Customs exemption for Sri Lankan-origin copper imports cannot be denied unless the notification is rescinded or a legal prohibition exists.

Nil customs duty under Notification No. 26/2000-Cus. for specified Sri Lankan-origin goods could not be denied merely because of Circular No. 73/2003-Cus. The exemption continued to operate on the date of import, and its availability depended on proof of origin through the prescribed certificate to the satisfaction of customs. The circular expressed departmental concern over rising copper imports, but it did not rescind the notification or create a specific legal prohibition against the imported copper rectangular strip. In the absence of withdrawal of the notification or exclusion of the goods from its scope, denial of the exemption was unsustainable.

---

---

Issues: Whether the benefit of Notification No. 26/2000-Cus. dated 01-03-2000 could be denied for import of copper rectangular strip of Sri Lankan origin on the basis of Circular No. 73/2003-Cus. dated 13-08-2003.

Analysis: The notification granting nil customs duty on specified goods of Sri Lankan origin was in force on the date of import and was not shown to have been rescinded. The exemption depended upon proof of origin to the satisfaction of the customs authority through the prescribed certificate of origin. The circular relied upon by the department referred to concerns regarding surge in copper imports and requested Sri Lanka to stop export of copper strips and profiles, but it did not establish a statutory rescission of the notification or a specific prohibition against import of the goods in question under the notification. In the absence of evidence that the exemption had been withdrawn or that the impugned goods were excluded from its scope, denial of the benefit was unsustainable.

Conclusion: The denial of exemption was not justified and the assessee was entitled to the benefit of the notification.

Final Conclusion: The appellate order was set aside and the import was held eligible for the customs exemption claimed.

Ratio Decidendi: A valid exemption notification cannot be denied merely on the basis of an administrative circular unless the notification is rescinded or a specific legal prohibition against the import is shown.

---