MM TAX CLUB

—In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of section 146 of the Customs Act, 1962 (52 of 1962), the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, hereby makes the following regulations to amend the Customs Brokers Licensing Regulations, 2018, namely:-

1.  Short title and commencement. – (1) These regulations may be called the Customs Brokers Licensing (Amendment) Regulations, 2022.

                (2) They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette

2. In the Customs Broker Licensing Regulations, 2018, -

(i)  in Regulation 20, for sub-regulations (1) and (2), the following sub-regulations shall respectively be substituted, namely:-

―(1) Each Customs Broker shall enroll himself as a member of the Customs Brokers’ Association at every jurisdiction he operates, if there is such an Association registered in the Customs Station, where the Customs Broker is operating and recognised by the Principal Commissioner of Customs or Commissioner of Customs, as the case may be.

(2) No Customs Broker shall enroll himself in more than one Association, at a given time, in a particular jurisdiction.

(ii) after regulation 20, the following regulation shall be inserted, namely: -

21. Power to relax.– Where an applicant or a Customs Broker or NACIN makes a representation to the Board that he or it, as the case may be, is unable to comply with his or its duties or obligations within the time period as specified under any provision of these regulations, for the reasons beyond his or its control, but otherwise satisfy all other conditions, if any, as provided under such provision, the Board may, after consideration of the representation, and for reasons to be recorded in writing, allow a further time period for compliance of such duties or obligations.

Central Board of Direct Taxes

Directorate of Income Tax (Systems)

Notification No. 2 of 2022 dated 24th June, 2022

As per Section 101 of the Securities Transaction Tax, every recognized stock exchange or the prescribed person in the case of every Mutual Fund [or insurance company] [or the lead merchant banker in the case of an initial public offer] [or an initial offer] shall, within the prescribed time after the end of each financial year, prepare and deliver or cause to be delivered a return to the Assessing Officer or to any other authority or agency authorized by the Board.

For the purposes of filing of Securities Transaction Tax return electronically, CBDT has issued Notification No. 9/2022 dated 18.01.2022. As per the notification, a new class of person i.e. Insurance Company has been made responsible for collection and payment of securities transaction tax. A new Form No. 2A has also been introduced as per the said notification, to be filed by Insurance Company for furnishing Securities Transaction Tax return. The new sub rule 2A of rule 7 empowers Director General of Income Tax (Systems) to specify the procedures, formats and standards for ensuring secure capture and transmission of data.

All eligible reporting institutions having obligation to submit Securities Transaction Tax return are requested to submit the registration information as per Annexure A and send the signed copy in pdf format (size upto 1Mb) on ITD official email id at stt.reporting@insight.gov.in .The guidelines for preparation and submission of Securities Transaction Tax Return have been mentioned in the STT Rules 2004 amended via notification 9 of 2022. The format of return (Form No. 1, Form No. 2 and Form No. 2A) to be submitted is given in Annexure B. The data structure rules are enclosed in Annexure C . Notification of 2004, Securities Transaction Tax, Rules dated 29.09.2004 may be referred for class of persons responsible for filing Form No. 1 and Form No. 2. The new rule 5A inserted via Notification No. 9/2022 may be referred for class of persons responsible for filing Form No. 2A.

All the Reporting Institutions (class of person responsible) as defined in the Securities Transaction Rules 2004 and further modified by Securities Transaction Tax (1st Amendment), Rules,2022 dated 18th January 2022 are required to prepare the data file in prescribed format from their internal system. Reporting Institutions are required to submit the data files using SFTP Server using the login credentials (To be communicated separately).

The National Informatics Centre (NIC) has issued a list of GSTINs updated till June 22, 2022 generating an Invoice Reference Number (IRN).

After getting representation from various state governments Central Board of Indirect Tax (CBIC) finally extended levy of GST compensation cess till 31^st March 2026.

Earlier government has fixed the last date for levy of GST compensation cess till 1^st July 2022 but due to the covid pandemic states could not recovered their revenue losses occurred on implementation of Goods and Service Tax (GST) with effect from 1^st July 2017.

GST compensation cess came into force to compensate states for 1^st 5 years from implementation of GST to recover revenues loss arises on implementation of GST and elimination of various indirect taxes collected by the state governments.

The content of the Notification can be read as under;

                G.S.R. 468(E).—In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of section 12 read with section 8 of the Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Act, 2017 (15 of 2017), the Central Government on the recommendations of the Council hereby makes the following rules, namely:-

Short title and commencement.-

1. (1)These rules may be called the Goods and Services Tax (Period of Levy and Collection of Cess) Rules, 2022.

    (2) They shall come into force with effect from the 1st day of July, 2022.

Period for levy and collection of Cess.-

2. The period for levy and collection of cess under sub-section (1) of section 8 of the Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Act, 2017 shall be upto the 31st March, 2026.

CBDT vide Notification No 54/2022 dated 27th May 2022 issued Faceless Penalty (Amendment) scheme 2022, details of the notifications can be accessed as under;

In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2A) of section 274 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961), the Central Government hereby makes the following Scheme to amend the Faceless Penalty Scheme, 2021, namely:__

1. Short title and commencement.– (1) This Scheme may be called the Faceless Penalty (Amendment) Scheme, 2022.

(2) It shall come into force on the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.

2. In the Faceless Penalty Scheme, 2021,––

(i) in paragraph 4,––

(A) in sub-paragraph (1),––

(I) in clause (i), the words “and vest it with the jurisdiction to impose penalty in accordance with the provisions of this Scheme” shall be omitted;

(II) clause (ii) shall be omitted;

(III) in clause (iii), for the words “as may be required for the purposes of imposing penalty”, the words ―as may be required for the purposes of imposing penalty and the term “penalty unit”, wherever used in this Scheme, shall refer to an Assessing Officer having powers so assigned by the Board” shall be substituted;

(IV) in clause (iv), for the words ―and such other functions as may be required for the purposes of review, and specify their respective jurisdiction‖, the words ―and such other functions as may be required for the purposes of review and the term “penalty review unit”, wherever used in this Scheme, shall refer to an Assessing Officer having powers so assigned by the Board shall be substituted;

(B) in sub-paragraph (4), the words “the Regional Faceless Penalty Centres,”, “Regional Faceless Assessment Centre,” and “Regional Faceless Penalty Centre,” shall be omitted;

(ii) in paragraph 5, in sub-paragraph (1),––

(A) in clause (ii), the words “in any one of the Regional Faceless Penalty Centres” shall be omitted;

(B) for the clauses (xv) to (xxii), the following clauses shall be substituted, namely:––

“(xv) the penalty unit shall, after considering the material on record including response furnished, if any, as referred to in clauses (viii), (x) and (xii) or report, if any, as referred to in clause (xiv), propose for,––

(a) imposition of the penalty and prepare a penalty imposition proposal for imposition of such penalty;

(b) non-imposition of the penalty, for reasons to be recorded in writing, and send the penalty imposition proposal or reasons, as the case may be, to the National Faceless Penalty Centre;

(xvi) the National Faceless Penalty Centre, in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Board, may,––

1. in a case where imposition of penalty has been proposed, convey to the penalty unit to pass the penalty order as per penalty imposition proposal referred to in sub-clause (a) of clause (xv); or
2. in a case where non-imposition of penalty has been proposed, convey to the penalty unit to drop the penalty proceedings under intimation to the assessee or any other person, as the case may be; or
3. assign the case to a penalty review unit through an automated allocation system, for conducting review of such proposal or reasons, as the case may be;

(xvii) the penalty unit shall, in the case referred to in sub-clause (a) of clause (xvi), pass the order imposing penalty and serve the same on the assessee through the National Faceless Penalty Centre;

(xviii) the penalty unit shall, in the case referred to in sub-clause (b) of clause (xvi), drop the penalty proceedings and send the intimation to the assessee through the National Faceless Penalty Centre;

(xix) the penalty review unit shall review the penalty imposition proposal or reasons for nonimposition of penalty, as referred to in sub-clause (c) of clause (xvi), whereupon it may concur with, or suggest modification to, such proposal or reasons, as the case may be, and prepare a review report and send such report to the National Faceless Penalty Centre;

(xx) the National Faceless Penalty Centre shall, upon receiving the review report under clause

(xix), forward the same to the penalty unit which had proposed the penalty imposition proposal or reasons for non-imposition of penalty, as the case may be;

(xxi) the penalty unit shall, after considering such review report, accept or reject some or all of the modifications proposed therein and after recording reasons in case of rejection of such modifications, pass the order imposing penalty or drop the penalty proceedings, as the case may be, and serve the order imposing penalty or intimation for dropping penalty proceedings, as the case may be, on the assessee through the National Faceless Penalty Centre;

(xxii) where an order imposing penalty or intimation for dropping penalty, as the case may be, has been passed, the penalty unit shall send a copy of such order, or intimation for dropping penalty to the income-tax authority, referred to in clause (i), through the National Faceless Penalty Centre, for further action as may be required under the Act.”;

(iii) paragraph 6 shall be omitted;

(iv) in paragraph 8,-

(A) for the brackets, figures and words “(i) For the purposes of the Scheme”, the words “For the purposes of the Scheme” shall be substituted;

(B) in clause (b), the words “Regional Faceless Penalty Centres,” shall be omitted;

(v) for paragraph 9, the following paragraph shall be substituted, namely:––

“9. Authentication of electronic record.–– For the purposes of this Scheme, an electronic record shall be authenticated by,––

1. the National Faceless Penalty Centre by way of an electronic communication;
2. the penalty unit or the penalty review unit or technical unit or verification unit, as the case may

be, by affixing digital signature;

(iii) assessee or any other person, by affixing his digital signature or under electronic verification code, or by logging into his registered account in the designated portal.

Explanation. – For the purpose of this paragraph, “electronic verification code” shall have the same meaning assigned to it in the Explanation to sub-rule (3) of rule 12 of the Rules.”;

(vi) in paragraph 11,––

(A) in sub-paragraph (1), the words “or Regional Faceless Penalty Centre” shall be omitted;

(B) for sub-paragraphs (3) and (4), the following paragraphs shall be substituted, namely:––

“(3) Where the request for personal hearing has been received, the income-tax authority of relevant unit shall allow such hearing, through National Faceless Penalty Centre.

(4) Hearing referred to in sub-paragraph (3) shall be conducted exclusively through video conferencing or video telephony, including use of any telecommunication application software which supports video conferencing or video telephony, to the extent technologically feasible, in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Board.”;

(vii) in paragraph 12,––

                (A) the words “the Regional Faceless Penalty Centre,” shall be omitted;

(B) the clause (ix), shall be omitted.