Everyday Health (India) Pvt. Ltd. Vs Commissioner of CGST & CE Mumbai East (CESTAT Mumbai)
The Customs, Excise, and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) Mumbai has remanded the appeals filed by Everyday Health (India) Pvt. Ltd., a 100% Export Oriented Unit (EOU), concerning the denial of CENVAT Credit refunds. The core of the dispute revolved around discrepancies in the reflection of CENVAT Credit in the ST-3 returns filed by the appellant.
Everyday Health (India) Pvt. Ltd. exports its entire output service to international clients. As an EOU, it availed CENVAT Credit on service tax paid for input services. Unable to utilize this accumulated credit for output service tax payments, the company filed refund applications. These applications were rejected by the Service Tax authorities, primarily because the ST-3 returns for the disputed period showed a “zero” credit balance, failing to reflect the CENVAT Credit availed. Revenue contended that the appellant had not adhered to statutory procedures, specifically Notification No. 27/2012-CE (NT) dated June 18, 2012.
The appellant’s consultant argued that the omission in the electronically filed ST-3 returns was an oversight. They stated that manual returns, incorporating the credit particulars, were subsequently filed after the department pointed out the error. Furthermore, a Chartered Accountant’s firm certified the export of services and the availment of CENVAT Credit based on the company’s records. The revenue’s representative, however, supported the denial, emphasizing the appellant’s non-compliance with statutory requirements.
