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October 2026
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Trademark & IPDraft guidelines on design registration of GUIs and icons: registrable only when applied to an article; comments invited within 30 days
Comments within 30 daysComments invitedThe Patent Office has published draft Guidelines for Registration of Designs relating to GUI & Icon under the Designs Act, 2000. A GUI or icon shown on its own will not be registrable; it must be applied to an article such as a mobile phone or monitor. Stakeholders can send comments by e-mail within 30 days of the public notice.
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CustomsImport permit now a statutory requirement for insecticides imported for non-insecticidal use, including acrylonitrile: CBIC Instruction 18/2026-Customs
Form IA, fee ₹5,000Action neededCBIC has told Customs field formations that an import permit from the Registration Committee is a statutory requirement for importing any substance in the Schedule to the Insecticides Act, 1968 for non-insecticidal use. The requirement comes from the Insecticides Third (Amendment) Rules, 2026 (G.S.R. 597(E) of 8 July 2026): application in Form IA with a fee of ₹5,000.
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GSTGST portal opens “Multistate Registration”: apply for several States under one PAN in one go
One PAN, many StatesNew facilityGSTN has added a Multistate Registration tab on the portal home page. Common details are entered once through a Master TRN and flow into each State application. For now it is only for normal taxpayers.
September 2026
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CustomsThree more certificates on ICEGATE’s SWIFT 2.0 dashboard: Legal Metrology importer registration, MNRE concessional duty certificate and Coffee Board export permit
SWIFT 2.0: three more LPCOsNew facilityCBIC has brought three more certificates onto the SWIFT 2.0 Unified Dashboard on ICEGATE. The Legal Metrology certificate of registration of importer of weights and measures is now applied for there, all over India, and no longer on the LM portal. The MNRE Concessional Customs Duty Certificate (from 7 August 2026) and the Coffee Board Export Permit Certificate (from 27 July 2026) can be tracked and downloaded.
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FEMA & RBIGold and silver import through IIBX: IFSCA widens who can be notified as a Qualified Jeweller — DGFT authorisation holders and GJEPC members can apply
Qualified Jeweller route widenedReliefIFSCA has relaxed the eligibility for being notified as a Qualified Jeweller for importing gold or silver through IIBX. Holders of a valid DGFT Advance Authorisation, a valid GJEPC Registration-cum-Membership Certificate, or a DGFT authorisation for specific ITC (HS) codes can now apply through IIBX. They must trade through a Bullion Trading Member and import only the authorised items.
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LicencesGlass screen protectors for smartphones brought under the Compulsory Registration Order from 1 April 2027: MeitY S.O. 5190(E)
IS 19348:2025 from 1 Apr 2027Rule changeMeitY has added “Screen Protectors for smartphones” as S. No. 66 in the Schedule to the Electronics and Information Technology Goods (Requirement of Compulsory Registration) Order, 2021. The Indian Standard is IS 19348:2025, “Glass Screen Protector — Specification”. The Order applies to these goods from 1 April 2027.
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CustomsAutomatic goods registration for e-sealed export containers: ICEGATE advisory warns that a wrong container count in the shipping bill breaks the process
Auto GR for e-sealed cargoClarifiedAn ICEGATE advisory dated 21 September 2026 sets out how goods registration happens automatically for factory-stuffed, e-sealed FCL export containers once the last container gates in. It is running at JNCH, Cochin and New Mangalore. Exporters must declare the exact number of containers, package details and marks and numbers in the shipping bill, and the correct destination port code in the e-seal data.
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Income TaxValuers and authorised income-tax practitioners: date in rules 246 and 256 moved to 31 March 2027; Forms 169 and 171 replaced
31 March 2027ExtendedThe Income-tax (Fourth Amendment) Rules, 2026 replace “30th September, 2026” with “31st March, 2027” in rule 246(4) and rule 256(4), and substitute the application forms for registration as a valuer and as an authorised income-tax practitioner.
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Income TaxForm No. 98 for declarations in Form No. 97: Income Tax Department lays down registration and filing procedure
Form 98 by 31 OctoberAction neededDGIT (Systems) has notified how a reporting person registers on the Reporting Portal, gets an ITDREIN and files, corrects or deletes the statement in Form No. 98 under rule 160 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026.
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Foreign TradeExport consignments up to ₹3,00,000 no longer need an RCMC
₹3,00,000ReliefA new paragraph 2.57(c) in the Foreign Trade Policy exempts low-value export consignments from the Registration-cum-Membership Certificate requirement, with immediate effect. It is aimed at postal and courier exports.
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Foreign TradeNo RCMC needed for export consignments with FOB value up to ₹3 lakh: DGFT Notification No. 36/2026-27 amends FTP para 2.57
No RCMC up to ₹3 lakh FOBReliefDGFT has inserted sub-paragraph (c) in paragraph 2.57 of the Foreign Trade Policy 2023: the requirement of a Registration-cum-Membership Certificate or a Certificate of Registration does not apply to an export consignment whose FOB value does not exceed ₹3,00,000. The change has immediate effect from 15 September 2026.
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CustomsCustoms to accept one-year EPR certificates of plastic-packaging importers as one-time registration
one-time registrationReliefImporters were stuck at clearance because their EPR certificates showed a one-year validity. CBIC has told officers to treat those certificates as one-time registrations that need no renewal, and to clear the consignments.
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CustomsPlastic packaging imports: Customs to accept EPR certificates showing one-year validity as one-time registration — CBIC Instruction 15/2026-Customs
EPR certificate: no renewalReliefCBIC has asked Customs officers to clear consignments of plastic packaging, goods in plastic packaging, plastic raw material and intermediate material on verification of the importer’s EPR registration certificate. Certificates that show a one-year validity are to be treated as one-time registration certificates that need no renewal, and accepted as valid proof of EPR registration.
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FEMA & RBIFIU-IND issues PMLA notices to 15 crypto platforms and seeks takedown of their apps and URLs
15 noticesThe notices under section 13 of the PMLA are for operating without registering as reporting entities. The registration duty is activity-based and does not depend on physical presence in India.
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FEMA & RBIElectronic trading platforms in the IFSC now need IFSCA registration: Electronic Trading Platforms Regulations, 2026 notified, net worth floor USD 200,000
ETP Operator: USD 200,000 net worthRule changeIFSCA has notified the IFSCA (Electronic Trading Platforms) Regulations, 2026. No person may operate an electronic trading platform in the IFSC without registration as an Electronic Trading Platform Operator. An operator must keep a net worth of at least USD 200,000 at all times, run real-time surveillance, publish its operating policy and keep platform data for at least eight years.
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CustomsImporting cosmetics, drugs or medical devices: Customs to check CDSCO documents before out-of-charge — upload them on e-SANCHIT
7 checklistsAction neededCircular 40/2026-Customs circulates seven CDSCO checklists of licences, permissions and registration certificates that the Customs officer is to verify before releasing such imports, while their integration under SWIFT 2.0 is in process.
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SEBIPFRDA proposes overhaul of Point of Presence Regulations: physical and digital modes, LLPs, trusts and societies eligible, annual fee of 1% — exposure draft, comments closed 2 October
Draft: PoP fee ₹25,000, digital nilComments invitedPFRDA’s exposure draft of 2 September 2026 proposes to amend the Point of Presence Regulations, 2018: two modes of distribution (physical and digital), more legal forms eligible for digital-mode registration, application fee of ₹25,000 for physical mode and nil for digital, an annual fee of 1% of charges earned in place of five-yearly renewal, and “NPS Mitra” in place of “pension agent”. These are proposals; the comment period ended on 2 October 2026.
August 2026
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Company LawMCA FAQs on foreign companies and Indian subsidiaries: FC-1 within 30 days, FC-2 for every RBI extension, apostille rule turns on the place of signing
FC-1 within 30 daysClarifiedThe Ministry of Corporate Affairs has put out FAQs on registration of foreign companies and on Indian subsidiaries of foreign body corporates. They cover Forms FC-1 to FC-4, name reservation under rules 8 and 8A, the documents ROC-CRC expects, and when notarisation, apostille or consularisation is needed.
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SEBIKYC Registration Agencies may share information with IFSCA-regulated entities: SEBI specifies IFSCA under regulation 16A of the KRA Regulations
KRA access for IFSCA entitiesNew facilitySEBI has specified the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) under regulation 16A(1) of the KRA Regulations, 2011. Entities regulated by IFSCA may now access the systems of SEBI-registered KYC Registration Agencies to do KYC of their clients. They must follow the KRA Regulations, SEBI’s KYC Master Circular and, for FPI clients, the data security guidelines in the FPI Master Circular.
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FEMA & RBIIFSCA to all regulated entities: hold a valid SEZ Letter of Approval and IFSCA registration at all times, or face penalty, suspension or cancellation
LoA renewal: 2 months beforeAction neededIFSCA has directed every regulated entity in the IFSC to hold a valid and subsisting Letter of Approval under the SEZ Act, 2005 and the applicable IFSCA registration, licence or authorisation at all times, and not to do business without them. It notes that some entities are operating without these. The circular supersedes the direction of 3 April 2025.
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