Customs | Royalty For Technical Know-How Not 'Condition Of Sale' Even If Included In Value Of Imported Goods: CESTAT

The New Delhi Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has stated that royalty paid for technical know-how is not a 'condition of sale' merely because it is included in the value of imported goods. Justice Dilip Gupta (President) and Hemembika R. Priya (Technical Member) opined that both the Technical Agreements relate to transfer of technical...

CESTAT Quashes Excise Duty Demand Against Wipro Over Tamil Nadu Govt's Free Laptop Scheme

The Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) in Chennai on Wednesday quashed the excise department's demand for additional duty from Wipro Ltd., ruling that the company's supply of laptops to the Tamil Nadu government for free distribution to students cannot be treated as a commercial sale and therefore cannot be taxed at retail price. A two-member bench comprising...

Customs Act | Excel Sheet Recovered From Assessee's Email Can Be Relied Upon For Valuation Even Without S.138C Certificate: CESTAT

The New Delhi Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that an Excel sheet recovered from the email account of the assessee can be relied upon to determine the value of imported goods, even without a certificate under Section 138C of the Customs Act, 1962. Section 138C of the Customs Act, 1962 would apply if the information is printed from...

Advance Received Towards Sale Of Land Not Liable To Service Tax: CESTAT

The New Delhi Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has stated that the amount of advance received by the assessee with respect to the sale of land is out of the scope of applicability of the provisions of the Finance Act, and hence, no service tax is leviable. Dr. Rachna Gupta (Judicial Member) and A.K. Jyotishi (Technical Member) stated that the...

Crowd-Sourced Information Available On Platforms Like Wikipedia Cannot Be Relied Upon To Fasten Tax Liability: CESTAT

The New Delhi Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has stated that crowd-sourced information available on platforms like Wikipedia cannot be relied upon to fasten tax liability on the assessee. The Tribunal opined that Wikipedia is an open source information available online and anyone can write about the topic and anyone else can edit...

Revenue Sharing Arrangements Not Taxable As Service U/S 65(90a) Of Finance Act: CESTAT

The New Delhi Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has stated that revenue-sharing arrangements are not taxable as a service under Section 65(90a) of the Finance Act. The Bench of Binu Tamta (Judicial Member) and P.V. Subba Rao (Technical Member) stated that the agreement was purely related to the transaction of business whereby the assessee was...

Show Cause Notice Cannot Be Issued Solely On Basis Of Voluntary Disclosure Under SVLDRS Scheme: CESTAT

The Bangalore Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has stated that a show cause notice cannot be issued solely based on voluntary disclosure by the assessee under the SVLDRS Scheme [Sabka Vishwas (Legacy Dispute Resolution) Scheme, 2019]. The bench, consisting of P.A. Augustian (Judicial Member) and R. Bhagya Devi (Technical Member), agreed with...

IRCTC's Food Plaza Licenses Not 'Renting Of Immovable Property': CESTAT Quashes ₹2.88 Crore Service Tax Demand

The Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), New Delhi, recently held that the arrangement between Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd. (IRCTC) and private vendors for operating Food Plazas at railway premises does not amount to 'renting of immovable property' and, thus, does not attract service tax under that category.A two-member coram comprising...

Proceedings Under Rule 16/16A Drawback Rules Are Merely Execution Proceedings; Cannot Modify Value In Shipping Bills: CESTAT

The New Delhi Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has stated that proceedings under Rule 16/16A Drawback Rules are merely execution proceedings; cannot modify value in shipping bills. Justice Dilip Gupta (President) and P.V. Subba Rao (Technical Member) stated that the proceedings to recover the drawback under Rules 16/16A of the Drawback Rules are...

Incorrect Declaration In Bill Of Entry Attracts Penalty U/S 114AA Of Customs Act: CESTAT

The New Delhi Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has stated that Justice Dilip Gupta (President) and P.V. Subba Rao (Technical Member) stated that imports and filing of the Bill of Entry are transactions of business under the Customs Act. Section 114AA would squarely apply to those transactions. In this case, the importer filed a Bill of Entry...

IRCTC's Licensing For Operation Of Food Plazas Not Liable To Service Tax Under 'Renting Of Immovable Property': CESTAT

The New Delhi Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has held that IRCTC's (Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation Ltd.) licensing for the operation of food plazas is not liable to service tax under 'renting of immovable property'. The Tribunal observed that the agreement was purely related to the transaction of business whereby the assessee...

Govt Examination Board Not Liable To Pay Service Tax On Examination Fees Collected From Candidates: CESTAT

The New Delhi Bench of Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has stated that the government examination board is not liable to service tax on examination fees collected from candidates. Binu Tamta (Judicial Member) and Sanjiv Srivastava (Technical Member) stated that the examination fees collected from the candidates appearing for the examination being...