Notes on Clauses Customs
Clause 84 of the Bill seeks to insert a new section 26A in the Customs Act to provide for refund of import duty paid at the time of clearance for home consumption on imported goods capable of being easily identified if, the goods have been found to be defective or otherwise not in conformity with the specifications agreed upon between the importer and the supplier of goods, the goods are identified to the satisfaction of the officer of customs, the goods have been exported or the importer has relinquished his title to the goods, etc., so as to comply with the standards under the International Convention on the Simplification and Harmonisation of Customs Procedure (Revised Kyoto Convention).
Clause 85 of the Bill seeks to amend section 28F of the Customs Act with a view to provide that the Central Government may, by notification, authorise the Authority for Advance Ruling constituted under section 245-O of the Income-tax Act to act as an Authority under the said Act with the modification that a member from Indian Customs and Central Excise Service who is qualified to be a Member of the Board shall act as the member of the said authority and all the applications and proceedings pending before the authority constituted under the Customs Act shall be transferred to such notified authority from the date of authorisation. Subsection (2B) of said section provides that the Authority constituted under sub-section (1) shall remain dormant on the issuance of a notification under sub-section (2A).
Clause 86 of the Bill seeks to amend section 130 of the Customs Act retrospectively with effect from 1st day of July, 2003 so as to make express provision empowering the High Court to condone the delay in filing of appeals beyond the period of one hundred and eighty days, as the Supreme Court and the High Courts in certain judgments have held that the High Courts have no power to condone the delay under the said provision. The amendment is of procedural nature hence it shall apply to all the appeals and review petition including the application or appeal or review petition, as the case may be, pending before Supreme Court or High Court.
Clause 87 of the Bill seeks to amend section 130A of the Customs Act retrospectively with effect from 1st day of July, 1999 so as to make express provision empowering the High Court to condone the delay in filing of application or memorandum of cross objections, beyond the relevant period as specified in sub-sections (1) and (3), as the case may be, as the Supreme Court or the High Court in certain judgments have held that the High Courts have no power to condone the delay under the said provision. The amendment is of procedural nature hence it shall apply to all applications, appeals and review petitions including the application or appeal or review petition, as the case may be, pending before Supreme Court or High Court.
Clause 88 of the Bill seeks to amend sub-section (3) of section 137 of the Customs Act to,-
(a) empower the Central Government to make rules to provide for the manner of compounding of offences;
(b) exclude compounding of certain serious offences and in certain circumstances by inserting a proviso to that sub-section.
Clause 89 of the Bill seeks to amend section 156 of the Customs Act with a view to empower the Central Goverment to make rules regarding the manner of compounding.
Clause 90 of the Bill seeks to amend section 157 of the Customs Act with a view to empower the Board to make regulations to provide for the manner of,-
(i) (a) export of goods, relinquishment of title to the goods and abandoning to customs, and; (b) destruction or rendering the goods commercially valueless in the presence of proper officer.
(ii) filing the application for refund of duty and form thereof.
Clause 91 of the Bill seeks to give retrospective effect to the notification published vide G.S.R. No. 173(E), dated 17th March, 2009, appointing officers of customs under sub-section (1) of section 4 read with sub-section (1) of section 5 of the Customs Act and specifying their area of jurisdiction and to validate actions taken by such officers of customs on and from 9th day of May, 2000 as if the notification specifying their area of jurisdiction was in force at all material times.
Clause 92 of the Bill seeks to amend the notification number G.S.R. 260(E) dated the 1st May, 2006 retrospectively with effect from the 1st day of May, 2006 so as to,-
(a) allow the facility under rule 18 (rebate of duty paid on materials used in the manufacture of resultant product) or subrule (2) of rule 19 of the Central Excise Rules, 2002 or CENVAT credit under CENVAT Credit Rules, 2004, in respect of materials which have been locally procured and have been used in the manufacture of goods exported under the Duty Free Import Authorisation scheme;
(b) provide that, the duty free replenishments in respect of which the facilities stated in (a) above have been availed, shall be used for the manufacture of dutiable goods in the factory of the exporter or in the factory of his supporting manufacturer even after the discharge of the export obligation;
(c) provide that the importer shall pay an amount equal to the additional duty of customs together with interest at the rate of fifteen per cent. per annum from the date of clearance of the said materials, in case,-
(i) materials are imported against an authorization transferred by the Regional Authority, or
(ii) the imported materials are transferred with the permission of Regional Authority;
But no such amount shall be payable in respect of Authorizations issued from 1st May, 2006 till 31st March, 2007; and
(d) define the word 'dutiable goods' for the purposes of the said notification.
Customs Tariff
Clause 93 of the Bill seeks to amend section 3 of the Customs Tariff Act so as to provide that where the Central Government has fixed tariff value for an article produced or manufactured in India under sub-section (2) of section 3 of the Central Excise Act, 1944 for the collection of central excise duty, the value of a like imported article shall be deemed to be such tariff value.
Clause 94 of the Bill seeks to amend section 8B of the Customs Tariff Act retrospectively so as to extend the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962 and rules and regulations made thereunder including those relating to, the date for determination of rate of duty, assessment, non-levy, short levy, refunds, interest, appeals, offences and penalties to that section in respect of safeguard duty.
Clause 95 of the Bill seeks to validate certain actions taken under any rule, regulation, notification or order made or issued under the Customs Act. This has become necessary in order to validate certain actions affected by certain judicial pronouncements.
Clause 96 of the Bill seeks to amend section 8C of the Customs Tariff Act retrospectively so as to extend the machinery provisions of the Customs Act, 1962 including those relating to, the date for determination of rate of duty, assessment, non-levy, short levy, refunds, interest, appeals, offences and penalties to that section in respect of country specific safeguard duty.
Clause 97 of the Bill seeks to validate certain actions taken under any rule, regulation, notification or order made or issued under the Customs Act. This has become necessary in order to validate certain actions affected by certain judicial pronouncements.
Clause 98 of the Bill seeks to amend section 9 of the Customs Tariff Act retrospectively so as to extend the machinery provisions of the Customs Act, 1962 including those relating to, the date for determination of rate of duty, assessment, non-levy, short levy, refunds, interest, appeals, offences and penalties to that section in respect of countervailing duty on subsidised articles.
Clause 99 of the Bill seeks to validate certain actions taken under any rule, regulation, notification or order made or issued under the Customs Act. This has become necessary in order to validate certain actions affected by certain judicial pronouncements.
Clause 100 of the Bill seeks to amend section 9A of the Customs Tariff Act as follows,-
(a) sub-clause (i) seeks to insert the words "by an exporter or producer" in sub-section (1).
(b) sub-clause (ii) seeks to insert a new sub-section (6A) to provide that the margin of dumping in relation to an article exported by an exporter or producer shall be determined on the basis of records concerning normal value and export price maintained by such exporter or producer.
(c) sub-clause (iii) seeks to extend the machinery provisions of the Customs Act, 1962 including those relating to, the date for determination of rate of duty, assessment, non-levy, short levy, refunds, interest, appeals, offences and penalties to section 9A in respect of anti dumping duty with retrospective effect.
Clause 101 of the Bill seeks to validate certain actions taken under any rule, regulation, notification or order made or issued under the Customs Act. This has become necessary in order to validate certain actions affected by certain judicial pronouncements.
Clause 102 of the Bill seeks to amend Para (A) of Note 2 of SECTION XI of First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act to provide that in respect of goods classifiable in chapters 50 to 55 or heading 5809 or 5902 and of a mixture of a two or more textile materials, the same shall be classified as if consisting wholly of that one textile material which predominates by weight over any other single textile material. But, when no one textile material predominates by weight, the goods are to be classified as if consisting wholly of that one textile material which is covered by the heading which occurs last in numerical order among those which equally merit consideration.
