Rule change
54stories
October 2026
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LicencesSugar stock limits: dealers capped at 1,000 quintals and 15 days from 15 October to 30 November 2026; bulk consumers may hold 30 days’ stock using imported sugar
Sugar dealers: 1,000 qtl, 15 daysRule changeThe Government has fixed the sugar dealers’ stock limit at 1,000 quintals and the holding period at 15 days from 15 October to 30 November 2026, with 2,000 quintals for Kolkata and its extended metropolitan areas and Assam. Separately, bulk consumers may hold 30 days’ stock instead of 15, but the extra quantity must come only from sugar imported under Advance Authorisation or TRQ.
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FEMA & RBIRBI withdraws 268 currency-management circulars issued between 1976 and 2025 after consolidating them into Master Directions
268 circulars withdrawnRule changeRBI has withdrawn 268 circulars and guidelines on currency management, dated from 9 August 1976 to 24 April 2025. Some have been consolidated into function-wise Master Directions and subject-specific instructions; others have become obsolete or redundant. A separate circular of the same day lets a bank’s Board delegate monitoring of ATM cassette swaps to a Committee of Executives.
September 2026
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LicencesNew CAFE norms notified for passenger vehicles from 1 April 2027 to 31 March 2032: target tightens to 3.3273 litres/100 km
CAFE norms from 1 April 2027Rule changeThe Ministry of Power says it has notified new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) norms for new passenger vehicles manufactured or imported for sale in India, applicable from 1 April 2027 to 31 March 2032. The fuel-consumption benchmark tightens from 3.996 litres/100 km in 2027–28 to 3.3273 litres/100 km in 2031–32.
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CustomsTariff values from 1 October 2026: crude palm oil US$ 1,229, gold US$ 1,339 per 10 grams, silver US$ 1,965 per kg — Notification 80/2026-Customs (N.T.)
Tariff values from 1 OctoberRule changeCBIC has substituted the tariff value tables for edible oils, brass scrap, gold, silver and areca nuts under Notification No. 36/2001-Customs (N.T.). The new values apply from 1 October 2026. The areca nut value is unchanged at US$ 11,574 per metric ton.
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LicencesCAQM approves revised GRAP schedule for NCR: DG set and bus curbs move to Stage I, essential-goods exemption for BS-IV goods vehicles removed
Revised GRAP: 48 actionsRule changeThe Commission for Air Quality Management approved modifications to the GRAP Schedule for the NCR at its 30th Full Commission meeting on 28 September 2026. Actions on DG sets and BS-IV and below buses move from Stage II to Stage I, Sonipat is added to the districts with LMV restrictions, and web-portal dust monitoring is extended to C&D projects beyond municipal limits.
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LabourESI coverage notified in the entire area of 25 districts of Madhya Pradesh from 1 October 2026
25 districts of MPRule changeA Gazette notification under section 1(4) of the Code on Social Security covers the whole of Niwari, which was not implemented at all, and of 24 districts that were only partly covered.
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FEMA & RBIExporters get nine months to bring export proceeds home from 1 October 2026: RBI amends the new FEMA export-import regulations, notified with fifteen, before they take effect
Export proceeds: 9 monthsRule changeRBI has amended regulation 5(1) of the Foreign Exchange Management (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026 before they took effect. The period to realise and repatriate export value is nine months instead of fifteen, and twelve months instead of eighteen where the export is invoiced or settled in rupees. The amendment is in force from 1 October 2026.
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CustomsAnti-dumping duty on jute yarn, hessian fabric and sacking bags from Bangladesh and Nepal re-fixed after mid-term review: Notification 24/2026-Customs (ADD)
Jute ADD: nil to US$445 per MTRule changeThe Finance Ministry has substituted the duty table in Notification No. 33/2022-Customs (ADD) on jute products from Bangladesh and Nepal, following DGTR’s mid-term review findings of 25 June 2026. Producer-wise duties now range from nil to US$ 155 per MT; the residual rates go up to US$ 445 per MT for Bangladesh and US$ 292 per MT for Nepal.
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Income TaxTDS on property bought from a non-resident: Forms 132 and 141 amended from 1 October 2026
Form 141, Schedule ERule changeThe Income-tax (Fifth Amendment) Rules, 2026 bring the case where a resident individual or HUF deducts tax on buying immovable property from a non-resident into rules 215, 218 and 219, and add a new Schedule E to Form No. 141.
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InsolvencyLiquidation: liquidator may modify the list of stakeholders on new information and intimate the Adjudicating Authority within 30 days — IBBI Fifth Amendment Regulations, 2026
Intimate the AA within 30 daysRule changeIBBI has amended regulation 31 of the Liquidation Process Regulations, 2016. Sub-regulations (3) and (4) are replaced by a single sub-regulation (3): the liquidator may modify an entry in the list of stakeholders when he comes across additional information warranting it, and shall intimate the Adjudicating Authority within thirty days of the modification. The amendment is in force from its publication in the Official Gazette.
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FEMA & RBIRBI finalises rules on novation of OTC derivative contracts; instructions folded into four existing Directions and apply from 22 September 2026
OTC derivative novationRule changeRBI has finalised its instructions on novation of OTC derivative contracts, first released as a draft on 9 July 2025. Instead of a separate direction, the instructions are inserted in the four Directions governing OTC foreign exchange, rupee interest rate, government securities and credit derivatives. They apply to any novation undertaken on or after 22 September 2026.
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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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LicencesGas Cylinders Rules amended for CNG/CBG Mobile Refuelling Units: who may own one, where it may dispense and what safety conditions apply
CNG/CBG mobile refuellingRule changeDPIIT has notified the Gas Cylinder (Third Amendment) Rules, 2026 (G.S.R. 831(E) dated 21 September 2026). A new Condition 22 in Form G lays down additional conditions for CNG/CBG Mobile Refuelling Units — ownership, the vehicles they may refuel, safety distances and records. Public retail dispensing is barred.
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FEMA & RBIRBI issues final Basel III market-risk capital rules for commercial banks: Simplified Standardised Approach from 1 April 2027
Market risk rules: 1 Apr 2027Rule changeRBI has issued the Reserve Bank of India (Commercial Banks – Minimum Capital Requirements for Market Risk) Directions, 2026, finalising draft guidelines of 17 February 2023. Banks must use the Simplified Standardised Approach, with capital computed for interest rate, equity and foreign exchange risk. The Directions take effect from 1 April 2027.
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Legal & DisputesTRAI amends spam-call regulations: AI-based detection, pre-declared A2P calls, a 7-day inquiry window and a consumer appeal
TCCCPR Third Amendment 2026Rule changeTRAI has introduced the Telecom Commercial Communication Customer Preference (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2026. Businesses using automated (A2P) calls must pre-declare them to their telecom provider; commercial messages on the basis of a customer’s inquiry are allowed only for seven days; and action against a sender can start at three complaints in ten days if its number is also flagged by AI.
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LabourEPF wage ceiling raised from ₹15,000 to ₹25,000 a month with effect from 17 September 2026
₹25,000Rule changeThe Union Cabinet has approved a higher wage ceiling for mandatory EPFO coverage. Employees drawing between ₹15,000 and ₹25,000 a month become eligible for mandatory coverage.
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Foreign TradePre-Shipment Inspection Certificate to be issued within 2 days of inspection; one-time window for backlog PSICs: DGFT Trade Notices No. 28/2026-27 and 22/2026-27
PSIC within 2 daysRule changeDGFT’s Trade Notice No. 22/2026-27 of 25 August 2026 tightened the PSIA/PSIC module so that a Pre-Shipment Inspection Certificate could be generated only on the date of inspection. Trade Notice No. 28/2026-27 of 16 September 2026 relaxes this to 2 days from inspection and gives agencies a one-time seven-day window to clear backlog certificates.
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LicencesGold hallmarking: district list replaced; hallmarking fee fixed at ₹75 per gold article and ₹35 per silver article
₹75 per gold articleRule changeTwo notifications on hallmarking. The Hallmarking of Gold Jewellery and Gold Artefacts (Third Amendment) Order, 2026 (S.O. 4345(E) of 3 August 2026) substitutes the Annexure of districts. The BIS (Hallmarking) Amendment Regulations, 2026 of 14 September 2026 substitute Schedule IV on hallmarking fees.
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FSSAIFood sample analysis: reports within 14 days, import samples within 5 days from 1 April 2027 — FSS (Laboratory and Sample Analysis) Amendment Regulations, 2026
Reports in 14 days; imports in 5Rule changeFSSAI has amended the Food Safety and Standards (Laboratory and Sample Analysis) Regulations, 2011. From 1 April 2027, the Food Analyst must issue a signed report within fourteen days of receiving a regulatory sample, the referral laboratory within fourteen days in appeal, and the notified or referral laboratory within five days for import samples. New regulations on the method of analysis are added, and Forms A and B are omitted.
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FEMA & RBIRBI cuts short the FCNR(B)/NRE deposit relief window to 31 August 2026: CRR-SLR exemption, interest-rate relaxation and priority-sector carve-out all end a month early
FCNR(B)/NRE window: 31 AugRule changeThe temporary reliefs on fresh FCNR(B) deposits of three to five years and NRE term deposits of three years or more were to run until 30 September 2026. On 25 August 2026 RBI moved the end date to 31 August 2026 for the CRR/SLR exemption and the interest-rate relaxation. On 11 September 2026 the priority-sector (ANBC) exclusion was aligned to the same date.
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