Tax
CESTAT Chennai Holds Software Part Of Hardware Value, Reduces Duty Demand On Wipro
The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that the value of software supplied along with imported networking equipment by Wipro (Infotech Group) is includible in the assessable value of the hardware for the purpose of levying customs duty.The Bench, comprising Judicial Member P. Dinesha and Technical Member Vasa Seshagiri Rao, partly allowed the appeal by restricting the demand to the normal period of limitation, while setting aside the...
Salaries And Consultancy Reimbursements To Foreign Joint Venture Not Taxable: CESTAT Chennai
The Chennai Bench of the Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) on 5 February held that reimbursements made by an Indian company to its overseas joint venture do not constitute consideration for taxable services and are therefore not liable to service tax under the Finance Act, 1994. A Bench comprising Judicial Member P. Dinesha and Technical Member Vasa Seshagiri Rao dismissed the appeal filed by the Revenue and upheld the order dropping the service tax demand against...
DEEC Licence Must Be Valid On Date Of Warehouse Clearance To Claim Customs Exemption: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of India has recently reiterated that in the case of warehoused goods, customs duty liability arises on the date of actual clearance from the warehouse, and an importer cannot claim exemption under a DEEC advance licence if the licence has expired by then.Upholding the High Court's decision, a bench of Justices Manmohan and Vipul M. Pancholi ruled that entitlement to exemption must subsist on the date duty is assessed. “From the aforesaid provisions, it is evident that the...
No CST If State Tax Already Paid On Inter-State Movement Of Goods: Andhra Pradesh High Court
The Andhra Pradesh High Court on 9 February held that once tax is levied and collected on goods under the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act (APGST Act), no Central Sales Tax (CST) can be imposed on their inter-State movement, even if statutory declaration forms such as C-Forms or F-Forms are not furnished or are defective. A Division Bench of Justice R Raghunandan Rao and Justice T.C.D. Sekhar allowed a petition challenging the CST assessment for the assessment year 2004–05, filed by Gourav...
Delhi High Court Directs Nil TDS For GoDaddy, Says Domain Registration Fees Not Taxable Under India-US DTAA
The Delhi High Court has held that domain name registration fees received by GoDaddy is not chargeable to income tax in India, in terms of the India-USA Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement.A division bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinod Kumar also criticised the Income Tax Department for refusing to grant a nil withholding tax certificate under Section 197 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, despite binding judicial precedent.“We record our displeasure about the casual rather callous manner, in...
Karnataka High Court Quashes Rs 85.51 Crore IGST Demand On Salaries Paid To Foreign Nationals By Huawei India
The Karnataka High Court has recently quashed a show cause notice issued to Huawei Technologies India Private Limited demanding Rs. 85.51 crore in Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST), along with interest and penalty, on salaries paid to foreign national employees. Justice S R Krishna Kumar held that this was not a case of secondment at all, but one where Huawei India had a direct employer-employee relationship with the foreign nationals working for it. The Court made it clear that once...
Bombay High Court Restores Trader's GST Registration After Defective 'Cyclostyled Notice'
The Kolhapur Bench of the Bombay High Court recently restored the cancelled GST registration of a trader, observing that the grounds cited in the show‑cause notice and those relied upon in the cancellation order were materially different. A Bench of Justice R.G. Avachat and Justice Ajit B. Kadethankar examined the effect of retrospective cancellation of GST registration and emphasised the need to issue a reasoned notice rather than a generic, template-based communication. The Bench observed: ...
Andhra Pradesh High Courts Rejects Sales Tax Exemption Claim Over Defective Form A-5
The Andhra Pradesh High Court on 9 February, refused to interfere with orders withdrawing sales tax exemption on commission sales, holding that Form A-5 declarations not bearing the official seal of the assessing authority cannot be treated as valid under the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Rules, 1957. A dealer files Form A-5 to claim sales tax exemption on commission sales. A Division Bench of Justice R. Raghunandan Rao and Justice T.C.D. Sekhar was hearing a tax revision case filed by ...
Supreme Court To Examine If Delay In Filing ITR Can Be Condoned Under Section 119(2)(b) Of Income Tax Act
The Supreme Court is to examine whether a delay in filing a return of income can be condoned under Section 119(2)(b) of the Income Tax Act, 1961. A Bench of Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice K.V. Viswanathan issued notice in a Special Leave Petition filed by Sirez Limited challenging the judgment dated December 8, 2025, of the Delhi High Court. “The short point that falls for our consideration is whether delay in filing the Return of income can be condoned under Section 119(2)(b) of the Act,...
CPC Summons Procedure Not Applicable to GST Inquiry; No 7-Day Notice Required: Bombay High Court
Interpreting Section 70 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, the Bombay High Court has held that the civil court summons procedure under the Code of Civil Procedure cannot be read into GST investigations and that tax authorities are not required to give seven days' prior notice before summoning a person for inquiry.A Division Bench of Justices Sandipkumar C. More and Y.G. Khobragade at the Aurangabad Bench dismissed the Criminal Writ Petition filed by Kanhaiya Nilambar Jha, who...
No Separate GST On Chemicals Supplied Under Mud Engineering Contracts: Andhra Pradesh High Court
The Andhra Pradesh High Court has recently held that GST cannot be levied separately on mud engineering services and the supply of drilling chemicals, ruling that such contracts constitute a composite supply under the Goods and Services Tax law. A Division Bench comprising Justice R Raghunandan Rao and Justice T.C.D. Sekhar allowed a writ petition filed by Halliburton Offshore Services Inc., setting aside orders passed by the Authority for Advance Ruling and the Appellate Authority for Advance...