Appropriate Rate of Duty’ Includes ‘Nil’ Rate: CESTAT Grants EOU Duty Exemption

Eurotex Industries & Exports Ltd. Vs Commissioner of Central Excise & Service Tax (CESTAT Mumbai) Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Mumbai bench, has set aside a central excise duty demand raised against a 100% Export Oriented Unit (EOU), ruling that the clearance of finished goods on payment of ‘Nil’ rate of duty fulfills the condition of paying the “appropriate rate of duty” as stipulated in relevant exemption notifications. The judgment provides clarity on a long-standing interpretative issue impacting EOUs in India, particularly co...