The Government of India Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Custom vide their notification No. 38/2018- Customs (N.T.) have announced Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment Regulations 2018, which were supposed to come into force on August 1, 2018.
Following a number of extensions and amendments, the Regulations are finally scheduled from 1st October 2020.
The new Regulations essentially replace previous regulations dealing with
A. Compendium
1. In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 157[1], read with sections 30 (Delivery of arrival manifest or import manifest or import report), 30A (Passenger and crew arrival manifest and passenger name record information), 41 (Delivery of departure manifest or export manifest or export report), 41A (Passenger and crew departure manifest and passenger name record information), 53 (Transit of certain goods without payment of duty), 54 (Transshipment of certain goods without payment of duty), 56 (Transport of certain classes of goods subject to prescribed conditions),sub-section (3) of section 98 and sub-section (2) of section 158 of the Customs Act, 1962 (52 of 1962), the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs notified Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment Regulations 2018 vide Notification No. 38/2018- Customs (N.T.) dated 11.05.2018.
2. These regulations were supposed to come into force w.e.f the 1st August 2018. But have a look at a below-mentioned table containing various deferments:-
Notification | Defer Up to |
Notification No. 65/2018- Customs (N.T.) dated the 30th July 2018,
(Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment (Amendment) Regulations, 2018) |
01.11.2018 |
Notification No. 88/2018-Customs (N.T.) dated the 30th October 2018
Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2018 |
01.03.2019 |
Notification No. 17/2019-Customs (N.T.) dated 27th February 2019
Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment (Amendment) Regulations, 2019. |
01.08.2019 |
Notification No. 54/2019-Customs (N.T.) dated 1st August 2019 (Few regulations and implementation of said rules was changed vide this notification)
Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment (Amendment) Regulations, 2019. |
01.11.2019 (Transition Period of 45 Days before said date) |
Notification No. 78/2019-Customs (N.T.) dated 31st October 2019
Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2019. |
16.02.2020 |
Notification No. 14/2020-CUSTOMS (N.T.) dated 14th February 2020
Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment (Amendment) Regulations, 2020. |
01.08.2020 |
NOTIFICATION No. 66/2020-Customs (N.T.) the 31st July 2020
Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2020. |
30.09.2020 |
B.What are these rules about?
1. It Supersedes:-
As per Section 30, Customs Act 1962 Import General Manifest/ Import Report filed should be in conformity of Import Manifest (Vessels) Form Regulations 1976.
As per Section 47, Customs Act 1962 The Export General Manifest should be filed in terms of Export Manifest (Vessels) Regulations, 1976.
Section 56 of the Customs Act 1962, whether imported or indigenous which is to be transported from one part of India to another through a route that lies partly over the territory of a foreign country.
2. Now, SCMTR Introduces:-
3. Arrival Manifest (AM):
4. Departure Manifest (DM):
5. Salient Features of SCMTR:
C. Elucidation of SCMT Regulations
1. Scope of SCMT regulations:
2. Imports to India:
3. Exports from India:
4. Invoice value:
Import into India/Export out of India – invoice value is required.
D. Stakeholders (in Vessel Movement)
E. Reporting Events – To be Filed by ASC/ASA:
a. SAM – Sea Arrival Manifest
b. SAA – Sea Arrival Amendment – can be filed without approval until the filing of the application for entry inwards, with approval afterward.
a. SEI – Sea Entry Inwards
b. SDM- Sea Departure Manifest before departure from the Indian Port of Call.
c. SDA – Sea Departure Amendment – without approval before the departure notification, with approval afterward.
a. SDN – Sea Departure Notification
F. Reporting Events – To be Filed by Terminal Operator of the Port:
a. VCN – Voyage No. generated for the vessel – ICES generates a unique rotation number – The same rotation number can be quoted from arrival till departure for a vessel at a port.
a. ATA – Actual Time of Arrival – after the vessel has arrived the Terminal Operator shall give the actual time of Arrival giving information for the fields that are in the ATA Form.
b. CLA –Container Landed on Arrival – After the grant of Entry Inwards by the officer. Includes container details and the time when the offloading is completed.
a. CLD- Container Loaded-Departure – After the completion of loading. Including container details will be given and the time of completion of loading.
a. ATD (Sailing Report) – Actual Time of Departure
G. Customs Inland Movement (CIM)
a. End to end track and trace of import/export cargo till it is cleared for home consumption/sails out of India.
b. Advance notification to Custodians on the arriving cargo for better logistical planning.
c. Tracking of movement even to and from CFSs.
a. Custodian
b. Tran shipper (ATP)
a. Stuffing/Stripping Report (in case of Exports).
b. ATD – Actual Time of Departure.
c. ATA – Actual Time of Arrival – On Arrival of the Truck/ Train the officer/ custodian.
H. Cargo Movement
Rules Help in:-
a) Identify each cargo (Entered/Exit) uniquely.
How to do it?
b) Use the Cargo details submitted for Risk/ Facilitation.
c) Re-use the cargo details submitted for subsequent movements.
d) Track and trace – cargo details.
e) Seamless Segregation & aggregation pro-cess.
f) Online Approvals – no manual interface required.
g) Consolidated Cargo.
I. Cargo Summary Notification (Manifest to be filed by Non-Vessel Operators prior filing of the SAM / SDM)
1. Cargo Details should be submitted to the Customs before Entry or Exit as per prescribed timelines.
2. The primary responsibility of submission is with the ASC.
3. When consolidated, ASC can fulfill that requirement, if the supplementary declaration is filed by NVOCC.
4. NVOCC/ASC can file cargo details earlier to manifest using CSN.
5. When CSN is numbered, PCIN would be returned for every primary Transport Document (HBL) included in the CSN.
6. MCIN returned when Master BL details filed by ASC for the first time. Further Referencing of Cargo CSN is done as follows:-
7. Prime Loader files CSN with HBL details – consigner/consignee/itinerary/cargo details.
8. For exports, it can come directly from document number (Shipping Bill)
9. For each HBL, PCIN is generated (Primary Cargo Identification No.)
10. In the CSN – DM, i.e. I-I movement, the transhipper only has to quote the PCINs, or if all PCINs under an MCIN are being carried together, then just quoting MCIN would suffice.
11. In case of segregation of cargo, the various PCINs under the original MCIN may subsequently Fall under different MCIN after re-aggregation. But the unique identifier for each cargo would continue to be the original PCIN.
[1] SECTION 157. General power to make regulations.