The CBIC vide Notification No. 28/2026-Customs dated July 10, 2026 has amended Notification No. 8/2016-Customs, dated 5 February 2016, to permit the competent Board to extend the prescribed two-year period in specified cases where sufficient cause is demonstrated.
The amendment has been issued by the Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, Central Board of Excise and Customs, in exercise of the powers conferred under section 25(1) of the Customs Act, 1962.
Under the amendment, a new proviso has been inserted in condition (6) of the principal notification. The proviso states that, in any particular case, the prescribed period of two years may be extended by the Board for such further period as it considers appropriate, provided sufficient cause is shown.
The amendment introduces administrative flexibility in cases where the relevant proceedings or compliance requirements cannot be completed within the original two-year period for genuine and adequately supported reasons. The Board will be empowered to examine the circumstances of each case and determine the additional period that may be allowed.
A consequential drafting amendment has also been made in the subsequent proviso. The words “Provided further that” have been replaced with “Provided also that” to maintain the appropriate sequence of provisos following the insertion of the new provision.
The principal notification, Notification No. 8/2016-Customs, was published in the Gazette of India on 5 February 2016 vide G.S.R. 147(E). It was subsequently amended by Notification No. 4/2019-Customs, dated 7 February 2019, published vide G.S.R. 98(E).
The latest amendment provides a formal mechanism for extending the statutory or prescribed time period in deserving cases while retaining the requirement that the applicant establish sufficient cause to the satisfaction of the Board.
The Notification can be accessed at: https://a2ztaxcorp.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/CBDT-No.-28-2026-Customs.pdf
