Exemption to specified goods imported for use in the articles, etc. meant for export/export promotion/ processing (including repairing, reconditioning etc.) of export articles by units in EPZ or FTZ - Rescinding of 7 Notifications - 133/94 - Customs -Tariff

Exemption to specified goods imported for use in the articles, etc. meant for export/export promotion/ processing (including repairing, reconditioning etc.) of export articles by units in EPZ or FTZ - Rescinding of 7 Notifications Notification No. 133/94-Cus. Dated 22-6-1994 In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 25 of the Customs Act, 1962 (52 of 1962), the Central Government, being satisfied that it is necessry in the public interest so to do, hereby exempts goods specified in the Annexure I of this notification (hereinafter referred to as the said goods), when imported into India - (a) for the production or manufacture of articles for export out of India, or (b) for being used in connection with the production, manufacture or packaging of articles for export out of India, or (c) for carrying out processing of, or operations (including repairs, re-conditioning and re-engineer in relation to, the articles intended for export out of India, or (d) for promotion of such export, by units within an Export Processing Zone or a Free Trade Zone specified in Annexure II to this notification (hereinafter referred to as the Zone) from the whole of the duty of customs leviable thereon under the First Schedule to the Customs Tafiff Act, 1975 (51 of 1975) (hereinafter referred to as the Customs Tariff Act) and the additional duty, if any, leviable thereon, under section 3 of the Customs Tariff Act, subject to the following conditions, namely :- (1) The importer has been authorised to establish the unit in the Zone for the purposes specified in clauses (a) to (d). (2) The importer has been granted the necessery licence for the import of the said goods. (3) The importer executes a bond in such form and for such sum as may be prescribed by the Assistant Collector of Customs binding himself - (i) to bring the said goods into his unit in the Zone and use them within the Zone for the purposes specified in clauses (a) to (d); (ii) to dispose of the said goods or the articles produced, manufactured, processed and packaged in his unit in the Zone or the waste, scrap and remnants arising out of such production, manufacture, processing or packaging in the manner as may be prescribed in the Export Import Policy and in this notification. (4) The importer shall maintain a proper account of import, consumption and utilisation of the said goods and of exports made by him, and shall submit such account periodically to the Development Commissioner of the Zone, in such form and in such manner as may be laid down by the Development Commissioner. (5) The importer satisfies the Development Commissioner of the Zone that the goods so imported have been used for the purposes specified in clauses (a) to (d) or for any other purposes specified in Export-Import Police and in this Notification. (6) The Assistant Collector of Customs, may subject to such conditions and limitations as may be imposed by him and subject to the provisions of the Export-Import Policy - (i) allow a unit to re-export the said goods; (ii) permit the said goods or goods manufactured, produced, processed or packaged in the unit to be taken outside the Zone temporarily without payment of duty for repairs, processing, testing or display and to be returned to the unit thereafter; (iii) permit the said goods or goods manufactured, produced, processed or packaged, to be supplied/transferred from a unit in the Zone to another unit in the same Zone or to a unit in another Zone or to a hundred per cent export oriented undertraking : Provided that clause (iii) shall not apply to goods imported for repairs, reconditioning or reengineering and which have been so repaired, reconditioned or reengineered. (7) Subject to the satisfaction of the Assistant Collector of Customs, duty shall not be leviable in respect of - (i) the said goods used for imparting training to workers, (ii) the said goods or goods manufactured, produced, processed or packaged in the unit, if such goods are destroyed within the Zone, (iii) the scrap or waste material or remnants arising in the course of such production, manufacture, processing or packaging, if such scrap or waste material or remnants are destroyed within the Zone. Explanation. - For the purposes of this notification, `Export-Import Policy' means the Export and Import Policy, April, 1992 - March, 1997, published under the Ministry of Commerce Public Notice No. 1-ITC (PN) /92-97, dated the 31st March, 1992, as amended from time to time. 2. Notwithstanding anything contained in paragraph 1, in the case of units engaged in the development of computer software, the exemption contained therein shall also apply to goods imported by such units for training, and for development and testing of software for export and for providing consultancy services for development of software `on site' abroad : Provided that - (a) the conditions stipulated in this notification are complied with by such software development unit; and (b) the procedure specified by the Assistant Collector of Customs is followed. Explanation. - The consultancy fees received by software development units in convertible foreign currency/for consultancy service for development of software `on site' abroad shall be deemed to be exports for the purposes of fulfilment of export obligation under this notification. 3. Notwithstanding anything contained in this notification the exemption contained herein shall also apply to the said goods which on importation into India are used for the purposes of production, manufacture, processing or packaging of articles in a unit in the Zone and such articles (including rejects, waste and scrap material arising in the course of production, manufacture, processing or packaging of such articles) even if not exported out of India, are allowed to be cleared outside the Zone under and in accordance with the Export-Import Policy and subject to such other limitations and conditions as may be specified in this behalf by the Development Commissioner of the Zone, on payment of duty of excise leviable thereon under section 3 of the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944 (1 of 1944) or where such articles (including rejects, waste and scrap material) are not excisable, on payment of customs duty on the said goods used for the purpose of production, manufacture, processing or packaging of such articles in an amount equal to the customs duty leviable on such articles as if imported as such : Provided that goods which have been repaired, reconditioned or reengineered shall not be allowed to be cleared outside the Zone. 4. Without prejudice to any other provisions contained in this notification, where it is shown to the satisfaction of the Assistant Collector of Customs that any unit in the Zone has been permitted to clear any of the said goods for being taken outside the Zone, to any other place in India by the Development Commissioner of the Zone, in accordance with the Export-Import Policy - (a) such clearance of capital goods, material handling equipment, office equipment and captive power plants, may be allowed on payment of an amount equal to the customs duty leviable on such goods on the depreciated value thereof and at the rate in force on the date of payment of such duty; (b) such clearance of goods (including empty cones, bobbins, containers, suitable for repeated use) other than those specified in clause (a) may be allowed on payment of customs duty on the value at the time of import and at rates in force on the date of payment of such customs duty; (c) such clearance of used packing materials such as cardboard boxes, polyethylene bags of a kind unsuitable for repeated use, may be allowed without payment of any customs duty : Provided that the importer shall not be eligible to avail of the exemption applicable to goods falling under heading 98.01 of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, or the exemption available to the goods imported under the Export Promotion Capital Goods Scheme referred/defined or any other Export Promotion Schemes that may be framed or issued under the Export-Import Policy. Explanation. - The depreciation in respect of goods covered by clause (a) shall be allowed for the period from the date of commencement of commercial production of the unit or where such goods have been imported after such commencement from the date such goods have come into use for commercial production to the date of payment of duty. 5. The notifications of the Government of India in the Ministry of Finance specified in Annexure III, are being rescinded. (2) Notwithstanding such rescission, anything done or action taken under the notifications so rescinded shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the corresponding provisions of the notification. Sl. No. Description of Goods 1. Capital goods and spares thereof. 2. Material handling equipments, namely, fork lifts, overhead cranes, mobile cranes, crawler cranes, hoists and stackers spares thereof. 3. Captive power plants, including captive generating sets and their spares, fuel, lubricants and other consumables for such plants and sets as recommended by the Board of Approval. 4. Office equipments, spares and consumables thereof as recommended by the Board of Approval. 5. Raw materials. 6. Components. 7. Consumables. 8. Packaging materials. 9. Tools, jigs, gauges, fixtures, moulds, dies, instruments and accessories and spares thereof. 10. Prototype, technical and trade samples for development and diversification. 11. Drawings, blue prints and charts. 12. Goods reimported within three years of the date of exportation for repairs or reconditioning. 13. Goods reimported within one year from the date of exportation from the Zone due to the failure of the foreign buyer to take delivery. 14. Goods imported for repairs, reconditioning or reengineering and export thereof within three years of the date of importation. ANNEXURE - II Name of the Zone 1. Santa Cruz Electronics Export Processing Zone. 2. Kandla Free Trade Zone. 3. Falta Export Processing Zone. 4. Madras Export Processing Zone. 5. Noida Export Processing Zone. 6. Cochin Export Processing Zone. 7. Vishakapatnam Export Processing Zone. Note : The Zone shall comprise of places bearing survey numbers and enclosed by boundaries as may be specified by the jurisdictional Collector of Customs in a Public/Trade Notice, issued in this behalf. ANNEXURE - III 1. Notification No. 227/79-Customs, dated the 30th November, 1979. 2. Notification No. 77/80-Customs, dated the 17th April, 1980. 3. Notification No. 262/85-Customs, dated the 16th August, 1985. 4. Notification No. 263/85-Customs, dated the 16th August, 1985. 5. Notification No. 339/85-Customs, dated the 25th November, 1985. 6. Notification No. 340/86-Customs, dated the 13th June, 1986. 7. Notification No. 170/93-Customs, dated the 13th September, 1993.