CBIC Notifies Rules For Preferential Tariff Benefits Under India-UK CETA Ahead Of 15 July Rollout

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on 3 July notified the Customs (Administration of Rules of Origin under the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between India and the United Kingdom) Rules, 2026, paving the way for implementation of the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) from 15 July. They will come into force on the same day as the trade pact. India and the United Kingdom signed the CETA on 24 July 2025 to reduce or eliminate tariffs,...

No Confiscation Of Exotic Birds Without Section 123 Notification Or Proof Of Smuggling: CESTAT Kolkata

On 3 July, the Kolkata Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) held that Customs authorities cannot confiscate exotic birds and mammals or impose penalties merely on suspicion of smuggling, where the goods are not notified under Section 123 of the Customs Act and the Department fails to discharge the burden of proving illegal import. A Bench comprising Judicial Member Justice (Dr.) Ashok Jindal and Technical Member K. Anpazhakan allowed the appeals filed by...

CESTAT Kolkata Holds Control Of Premises Suffices For Liability In Gold Seizure Case, Cuts Penalty

On 2 July 2026, the Kolkata Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) held that an individual who controlled premises from which authorities recovered a substantial quantity of gold cannot avoid penalty under the Customs Act merely on the ground that he lacked physical possession, as surrounding circumstances established his involvement in handling goods liable for confiscation. Judicial Member Ashok Jindal and Technical Member K. Anpazhakan partly allowed the...

CESTAT Chennai Sets Aside ₹3.92 Cr. Demand Based On Compilations, Holds Re-Export Must Be Verified

On 1 July, the Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) set aside a customs duty demand of Rs. 3.92 crore raised against Econship Tech Pvt. Ltd. and remanded the matter for fresh adjudication, holding that customs authorities cannot deny exemption under Notification No. 104/94-Cus. without independently verifying container-wise export compliance. Judicial Member Ajayan T.V. and Technical Member Vasa Seshagiri Rao observed that the dispute required...

CESTAT New Delhi Rejects Duty Demand Under Replenishment Scheme For Jewellery With 2.05% Norm

The New Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 30 June held that customs authorities cannot demand duty under the Replenishment Scheme when exported jewellery is manufactured through a fully mechanised process and the applicable value addition requirement stands at 2.05% under the Foreign Trade Policy, rather than 3.5%. Judicial Member Ashok Jindal and Technical Member K. Anpazhakan allowed the appeals filed by State Trading Corporation of India Ltd....

CESTAT Delhi Dismisses 17 Mitsubishi Electric Appeals Over EPS-ECU Customs Classification As Automobile Part

The Principal Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), New Delhi, has upheld Customs' classification of Electronic Control Units for Electronic Power Steering (EPS-ECU) and their parts as components of automobile steering systems, dismissing 17 appeals filed by Mitsubishi Electric Automotive India Pvt. Ltd. The tribunal held that the issue had already been settled in the company's own earlier cases involving identical goods. A bench of Officiating President...

CESTAT Chennai Says ELFA Diagnostic Kits Eligible For Customs Duty Exemption Available To ELISA Kits

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that diagnostic kits based on Enzyme-Linked Fluorescent Assay (ELFA) are entitled to the concessional customs duty exemption available to Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) kits. It ruled that ELFA is not a distinct diagnostic methodology but a technologically advanced application of ELISA.These diagnostic kits are used for medical tests, including the detection of infectious diseases, viral...

Madras HC Holds Civil Dispute Over Wharfage Refund Cannot Be Tried As Criminal Offence, Quashes CBI Case

The Madras High Court on 8 June quashed a CBI charge sheet, holding that authorities cannot convert a civil dispute relating to refund of wharfage charges into criminal proceedings alleging cheating, forgery, or corruption. A Single-Judge Bench of Justice G.K. Ilanthiraiyan allowed the petition and quashed the criminal proceedings against all accused. He held: “...it was found that there was no excess wharfage charges amount and as such requested the importer to return the same, on the said...

Registration Of Customs Appeal Cannot Be Refused For Non-Payment Of Pre-Deposit: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has held that an appellate authority cannot refuse to register an appeal merely because the appellant has not made the mandatory pre-deposit under Section 129E of the Customs Act, holding that the statutory requirement applies only at the stage of "entertaining" the appeal and not at the stage of its filing or registration. A Division Bench of Justices Saumitra Dayal Singh and Swarupama Chaturvedi disposed of a writ petition filed by Runway Impex, directing the...

Glucometers Are Instruments For Chemical Analysis, Not Medical Diagnostic Devices For Customs Duty: CESTAT Mumbai

The Mumbai bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that glucometers are classifiable as instruments for chemical analysis and not as medical diagnostic instruments for customs purposes. Upholding the Commissioner (Appeals)' order in favour of Life Scan Medical Devices India Pvt. Ltd., the tribunal dismissed the Customs Department's appeal. The bench of Judicial Member Ajay Sharma and Technical Member M. M. Parthiban examined the scientific functioning...

CESTAT Delhi Cuts Customs Duty Demand From ₹5.53 Crore To ₹7.9 Lakh Over Arbitrary Revaluation of Imported Good

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), New Delhi, has reduced a customs duty demand against Jaipur-based watch manufacturer Rochi Ram & Sons from about ₹5.53 crore to ₹7.9 lakh. It held that Customs authorities did not follow the valuation procedure prescribed under the Customs Valuation Rules after rejecting the declared import values. A tribunal comprising Judicial Member Rachna Gupta and Technical Member P.V. Subba Rao observed that Customs authorities were...

CESTAT Kolkata Says Customs Supervision Charges Payable On MOT, Not CRC, For Limited Deployment

The Kolkata Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has set aside a ₹1.37 crore demand raised against a duty-free shop operator. A coram comprising Judicial Member Ashok Jindal and Technical Member K. Anpazhakan held that customs supervision charges could only be recovered on a Merchant Over Time (MOT) basis and not on a Cost Recovery Charges (CRC) basis where customs officers were utilized only for limited hours. It held that the Revenue could not demand CRC...