Representative image. Narendra Modi, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Why it matters
These changes hit household and business costs, daily travel into Delhi, how people buy mutual funds and whether pensions keep arriving. Most need a small action by a set date, from paying the UGC NET fee by 31 October to submitting a life certificate by 30 November.
The new rules from 1 November 2026 touch cooking gas bills, highway tolls, Delhi’s borders, mutual fund apps and pension paperwork, and a few deadlines fall either side of the date. Some of these changes are already notified. Others are announcements or routine monthly revisions whose details will only be known on 1 November itself.
Below, each change is checked against an official notice or at least two reputable reports, with links to our earlier articles where we have covered a change in full.
New rules from 1 November: the dates in order
This table lists every change in date order, who it affects and what to do. It covers 31 October to 21 November 2026.
| Date | What changes | Who is affected | What to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 October, 11.50 pm | UGC NET (the University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test) December 2026 application and fee deadline | Candidates who registered but have not paid | Finish the form and pay before the deadline |
| 1 November | Monthly revision of commercial LPG and jet fuel prices | Restaurants and businesses using 19 kg cylinders; airlines | Check the new rate on your oil company’s site from 1 November |
| 1 November | Concessional local toll pass comes into force | Owners of non-commercial vehicles with FASTag living within 20 km of a national highway toll plaza | Watch for the application process; the notification does not set it out |
| 1 November to 31 January 2027 | Non-BS-VI vehicles registered outside Delhi kept out of Delhi | Commuters and transporters from National Capital Region (NCR) towns with older vehicles | Check your vehicle’s emission standard on its registration certificate |
| 1 November | Direct plans to be the default on fund houses’ own apps and websites, SEBI’s chairman said | New mutual fund investors buying directly from a fund house | Check which plan is selected before you invest |
| 1 to 30 November | Annual life certificate window for pensioners (from 1 October for those 80 and above) | Central government pensioners | Submit in person or through a Digital Life Certificate |
| 2 to 4 November | UGC NET correction window | UGC NET applicants | Fix errors in the submitted form |
| 21 November | Income tax return due date for audit cases, Assessment Year 2026-27 | Businesses and professionals whose accounts need a tax audit | File by 21 November; the earlier date was 31 October |
LPG cylinder price on 1 November: what is known so far
State-run oil marketing companies revise the prices of commercial LPG and aviation turbine fuel (ATF, the jet fuel airlines buy) on the first day of every month, the news agency PTI reported when the October revision came out. The November LPG cylinder price for commercial users will be published on 1 November, so any figure quoted before then is a guess.
On 1 October, the 19 kg commercial cylinder went up by ₹62.50, PTI reported. In Delhi it costs ₹2,810, according to a Goodreturns report on 24 October. The 14.2 kg cylinder used in homes was unchanged at ₹942 in Delhi, and Goodreturns said that price has not moved since 7 June 2026. Goodreturns noted that household LPG, unlike the commercial cylinder, has no fixed monthly revision date.
Toll pass, Delhi entry curbs and the UGC NET deadline
Three of the new rules from 1 November, or deadlines just before it, are ones we have reported in detail.
- Local toll pass: from 1 November, owners of non-commercial vehicles with a valid FASTag who live within 20 km of a national highway toll plaza can buy a Concessional Local Pass for that one plaza. It costs ₹1,500 a year outside municipal limits and ₹3,000 inside them. Read our full explainer on the toll plaza annual pass.
- Delhi borders: the Delhi government said vehicles registered outside Delhi that do not meet BS-VI (Bharat Stage VI) emission norms will not be allowed in from 1 November 2026 to 31 January 2027. CNG and electric vehicles and essential services are exempt. Our article on the non-BS-VI ban covers who is hit.
- UGC NET: the National Testing Agency (NTA) moved the last date for the December 2026 exam form and fee to 11.50 pm on 31 October, without a late fee. A search on 30 October found no later extension. Details are in our UGC NET deadline story.
Mutual fund direct plans: SEBI chairman’s announcement
Tuhin Kanta Pandey, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), said on 28 October that from 1 November direct plans will be the default option on the digital platforms of asset management companies (AMCs), the fund houses. Business Today and the Free Press Journal reported his remarks, made at a business event held by the channel NDTV Profit in Mumbai. Investors who pick a regular plan are to be told that it has a higher expense ratio, the yearly fee charged as a share of the investment.
A direct plan is bought straight from the fund house, without a distributor, so it carries no commission and costs less each year. A regular plan is sold through a distributor or adviser, who is paid from the fund’s fees.
Two limits matter. Neither report cited a SEBI circular, and none on this subject appeared on SEBI’s circulars page when NewsPlainly checked it on 30 October. The reports also say the change covers fund houses’ own platforms; Business Today said it does not establish that independent investment apps will follow, and neither report said existing investments or SIPs will be switched.
Pensioners: the life certificate window opens
Central government pensioners have to submit a life certificate, a proof that they are alive, every year to keep their pension flowing. The usual window is 1 to 30 November, while pensioners aged 80 and above can submit from 1 October under a 2019 notification of the Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare, Outlook Money reported.
A life certificate can be submitted in person or digitally. Northern Railway said it will run Digital Life Certificate Campaign 5 from 1 to 30 November 2026, following the pension department’s guidelines, with camps in its divisions and the option of face authentication on a smartphone, the Free Press Journal reported.
Income tax: audit-case returns now due 21 November
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) pushed back the deadline for filing income tax returns for Assessment Year 2026-27 for taxpayers whose accounts must be audited, from 31 October to 21 November 2026, News On AIR, the All India Radio news service, reported on 29 September. The deadline for the tax audit report itself moved from 30 September to 21 October. The extension applies to taxpayers covered by the audit provisions, the report said, not to everyone filing a return.
Deadlines after 1 November and what to watch
The first new figures will be the commercial LPG cylinder price and ATF prices on 1 November. The toll pass notification does not explain how to apply, so the application route is the next detail to watch for. Pensioners have until 30 November to file their life certificate, and audit-case taxpayers until 21 November.
Frequently asked questions
Will the LPG cylinder price change on 1 November 2026?
Oil companies revise commercial 19 kg LPG and jet fuel prices on the first day of each month, so new rates come out on 1 November. Household 14.2 kg LPG has no fixed monthly revision and was ₹942 in Delhi in October.
What is the last date for submitting a life certificate in 2026?
The usual window is 1 to 30 November. Pensioners aged 80 and above can submit from 1 October.
Are mutual fund direct plans now the default?
SEBI chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said on 28 October that direct plans will be the default on fund houses' own digital platforms from 1 November. The reports read did not cite a SEBI circular.
What is the ITR due date for audit cases for 2026-27?
21 November 2026, after the CBDT moved it from 31 October, News On AIR reported.