Refund limitation for Special Additional Duty begins only when the right accrues after resale and tax payment, not at duty payment.

Limitation for refund of Special Additional Duty under the exemption notification starts only when the statutory right to refund accrues, not on the date of duty payment. The Tribunal held that the refund entitlement becomes complete only after the imported goods are resold and VAT or sales tax is paid, so the claim could not be treated as time-barred by counting limitation from the original duty payment date. It also rejected reliance on an earlier tribunal view in light of the binding High Court ruling. The refund was therefore not barred by limitation, and the revenue's challenge failed.

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Issues: Whether the limitation period for refund of Special Additional Duty under the exemption notification begins from the date of payment of duty or only when the importer resells the goods and the right to refund crystallizes.

Analysis: The refund claim was rejected as time-barred under the refund notification as amended. The Tribunal held that limitation cannot commence before the statutory right to refund arises. Since the entitlement to refund under the notification becomes complete only after resale of the imported goods and payment of VAT or sales tax, the period of limitation could not be counted from the date of payment of Special Additional Duty. The reliance placed on the earlier tribunal view was held to be incorrect in the face of the binding High Court ruling.

Conclusion: The limitation period did not start from the date of payment of duty. The refund claim was not time-barred, and the revenue's appeal was dismissed.

Final Conclusion: The refund was held to be claimable only after the statutory conditions were satisfied, and the appeal failed on the issue of limitation.

Ratio Decidendi: Limitation for a refund claim begins only when the right to claim refund accrues or crystallizes, not before the conditions precedent to that claim are fulfilled.

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