Imported Coal Does Not Attract Customs Education Cess And Higher Education Cess: CESTAT

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that imported coal would not attract the Customs Education Cess and the Higher Education Cess.The two-member bench of Sulekha Beevi C.S. (Judicial Member) and Vasa Sheshagiri Rao (Technical Member) has observed that the adjudicating court erred by including the clean energy cess component with basic customs duty for the purpose of calculating customs educational cess and higher education cess.The...

Deputy Commissioner Not Empowered To Reassess After The Goods Were Cleared For Home Consumption: CESTAT

The Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that the Deputy Commissioner had the power to reassess the goods under Section 17(5) of the Customs Act, 1962, after the goods had been cleared for home consumption.The two-member bench of Binu Tamta (Judicial Member) and P.V. Subba Rao (Technical Member) has observed that the customs EDI system does not permit re-assessment of the bills of entry once an order permitting clearance of goods for home...

No Case Is Made Out By Customs For Confiscation Of Goods Meant For Export: CESTAT

The Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that a No Objection Certificate (NOC) is not required from the Drug Controller in respect of an export consignment filed for the export of drugs to Liberia.The bench of Anil Choudhary (a Judicial Member) has observed that the appellant was a genuine manufacturer duly licensed to manufacture and export drugs. Even from the test report of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), Mumbai, two...

Onus is On The Customs Department To Prove That The Goods are Smuggled: CESTAT

The Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that the onus is on the Customs Department to lead evidence in support of an allegation as to the smuggled nature of goods.The bench of Anil Choudhary (a judicial member) has directed the department to release the goods within a period of 15 days. The appellant shall not be liable for payment of godown rent, detention charges, or demurrage.The appellant/assessee are traders engaged in the trading of...

Notice Under Customs Act Can Be Issued Only After The Assessment Is Modified On Appeal: CESTAT

The Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that once an assessment is made, it stands unless it is reviewed under Section 28 of the Customs Act or modified in an appeal.The two-member bench headed by Justice Dilip Gupta (President) and P.V. Subba Rao (Technical Member) has observed that any assessment can be modified in two ways: first, through an appeal, and second, through a process of review under Section 28.The appellant importers imported the...

Customs Broker Is Not Liable For Undervaluation Of Exported Goods: CESTAT

The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that customs brokers cannot be held liable for the undervaluation of exported goods.The bench of P. Dinesha (a judicial member) has observed that the valuation of any goods could never be the domain of a customs broker as it depends upon the contract between the exporter and the importer, in which the customs broker has no say.The appellant or assessee is a customs broker. The show cause notice was...

Decision Of CG Not To Impose Anti-Dumping Duty, Quasi-Judicial In Nature; Principles Of NJ Must Be Followed: CESTAT

The New Delhi bench of the Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has reiterated that the decision taken by the Central Government to not impose anti-dumping duty under Section 9A of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975, is quasi-judicial in nature and not legislative, and thus, the requirement of a reasoned order must be compiled with. The Tribunal ruled that the decision taken by the Central Government, vide its Office Memorandum dated 06.06.2022, to not impose...

Customs Broker Is Not Required To Obtain Any "Recommendation" From Officer That The Exporter Is "Bonafide": CESTAT

The Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that the customs broker is not required to obtain any "recommendation" or a certificate from any officer that the exporter is "bonafide."The two-member bench headed by Justice Dilip Gupta (President) and P.V. Subba Rao (Technical Member) has observed that, as per the verification report, during physical verification, the exporter was found to be non-existent. However, the report clarified that several GST...

CESTAT Allows Customs Duty Refund Claim Paid Through DEPB Scrip

The Mumbai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has allowed the customs duty refund claim paid through the Duty Entitlement Pass Book (DEPB) scrip.The bench of Ajay Sharma (Judicial Member) has observed that the department has failed to establish through any kind of document or case law that debit of any amount under the DEPB scheme is not a mode of payment of duty, and therefore the benefit cannot be denied to the appellant.DEPB Scrips could also be used to...

Purchase Of ATM within India: CESTAT Deletes Penalty Under Customs Act Against CitiBank

The Mumbai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has deleted the penalty under the Customs Act against CitiBank on the purchase of an ATM within India.The two-member bench of Suvendu Kumar Pati (Judicial Member) and Sanjeev Shrivastava (Accountant Member) has observed that a transaction concerning the purchase of an item within India, which is unrelated to its importation and to the importer as the transaction is confined between the Appellant Citibank and...

External Hard Disk Drives Eligible For Concessional Rate Of Additional Customs Duty: CESTAT

The Mumbai Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has reiterated that import of external/portable hard disk drives are eligible for concessional rate of additional customs duty, as provided under Notification No. 6/2006-CE, dated 1st March 2006, and Notification No. 12/2012-CE, dated 17th March 2012. Referring to the various judgments passed by the CESTAT, the bench of Ajay Sharma (Judicial Member) and C J Mathew (Technical Member) observed that...

Denying The Customs Duty Exemption Despite The Valid Country Of Origin Certificate Is Not Sustainable: CESTAT

The Delhi Bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that denying the benefit of customs duty exemption despite the valid country of origin certificate is not sustainable.The bench of Rachna Gupta (Judicial Member) has noted that it will hinder the free flow of trade between agreeing nations if the exemption requested under the applicable rules is denied on one or the other pretext, especially if it is based only on assumptions and presumptions.The...