Special additional duty exemption requires exemption from both basic customs duty and countervailing duty before refund can be claimed.

Exemption from special additional duty under Notification No. 19/2001-Cus. was unavailable because the notification required exemption from both basic customs duty and the additional duty of customs under Section 3(1) of the Customs Tariff Act. The importer had only obtained exemption from basic customs duty under Notification No. 94/96, and countervailing duty was in fact paid on import. As that condition was not satisfied, the special additional duty exemption could not be claimed and the refund claim failed on merits.

---

---

Issues: Whether the importer was entitled to exemption from special additional duty under Notification No. 19/2001-Cus. when the goods were exempt only from basic customs duty but not from countervailing duty.

Analysis: The exemption from special additional duty was available only where the imported goods were exempt from both the whole of the customs duty leviable under the First Schedule and the whole of the additional duty of customs leviable under Section 3(1) of the Customs Tariff Act. The exemption already availed under Notification No. 94/96 covered only basic customs duty and did not extend to countervailing duty. Since countervailing duty had in fact been paid on import, the condition for availing the special additional duty exemption was not satisfied.

Conclusion: The importer was not entitled to exemption from special additional duty, and the claim for refund failed.

Final Conclusion: The appeal failed on merits because the statutory conditions for exemption under the notification were not met.

Ratio Decidendi: An exemption from special additional duty that is conditioned on exemption from both basic customs duty and countervailing duty cannot be claimed where the goods are exempt only from basic customs duty and countervailing duty is paid.

---