Special Drive for Clearance of 4% SAD Refund Arrears

All Cases to be Cleared within 30 Days, Commissioner to Monitor 90 Days Maximum Limit on Delays

• No Pre-audit for Accredited Clients

• Direct Payment into Bank Account at all Ports through NEFT

• No Filing of Balance Sheet to Check Undue Enrichment

[CBEC Circular No. 18 dated 8th July 2010]

Subject: Refund of 4% Additional Duty of Customs (4% CVD) in pursuance of Notification No.102/2007-Customs dated 14.9.2007 – Special Drive for clearance of pending 4% SAD refund claims.

Your kind attention is invited to the Notification No.102/2007-Customs dated 14.9.2007 and Board’s Circulars No.6/2008-Customs dated 28.4.2008 and No.16/2008-Customs dated 13.10.2008 regarding refund of 4% Additional Duty of Customs (4% CVD). Attention is also invited to the Board’s Circulars No.24/2007-Customs dated 2.7.2007, No.22/2008-Customs dated 19.12.2008 and No.7/2008-Customs dated 28.5.2008 which relate to general refund cases.

2. In this regard, several representations from the trade and industry, associations continue to be received in the Board complaining about the delay in refund of 4% CVD or denial of the refund on one pretext or the other, causing them great hardship.

3. In view of the fact that all the doubts of the field formations had been clarified by the Board vide above mentioned Circulars, it is viewed that there may not be any difficulty in timely disposal of refund claims. However, on review of the pending refund claims as on 31.3.2010 at major Custom Houses, it has been noticed that more than 80% of pending claims relate to 4% CVD cases. Hence, the Board has decided to further simplify the procedure for claiming 4% CVD refund in the following manner.

4.1. In respect of Accredited Clients registered with Customs in terms of Circular No.42/2005-Customs dated 24.11.2005 (ACP clients), the amount of 4% CVD refund shall be sanctioned in full, on preliminary scrutiny of the following documents: (a) TR-6 Challans (in original) for CVD payment; (b) VAT/ST payment Challans (in original); (c) summary of sale invoices; and (d) certificate of statutory Auditor / Chartered Accountant, for correlating the payment of ST/VAT on the imported goods with the invoices of sale and also to the effect that the burden of 4% CVD has not been passed on by the importer to the buyer. The procedure for pre-audit for ACP clients shall be done away with and detailed scrutiny should be done only at the stage of post-audit. The refund claims shall be sanctioned within the maximum time period of 30 days in all such cases.

4.2. Submission of sale invoices shall be required only in electronic form (CD or other media) in respect of 4% CVD refund cases and submission of paper documents is accordingly dispensed with.

5. In order to enable timely payment of refund in case of 4% CVD, a system of optional facility of directly crediting the applicant’s bank account, through RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement) or NEFT (National Electronics Funds Transfer) System is being prescribed. This facility is already functioning in Mumbai Customs Zone-II and has been found useful for the trade. Hence, Board has decided to extend this facility on optional basis to all other Customs formations also. Necessary authorisation for payment of refund amount directly to Bank Account may be taken in such cases from the importer/ authorised signatory of the importer in the form annexed. (Annexure-I)

6. Some field formations have also raised certain doubts whether the audited Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Account have to be examined in respect of the current financial year for scrutiny of unjust enrichment aspect. It is stated that a large number of refund claims relating to the current year were held up for want of such verification. In this regard, the issue has been examined by the Board and it has been decided that the field formations shall accept a certificate from Chartered Accountant for the purpose of satisfying the condition that the burden of 4% CVD has not been passed on by the importer to any other person. Further, the importer shall also make a self-declaration along with the refund claim to the effect that he has not passed on the incidence of 4% CVD to any other person. Hence, there is no need for insisting on production of audited Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Account in these cases. It may also be noted that recently the Board has also notified the list of documents required to be filed by the applicant along with the refund claim (Annexure-II) which is also displayed in the departmental website. Hence, other than these aforesaid documents, no other document would be required in the normal course of granting 4% CVD refund.

7. Board also desires that the Commissioner of Customs shall personally monitor all cases of 4% CVD refund claims pending for more than 30 days so as to ensure that these are disposed of within the overall time limit of three months.

8. A suitable Public Notice and Standing Order may be issued for the guidance of the trade and staff. Difficulties faced, if any, in implementation of this Circular may be brought to the notice of the Board at an early date.

F. No. 401/46/2008-Cus.III

Annexure - I

Authorization for payment of refund amount directly to Bank Account

I.E.C. No. _______________ PAN No. _________________.

M/s ________________________

Address: ______________________

______________________________

______________________________

E-mail address:

Bank Account No.:___________

Bank Name: _____________

Bank Address:____________

11 digit alphanumeric IFS Code: ___________

I declare that the above particulars are correct. I authorize payment of refund amount for my refund claims filed at ____________ Custom House to my above mentioned Bank Account through NEFT / RTGS after deduction of Bank’s service charges at the rate of 0.09% and applicable NEFT / RTGS charges as per RBI guidelines.

Name of the Authorised signatory /

Representative of the Importer

Signature:

Date:

Place:

Certified that the above details are correct.

Signature of Bank Branch Manager along with the official Seal

Annexure - II

Sl.No.	Type of refund claim	Section / notification under which filed	Illustrative list of documents to be filed by applicant along with Application for refund claim in prescribed form (Customs Series Form No.102 as given in Part 5 of Customs Manual)
3	Refund of 4% SAD	Notification No. 102/2007-Customs dated 14.9.2007	1. Document evidencing payment of the Special Additional Duty (SAD). 2. Invoices of sale of the imported goods in respect of which refund of the said SAD is claimed. 3. Documents evidencing payment of appropriate sales tax or value added tax, as the case may be, by the importer, on sale of such imported goods. 4. Certificate from a statutory auditor / CA who certifies the final accounts in respect of correlation of VAT payment, payment of 4% SAD amount and unjust enrichment as prescribed in Board’s circular No.6/2008-Customs dated 28.4.2008 and 16/2008-Customs dated 13.10.2008. 5. Copy of the Consignment Sale Agreement. (in case of sale through consignment agents / stockists). 6. Self-declaration / Affidavit (for e.g. in case of submission of invoice in soft form in lieu of paper documents, in case of fulfillment of the doctrine of unjust enrichment to the effect that the applicant has not passed on the incidence of 4% SAD to any other person). 7. Any other document considered necessary in support of the claim.