TMI Blog2012 (9) TMI 301X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... service tax is payable on the same. Valuation - It is not clear whether tax is paid on the basis of basic fare as claimed by the Appellant and the Revenue is again demanding tax on the commission received for booking ticket without considering the tax already paid as per provisions of Rule of 6(7) of Service Tax Rules. Such demand cannot be justified at this stage. - Stay granted. - ST/352/2011 - ST/770/2011(PB) - Dated:- 16-11-2011 - Ms. Archana Wadhwa, Shri Mathew John, JJ. REPRESENTED BY : Shri Arvind Singh Chawla, Chartered Accountant, for the Appellant. Shri Amrish Jain, SDR, for the Respondent. [Order per : Archana Wadhwa, Member (J)(Oral)]. - After hearing both sides, we find that the appellants are engaged in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that on the commission earned from them is in lieu of assisting them in marketing and promotion of their business. The appellants have strongly contended that CRS is being used by them for their own conducting business and cannot be held to be a service to others. As regards payment of Service Tax on the income earned from domestic tickets or international tickets, it is the contention of the respondents that they are duly registered with the department under the category of air travel agents and regularly paying Service Tax on booking of domestic and international tickets. They opted to pay Service Tax on the basic fare at the rate notified under Rule 6(7) of the Service Tax Rules, 1994 and have been filing the Service Tax return regularl ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 66 of the Finance Act, 1994 may be higher or lower than the tax liability determined Rule 6(7) of the Service Tax Rules, 1994. The department is not free to neither refund the excess amount nor demand the short amount of service tax. They have also submitted the details of payments of Service Tax paid by them in this behalf in Annexure 6 during the period in question. 5. While dealing with the above contention of the appellants Commissioner (Appeals) has observed as under : I agree with the respondent s contention that once they have discharged their service tax liability by opting option given under Sub-Rule 7 of Rule 6 of the Service Tax Rules, 1994, then they are not required to pay Service Tax as confirmed under the impugned order ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Member (T)]. - I have gone through the order recorded by ld. Member (Judicial) as above. I wish to record my own views on the following points,- (i) Service stated by Revenue to be provided by Air Travel Agents to computer company providing Computer Reservation System; (ii) Correctness of basic fare adopted for discharging service tax liability for service rendered as air travel agent; (iii) The issue whether the demand is time barred. 9. Though the amount involved in this case is not very high, there are hundreds of airline agents doing similar activities and the issues raised can be of general applicability in many other cases and hence there is need for recording my views on the above aspects of the case. 10. I obser ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... al about its classification or valuation. 13. It is accepted that Air Travel Agents are receiving payments from CCRS but it is argued that there is no service provided by Air Travel Agents to CCRS. The value the service is not under dispute. The Appellants argue It is the flow of service which determines who is the service provider and not the flow of payment . 14. I have serious reservations on this argument. In the matter of levying service tax quite often we have to deal with situations where an intermediary provides service to both the parties whom he is dealing with but only one of them pays for the service. Examples can be that of an Insurance company providing service to the insured through the intermediary namely, insurance age ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... out seen in appeal memo are not acceptable arguments. For the sake of clarity, in this case CCRS is the client of the Air Travel Agent. The service provided by CRRS is to the Airlines and the Air Travel agent is promoting the service provided to Airlines. So I agree with the argument of revenue that the service provided by the Appellants to CRRS is business auxiliary service and service tax is payable on the same. 15. The next issue to be dealt with is whether value has been adopted correctly for paying the service tax on the service provided by Air Travel Agents to Airlines. There is no doubt that they had an option to pay service tax as a specified percentage of the basic fare. The explanation for the expression basic fare as given i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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