In re s Vivo Mobile India Pvt. Ltd (CAAR Delhi)
Customs Authority for Advance Rulings (CAAR) in Delhi has ruled that the “Flexible Printed Circuit (FPC) Board” imported by Vivo Mobile India Pvt. Ltd. for use in mobile phone antennas is to be classified under Customs Tariff Heading (CTH) 8534 00 00 as “Printed Circuits.” The ruling resolves a dispute between the importer and the customs department, which had argued for classification under CTH 8517 71 00 as parts of an antenna.
The authority delivered the ruling after examining the application, technical specifications of the product, and legal arguments from both sides. The decision clarifies the application of key principles of customs classification, particularly for components that have a specific identity but are used as parts in a larger apparatus.
The Core of the Dispute
The central issue was whether the FPC Board should be classified based on its intrinsic nature as a printed circuit or based on its end-use as a component within a mobile phone’s antenna system.
The jurisdictional customs department contended that since the FPC board is essential for the functioning of the mobile phone antenna, its classification should be under heading 8517, which covers telephone apparatus and their parts. The department pointed out that Vivo itself had previously classified the same goods under CTH 8517 71 00. They argued that the item’s essential function in conducting and modulating electrical signals for communication warranted its classification as an antenna part.
Conversely, Vivo Mobile India argued that the FPC Board is fundamentally a printed circuit. The company provided technical literature demonstrating that the board is manufactured by etching conductive pathways on an insulating base (Flexible Copper Clad Laminate). Its function is purely passive; it provides an electrical pathway for signals to travel between the antenna and the mainboard but does not itself produce, rectify, modulate, or amplify the signal. As it lacks any active components and does not perform signal processing, Vivo contended it could not be considered an antenna or a functional part of one, but rather a simple printed circuit, correctly classifiable under heading 8534.
