Assessable value of machinery and pre-deposit waiver turn on whether service charges are part of duty valuation.

Service charges for engineers' visits, machine servicing, operator training, plant-layout assistance and motor-voltage changes were treated as prima facie charges for services rendered by the manufacturer, not as part of the machinery's assessable value for duty purposes. On that basis, and in light of the appellants' statement that warranty-period expenses had already been included in assessable value, the Tribunal found a strong interim case for relief. Full waiver of the pre-deposit requirement was granted, and recovery was stayed pending disposal of the appeal.

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Issues: Whether service charges for engineers' visits, servicing of machines, training of operators, assistance in plant layout, and charges for changing motor voltage could be added to the machinery's assessable value for duty purposes, and whether full waiver of pre-deposit was warranted.

Analysis: The charges were treated as prima facie relating to services rendered by the manufacturer and not as part of the assessable value. The appellants' statement that expenses up to the warranty period had already been included in the assessable value supported the case for waiver at the interim stage.

Outcome: Full waiver of the pre-deposit requirement was granted and recovery was stayed pending disposal of the appeal.

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