Nico Extrusions Limited Vs Commissioner of Customs (CESTAT Mumbai)
The Hon’ble bench observed that the impugned orders in upholding the enhancement of value is not consistent with the legal provisions of the Customs statute in respect of valuation of imported goods. Accordingly, the impugned orders do not stand the scrutiny of law and therefore these are not legally sustainable.
The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Mumbai, allowed the appeals filed against two Orders-in-Appeal that had upheld enhancement of declared import values of aluminium scrap. The Tribunal held that the enhancement of value by the customs authorities was not in accordance with the Customs Act, 1962 and the Customs Valuation (Determination of Value of Imported Goods) Rules, 2007, and therefore could not be sustained in law.
The appellant was engaged in importing various grades of aluminium scrap from multiple overseas suppliers under individual sales contracts. During June and July 2018, several consignments were imported through ICD Tarapur, Mumbai, with declared transaction values based on contract prices. Upon scrutiny, customs authorities compared the declared values with figures available in the National Import Data Base (NIDB) and observed that NIDB values were higher. Relying on this comparison and a Directorate General of Valuation (DGoV) circular dated 01.12.2016, the proper officer rejected the declared transaction values under Rule 12 of the Valuation Rules and enhanced the assessable values through Orders-in-Original. These orders were upheld by the Commissioner (Appeals), leading to the present appeals before the Tribunal.
