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...

Builder/Developer/Promoter Not Liable To Pay Service Tax On Construction Of Complex Service Or Works Contract Prior To July 2010: CESTAT

The Chennai Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that no liability for paying tax under ‘construction of complex service’ or ‘works contract’ would lie on the builder, developer, or promoter during the period prior to July 2010.The two-member bench of P. Dinesha (Judicial Member) and M. Ajit Kumar (Technical Member) has observed that it was only on July 1, 2010, that an explanation was added to Section 65(105)(zzzh), whereby a builder, developer, or...

CESTAT Allows Cenvat Credit On Service Tax Paid By Automotive Dealers

The Mumbai Bench of the Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has allowed the cenvat credit on service tax paid by automotive dealers.The two-member bench of S. K. Mohanty Member (Judicial Member) and C.J. Mathew (Technical Member) has relied on the Supreme Court's decision in the case of CCE & C versus MDS Switchgear Ltd., in which it was held that once the tax liability has been discharged and accepted by the Department, the consequential Cenvat credit cannot be...

Tax Cases Weekly Round-Up: 5 March to 11 March 2023

Delhi High Court Issuance Of SCN in Customs Brokers Licensing Regulations, Contemplates Dispatch Of Notice And Not Its Receipt: Delhi High Court Case Title: Commissioner of Customs (Airport & General) vs M/s R.P. Cargo Handling Services The Delhi High Court has ruled that the expression ‘issuance of show cause notice’ in Regulation 20(1) of the Customs Brokers Licensing Regulations, 2013 (CBLR), merely contemplates the dispatch of the notice and not its receipt by the Customs...

Applications For Refund Of ITC Cannot Be Denied On Mere Suspicion: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that applications for refund of Input Tax Credit (ITC) cannot be rejected merely on suspicion and without any cogent material. The division bench of Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice Amit Mahajan directed the department to initiate a refund of ITC of Rs. 72,03,961/-based on the goods that the petitioner has exported. In this case, the petitioner filed a refund application seeking a refund of unabsorbed ITC amounting to Rs. 72.03 lakhs which were blocked...

Bombay High Court Quashes Reassessment Proceedings Against Jetair

The Bombay High Court has quashed the reassessment proceedings against Jetair Pvt Ltd, a group entity of Jet Airways (India) Ltd, and has set aside the notice issued by the revenue department under Section 148 of Income Tax Act, 1961 against Jetair, seeking to reopen assessment for the relevant assessment year. The bench of Justices Dhiraj Singh Thakur and Kamal Khata rejected the contentions raised by revenue department that payment of commission to Jetair, who is a sales agent of Jet ...

Body Cam Jackets For Customs Boarding Officers: CBIC Emphasis On The Need For Transparency

A circular from the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) outlines how to increase transparency by using boarding jackets equipped with body-worn cameras (BWCs) that can record video and audio for use by the boarding officer.Every ship that enters the country notifies the Customs and Port Authorities of its arrival. Boarding officers are typically the first members of the Customs Service to board a ship as it approaches the Indian border. They are the most visible members of the...

The Amount Which Is Lower Of Unabsorbed Depreciation And Business Loss Will Be Set-Off Against Book Profits: ITAT

The Delhi Bench of Income Tax Appellate Tribunal has clarified the provisions of clause (iii) of Explanation-1 to Section 115JB (2) for computation of book profits for taxation. The Tribunal held that amount which is lower between unabsorbed depreciation and business loss deserves to be set off against the current Assessment Year (A.Y.) book profits in terms of the provisions of Income Tax Act. The two-member bench of Pradip Kumar Kedia (Accountant Member) And Yogesh Kumar Us...

Unrealistic To Expect GST Return Filing Without Actual Commencement Of Business: Orissa High Court Directs Dept. To Process Licence Application

The Orissa High Court has held that the license application should not be rejected only because a GST return has not been filed yet, since it is unrealistic to expect that to happen without the actual commencement of its business.The division bench of Chief S. Muralidhar and Justice G. Satapathy has observed that unless the petitioner is issued a license and is able to commence its business, the question of filing a GST return would not arise.The petitioner filed an application for the...

Dept. Vacillating Whether Goods Were In Transit Or In Godown: Calcutta High Court Directs Refund Of Penalty

The Calcutta High Court has directed the refund of the penalty and held that the department was vacillating between Sections 67 and 68 of the GST Act, depending on whether the goods are in transit or in the godown.The bench of Justice Amrita Sinha has observed that initially the authority invoked the provision of Section 67 but thereafter shifted its stand and relied upon Section 68 read with Section 129 for the imposition of penalty. The authority was confused as to which provision to invoke...

Purchaser Is Not Entitled To ITC On The Purchases Made From The Seller Who Had Discharged Its Tax Liability: AAR

The Punjab Authority of Advance Ruling (AAR) has held that the purchaser is not entitled to claim Input Tax Credit (ITC) on the purchases made by it from the seller, who had discharged its tax liability.The two-member bench of Varinder Kaur and Viraj Shayamkarn Tidke has observed that no registered person shall be entitled to take credit for any input tax in respect of any supply of goods or services or both unless the tax charged in respect of the supply has been actually paid to the...

An Order Is Not Prejudicial To The Interest Of Revenue U/S 263 If It Is Based On An Uncertain Issue Of Entitlement Of Treaty Benefit: ITAT

The Delhi Bench of Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) has held that an order by assessing officer on whether a particular entity is entitled to a treaty benefit or not is a highly contentious issue and cannot be considered to be erroneous and prejudicial to the interest of revenue under section 263 of Income Tax Act, 1961. The two-member bench of Saktijit Dey (Judicial member) and Pradip Kumar Kedia (Accountant member) has held that due to various inconsistencies in the order of...