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TMI Blog2023 (2) TMI 74X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eme in respect of the goods exported by the Petitioner under 12 shipping bills by issuing necessary scrip for Rs.15,24,334/- to the Petitioner, and to accept the amendment of 12 shipping bills by the Commissioner of Customs vide two amendment certificates dated 7 October 2019 and 14 December 2020 respectively. 3. The Petitioner is a company incorporated under the Companies Act, of 1956. The Policy Relaxation Committee under Respondent No.2 discharges duties under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992. Respondent No.4 is the Commissioner of Customs, Jawaharlal Nehru Customs House, Nhava Sheva. 4. The Petitioner has two manufacturing units at MIDC, Murbad, where the Petitioner manufactures Scaffolding steel products and Drum Closures. During the period from December 2017 to July 2019, the Petitioner exported goods manufactured by it which were notified in Appendix-3B, and the Petitioner is eligible for the benefit of Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) as per paragraph 3.03 of the Foreign Trade Policy 2015-2020. 5. While filling out the shipping bills online, the Petitioner erroneously clicked on the option "No" for the benefits of MEIS instead of "YES ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ubsequently directed by the RA, Mumbai to approach the EDI of DGFT. Upon their request EDI on 30.12.2021 informed them that shipping bill related to exports from 01.04.2015 to 30.09.2015 where "N" has been declared in the reward item field are eligible are eligible for MEIS benefit. Shipping bill related to exports after 30.08.2015 are not eligible for MEIS benefit if "N" has been declared in the reward item field. Upon further requesting to reconsider their request, EDI system on 13.01.2022 informed them to approach policy division for the same. Hence, they are requesting to allow MEIS benefit against 12 shipping bills pertaining to year 2017-18 & 2019- 20 inadvertently marked "N" instead of "Y". Decision: The Committee discussed the case at length observed that conversion from "N' to "Y" as well as reflection of such manual amendments in the automated system is not possible. The Committee also observed that concerned shipping bills have not been uploaded and transmitted by the Customs authorities to the DGFT. In the automated environment, where issuance of MEIS is totally online, unless these S/bills are transmitted to DGFT, no further action is possible at DGFT end. Acc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he Respondent as if they are separate of each other, is not in conformity with the governing scheme, which emphasises assimilation and prompt and efficient processing of the claims. It is necessary to elaborate on the object behind the policy and the initiatives taken to simplify the procedure to highlight the lacuna that the authorities must remedy. The learned counsel for the parties agree that a deficiency continues in the procedure and has assisted the Court by placing necessary material on t on record. 11. Government of India, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Department of Commerce, Directorate General of Foreign Trade notified the Foreign Trade Policy, 2015-2020 in the exercise of powers conferred by Section 5 of the Foreign Trade (Development & Regulation) Act, 1992 (No.22 of 1992), as amended from to time. For claiming rewards under MEIS on exports, an application has to be filed online on the website of the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT). The relevant shipping bills and e-BRC are to be linked with the online application. The applicant must upload the documents to claim the benefit if the application is filed for exports made through EDI ports, including SEZ ex ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... re automatically transmitted to DGFT in the next day's file. In cases where the status is shown as 'A', shipping bills are re-transmitted to DGFT if so requested by the exporter. This, in short, is the procedure. 13. Under section 157, read with section 50 of the Customs Act, Rules have been framed for electronic shipping bills. The Rules are titled "Shipping Bill (Electronic Integrated Declaration and Paperless Processing) Regulations, 2019". Electronic Integrity Declaration (EID) is defined as particulars relating to export goods entered into the Indian Customs Data Interchange Data System. The shipping bills are defined under the Regulations of 2019 as an electronic integrated declaration accepted and assigned a unique number by the Indian Customs Electronic Data Interchange System. Under Regulation 4, the shipping bills shall be deemed to have been filed and self-assessment completed after the entry of electronically integrated declaration on the ICEGATE or by way of data entry from the service centre. A shipping bill number is generated on the interchange system. The Regulations are mandatory as Regulation 8 provides for penalty for infringement. 14. It is eviden ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... GFT has set up a secured EDI message exchange system for various documentation-related activities, including import and export authorisations established with other administrative departments, namely, Customs, Banks and EPCs. The FTP states that DGFT has endeavoured to enlarge the scope of EDI to achieve a higher level of integration with partner departments. There is a specific emphasis on providing facilities online and for digital integration with various components involved in foreign trade. 17. The FTP also refers to the interaction with Customs departments. Clause 1.20 deals with Message exchanges with Community partners such as Customs, Banks, and Export Promotion Councils, recognising them as major community partners of DGFT for message exchange. A message exchange system is set up with Customs Department. It is for, amongst others, Shipping Bills. Clause 1.25 deals with the facility of 24 X 7 Customs clearance for specified imports. Clause 1.26 refers to the Single Window facility in Customs Introduced to facilitate trade; the importer and exporter would lodge their clearance documents at a single point only. Required permission, if any, from other regulatory agencies wou ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t has no methodology to deal with the amended shipping bills. The Customs Department has taken a completely non-committal stand. The only statement in the affidavit is that amended shipping bills are submitted; therefore, the Customs Department has no role to perform. 21. For making the MEIS policy efficient and workable, integration between the Customs Department and DGFT is vital. Two departments cannot work in silos. As per the DGFT, no manual modification to the shipping bills in the system is acceptable Section 149 of the Customs Act empowers amendment to the documents. The power is conferred on the Proper Officer to use his discretion to amend the documents in cases where there is a genuine mistake in checking the relevant documents on the online shipping bills; power is confirmed to amend the shipping bills. The shipping bills duly amended under section 149 are legitimate in the eyes of the law. However, even though the law permits amendment to the shipping bills under section 149 of the Act, it has no functional effectiveness for claiming benefit under MEIS as per the stand of DGFT. This would render the power under section 149 of the Customs Act to amend the shipping bill ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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