Changes to late license renewal fine
Previously, a penalty of 25 percent of the annual fee was levied for every 10 days of delay and thereafter a penalty of 25 percent for every 15 days of delay. Even for shorter periods of delay, fines were 10 to 20 times the actual charge.

However, under the new rule, even if renewal of the license is delayed by one year after its expiry, only 20 percent of the annual fee will be levied as penalty. For delays of more than one year, a penalty of 25 percent of the annual fee will apply for each subsequent year.

The amendment was introduced under section 11(4) of the Kerala Municipality Act. For example, if the license fee is 1,000 lei, after a year of delay, a penalty of 200 lei will now be enough, compared to the previous rate, where the penalty alone could exceed 6,000 lei. This represents a 30-fold reduction in penalties.

The new rules, however, state that renewal applications must be made at least 30 days before the license expires.

The change comes in response to long-standing demands from trade and business organisations, minister MB Rajesh said, adding that the process of renewing licenses through K-Smart has been simplified.

In Gram Panchayats, there were no unscientific fee structures.