act, 1962. It formalises customs clearance points in the islands — relevant to traders and logistics operators serving the region.
India's safeguard duty on non-alloy and alloy flat steel products (Notification No. 02/2025-Customs (SG), 30 Dec 2025) runs three years — 12% from 21 Apr 2025, 11.5% in year two, and 11% to 20 Apr 2028 — on HS 7208-7212, 7225 and 7226, with minimum import price thresholds. A standing cost for steel importers and a margin factor for downstream engineering exporters. A reference note.
CBIC Instruction No. 15/2026-Customs (9 Sep 2026) directs Customs field formations to verify registration on the CPCB Centralised EPR Portal before clearing consignments of plastic packaging, plastic raw materials and intermediates. Importers without valid EPR registration risk clearance delays. Action points for importers and CHAs.
CBIC Circular 38/2026-Customs (1 Sep 2026) moves the Sea Cargo Manifest and Transhipment Regulations, 2018 into phased mandatory implementation across ports, while extending the no-penal-action transition window to 31 October 2026. Shipping lines, agents, forwarders, custodians and CHAs must file the prescribed electronic messages.
Chennai Air Cargo Commissionerate Public Notice 18/2026 (7 Sep 2026) streamlines use of Section 49 warehousing for imports delayed by testing, PGA approvals or other checks, and standardises detention/demurrage waiver certificates. Importers should be told about the Section 49 option — ideally within one working day. It creates no automatic right to a waiver.
Chennai Customs Public Notice 125/2026 (6 Sep 2026) excludes specified import containers — empty containers manifested by shipping lines and international transshipment containers not meant for clearance in India — from mandatory scanning, as part of phased scanning enhancement and trade facilitation. The exclusion is conditional: such boxes can still be scanned on DRI or field intelligence.
CBIC Instruction No. 15/2026-Customs (9 Sep 2026) directs Customs to clear plastic-packaging consignments after verifying the importer's EPR Registration Certificate, and clarifies that certificates showing a one-year validity are to be treated as one-time registrations that need no annual renewal.
CBIC Circular No. 39/2026-Customs (3 Sep 2026) rationalises the data and documents needed to apply for the Eligible Manufacturer Importer (EMI) Scheme, which allows deferred payment of Customs import duty under Section 47. Enrolment on the lighter requirements opens 15 September 2026.
CBIC Circular No. 36/2026-Customs (20 Aug 2026) continues facilitative transhipment measures for international cargo disrupted by the Strait of Hormuz closure — permitting FCL/LCL and bulk cargo diverted to Indian ports to be stored and re-exported without home-consumption clearance. In force to 31 October 2026.
CBIC Circular No. 28/2026-Customs lets Customs accept exporters' NABL- or EPC-accredited test reports for export consignments without mandatorily sending samples to Revenue (CRCL) laboratories, where there is no risk-based intervention — cutting duplicate testing and clearance delays. Import-sample testing is unchanged.
CBIC's Notification No. 73/2026-Customs (N.T.) dated 1 September 2026 (SCMTR Third Amendment) pushes the specified Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment compliance date to 31 October 2026 — buying shipping lines, forwarders and CHAs more transition time on advance manifest filing.
A 2026 primer on the Customs Act, 1962 for importers: what the Act does, the bill of entry (Section 46) and warehousing route, valuation (Section 14) and assessment, duties and clearance (Section 47), duty drawback on re-export (Section 74), penalties, and the key Finance Act 2025 reforms — the two-year limit on finalising provisional assessments (Section 18(1B)) and voluntary post-clearance revision (Section 18A).