Why is October 1 important and what are 10 big changes that will impact you from today

NEW DELHI: From Thursday (1 October 2020), several new rules and regulations that will have a major impact on the common’s man’s life have come into effect. According to reports, Indian citizens will now have to follow these new set of rules and regulations if they wish to buy a new LPG connection, transfer money to a foreign fund, or buy new health insurance. From October 1 onwards, new motor vehicle rules have come into effect, and rules related to Ujjwala Scheme, health insurance, credit and debit card have also changed.

Here are ten big rule changes that have come into effect from October 1
 

1 No requirement of physical documents related to driving licence, registration card

From October 1, people would be allowed to carry electronic versions of documents like driving licence, vehicle registration certificate etc. This means, there is no need to carry the physical copies of the same from October 1. The drivers can carry soft copies of these documents saved in DigiLocker or m-Parivahan mobile application. 

The e-copies would be valid and no enforcement agency can deny accepting it as proof. Details of driving licences disqualified or revoked by the licensing authority shall be recorded chronologically in the portal and such record shall be reflected on a regular basis on the portal has been provided for, the government said and added, thus the record shall be maintained electronically and further the driver behaviour would be monitored. DigiLocker is a digital storage service operated by the government that enables citizens to store certain official documents on cloud. 

2 Buying LPG connection will be costly 

Under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), the process of buying a new LPG gas connection will get dearer from October 1. This means the LPG gas connection will not come free. The Union Cabinet had approved an extension till September end for availing free cooking gas cylinders under PMUY.

3 Sweet sellers will need to display ‘best before date’

From October 1 onwards, the sweet shops will now have to declare the ‘best before date’ of non-packaged or loose sweets available in their shop. Mandated by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), all sweet shop owners will have to adhere to the protocol from 1 October.

4 Ban on blending of mustard oil with any other cooking oil

Food regulator FSSAI has also banned the blending of mustard oil with any other cooking oil with effect from October 1. In a letter to the commissioner of food safety of all states and Union Territories, FSSAI said the “blending of mustard oil with any other edible oil in India has been prohibited with effect from October 1, 2020.”

4 Buying CTVs will be expensive

From October 1, open-cell panels will attract 5% import duty with the government saying that a duty exemption expiring at the end of this month will not be extended. As part of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ the government is keen to expand domestic production capacity for open cell panels so that imports can be curbed. The one-year exemption given to the item expires today, 30 September.

5 Use of handheld communications devices 

The government on Saturday said maintenance of vehicular documents, including driving licences and e-challans, will be done through an information technology portal from October 1, 2020. It has been provided that the use of handheld communications devices while driving shall solely be used for route navigation in such a manner that it shall not disturb the concentration of the driver while driving.

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6 5% tax on foreign fund transfer

Any amount sent abroad to buy foreign tour packages, and every other foreign remittance made above ₹7 lakh, will attract a tax-collected-at source (TCS) beginning 1 October unless tax is already deducted at source (TDS) on that amount. While the tax on foreign tour packages will be 5% for any amount, for other foreign remittances the tax will kick in only for the amount spent above ₹7 lakh.

7 Health Insurance

Beginning October 1, a new set of rules will govern the Health insurance sector. The new rules apply to waiting period after getting health insurance, claim rejection by the companies, the inclusion of many more illnesses in the health cover. However, the consumer taking health insurance must also note that the premium paid on health insurance may also go up.

8 New debit & credit card rules

The RBI had directed all banks to not unnecessarily give international facilities to customers’ cards unless the customer himself demands it.  As per new guidelines, customers will get the option to register for preferences such as opt-in or opt-out services, spend limits and other services for online transactions, international transactions and contactless transactions. The debit and credit card services will only be enabled for transactions at ATMs (domestic) and Point of Sale terminals. Both debit and credit holders will now be allowed to set up a transaction limit.

9 TCS on remittances

TCS on Liberalised remittances scheme will be levied over and above the remittance amount of Rs 7 lakh by a customer in a financial year and will be effective from October 1. Besides, the corporate tax cut announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will get implemented from October 1.

10 Discounts for credit card users at petrol pumps

No discount will be given for credit card payments done to buy fuel at petrol pumps from October 1. The oil companies had introduced these discounts using credit/debit cards and e-wallets to promote digital payments. The good news is that discounts on debit cards and other modes of digital payments will continue for now.