TMI Blog2022 (2) TMI 804X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... conversion of shipping bill, when the Courts and Tribunal has repeatedly held that when the statute does not provide any time limit, the request for amendment cannot be rejected as time barred applying the Board Circular. The Hon'ble High Court of Madras in the case of CC Vs. Diamond Engineering (Chennai) Pvt. Ltd. [ 2019 (5) TMI 492 - MADRAS HIGH COURT] Madras High Court considered the issue of time limit of three months stipulated in the Board Circular and held that the same is not applicable. Second ground for rejection for conversion of free shipping bills is that the goods exported have not been physically examined - HELD THAT:- It thus becomes evident that the goods have been stuffed under the supervision of the Preventive Officer who has verified the invoice, packing list etc. before stuffing the goods into the container. Moreover, there is no requirement under section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962 that the conversion can be allowed only if the goods have been subjected to physical examination. Therefore, the rejection of the request for conversion on the ground that physical examination was not conducted before export is without any legal basis. The rejectio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d mentioned the Advance Authorisation License number in the marks and numbers column of the shipping bill. In the above circumstances, the goods were exported after filing as free shipping bill. He submitted that the Preventive Officer had supervised the stuffing of the goods in the container prior to export as is seen from the last page of the shipping bill. 4. The learned counsel also adverted to the export invoices corelating to the shipping bills to submit that even in the export invoice, the Advance Authorization License number was mentioned by the appellant. The defect in filing the shipping bill as free shipping bill instead of Advance Authorisation shipping bill occurred only for the reason that the unit of measurement mentioned in the Advance Authorisation which was in kilograms could not match with the unit of measurement mentioned in the export invoices. Since the overseas buyer wanted to have the units mentioned in meters, the appellant had to comply with the same. 5. The appellant filed application dated 12.5.2020 for amendment of these from free shipping bills to Advance Authorisation shipping bill. The Commissioner of Customs rejected the request for amendm ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed. 9. The learned AR Shri R. Rajaraman appeared for the department. He supported the findings in the impugned order. 10. He referred to the Circular No. 36/2010 dated 23.9.2010 and submitted that the Board has prescribed a time limit of three months from the LET export order to file a request of amendment of shipping bill. Moreover, the said section 149 has been amended with effect from 1.8.2019 which reads as under:- Section 149. Amendment of documents. - Save as otherwise provided in sections 30 and 41, the proper officer may, in his discretion, authorise any document, after it has been presented in the custom house to be amended in such form and manner, within such time, subject to such restrictions and conditions, as may be prescribed: Provided that no amendment of a bill of entry or a shipping bill or bill of export shall be so authorised to be amended after the imported goods have been cleared for home consumption or deposited in a warehouse, or the export goods have been exported, except on the basis of documentary evidence which was in existence at the time the goods were cleared, deposited or exported, as the case may be. Provided f ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... The Tribunal in the case of Autotech Industries (India) Pvt. Ltd. (supra) had analyzed the issue of rejection of request for conversion of shipping bill on the ground of time bar as applicable by the Board Circular and held that the request for conversion cannot be denied by applying the Board Circular. The relevant paragraph reads as under:- 24. The Hon'ble jurisdictional High Court in the case of Global Calcium Pvt. Ltd. Vs. Commissioner of Customs, Chennai vide judgment dated 29.6.2017 in CMA No. 875 of 2017 observed as under:- 1. After some arguments, Mr. Derrick Sam, seeks to withdraw the captioned appeal. Learned counsel, however, says that he has only one apprehension, which is, that the Adjudicating Authority may subject the claim for duty drawback to the time limit of three months provided in the Circular No.36/2010-Cus., dated 23.09.2010 (in short, 2010 Circular ). 2. According to us, this apprehension is misplaced, as in paragraph 6 of the order, the Tribunal has, clearly, stated that the time bar provision will not apply in this matter . 3. Needless to say, since, the Revenue has not come up by way of cross objection, they cannot rais ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... considered a similar issue and held as under:- 8. For the purpose of issuance of No Objection, provisions of Section 149 of the Customs Act, 1962 envisage the complete procedure for issuance of no objection certificate, i.e. for the purpose of amendment of a bill of entry or a shipping bill only after fulfilling certain conditions in the proviso. The same read thus: 149. Amendment of documents.-Save as otherwise provided in sections 30 and 41, the proper officer may, in his discretion, authorise any document, after it has been presented in the customs house to be amended: Provided that no amendment of a bill of entry or shipping bill or bill of export shall be so authorised to be amended after the imported goods have been cleared for home consumption or deposited in a warehouse, or the export goods have been exported, except on the basis of documentary evidence which was in existence at the time the goods were cleared, deposited or exported, as the case may be. 9. On the other hand, the respondent rejected the application of the petitioner by relying upon condition No.3a of the WP(C).No.21418 OF 2020(B) 6 Circular which reads thus: The request for conv ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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