High sea sale treatment failed where interpolated bills of entry and broken import continuity defeated proof of genuine pre-clearance sale.

High sea sale treatment under the Central Sales Tax Act failed because the assessee did not prove that the transactions were genuine sales made while the goods were still on the high seas. The Tribunal's factual findings that the bill of entry copies were interpolated, differed from the originals filed with Customs, and were endorsed only after clearance were not displaced. Even if a bill of entry may be treated as a document of title, the claim also failed because the continuity of import was broken and the bulk import was not specifically appropriated to the alleged purchasers. The challenge was essentially factual, and the revisions were dismissed.

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Issues: Whether the assessee had proved that the impugned transactions were genuine high sea sales eligible for treatment under the Central Sales Tax Act, and whether the bill of entry could be treated as a document of title in the facts found.

Analysis: The Tribunal's factual findings that the photocopies of the triplicate bills of entry contained interpolations, that the names in the copies differed from the originals filed before Customs, and that the goods had already been cleared before the claimed endorsements were made, were not displaced. On those findings, the assessee failed to establish that the goods were sold while they were still on the high seas. Even assuming that a bill of entry may be treated as a document of title, the claim could not succeed because the continuity of import was broken and the bulk import was not shown to have been specifically appropriated to the alleged purchasers. The challenge was therefore essentially factual.

Conclusion: The assessee's claim for high sea sale treatment was rejected and the revisions were dismissed.

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