Home Case Index All Cases Central Excise Central Excise + AT Central Excise - 2023 (11) TMI AT This
Forgot password New User/ Regiser ⇒ Register to get Live Demo
2023 (11) TMI 521 - CESTAT MUMBAIRefund of accumulated CENVAT Credit - denial of benefit of refund on the ground of limitation provided under Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944 made applicable to the service tax matters under Section 83 of the Finance Act, 1994 - HELD THAT:- In appeal, the learned Commissioner (Appeals) had negated the original order, holding that the relevant date for reckoning the limitation for filing refund application under Section 11B ibid, would be the date of receipt of payment in convertible foreign exchange by the exporter-appellants and in case where payment for the service had been received in advance, then the same would be the date of issue of invoice. Accordingly, he has partly allowed the refund benefit, except for the period January, 2014 to March, 2014, where the entire amount of refund claim was rejected on the ground that no details of Foreign Inward Remittance Certificates (FIRCs) were submitted by the appellants. However, on perusal of the case records, more particularly the refund application filed by the appellants on 23.12.2014, we find that the appellants had specifically stated therein that the consideration for provision of the services exported have been received by them in convertible foreign currency and that proof of such payments were also annexed to such application. Since, verification of the FIRC etc., has to be done at the original stage, the matter should be remanded back to the original authority for the limited purpose of verification of such documents and for sanction of the refund claim in favour of the appellants, if due, as per law. Therefore, the impugned order rejecting the refund claims filed for the period January, 2014 to March, 2014, is set aside and the appeal is allowed by way of remand to the original authority for verification of the FIRC and other documents and for consideration of the refund benefit thereafter. The impugned order upholding rejection of refund applications on the ground of non-establishment of nexus cannot stand for judicial scrutiny - appeals allowed in favour of the appellants on the ground that grant of refund benefit is not subjected to compliance of the provisions of Rule 2(l) ibid and denial on the ground of non-establishment of nexus between the input services and the output services under Rule 5 ibid, is not sustainable. Appeal disposed off.
|