Countervailing duty on imported liquor applies at the rate prevailing on actual import, not permit issuance.

Countervailing duty on liquor imported into the State is chargeable with reference to the rate in force on the date of actual import, because the taxable event arises when the excisable goods enter the State. Payment made when the import permit is issued does not determine the incidence of duty. Section 21 of the Andhra Pradesh Excise Act, 1968 fixes liability by the import event, and Rule 10(6) does not alter that statutory position merely because duty once paid is not refundable. The differential duty demand was therefore justified.

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Issues: Whether countervailing duty on liquor imported into the State is chargeable at the rate prevailing on the date of issue of the import permit or at the rate prevailing on the date of actual import into the State.

Analysis: Section 21 of the Andhra Pradesh Excise Act, 1968 empowers the Government to levy countervailing duty by notification on excisable articles imported into the State, and such duty is attracted when the taxable event occurs, namely, the actual import of the goods into the State. The earlier payment made at the time of grant of permit does not control the incidence of duty, because the duty is to be assessed and collected with reference to the rate in force when the goods enter the State. Rule 10(6) of the Andhra Pradesh Foreign Liquor and Indian Liquor Rules, 1970 also indicates that duty once paid is not refundable, but that does not alter the statutory incidence of duty on import.

Conclusion: Countervailing duty is chargeable at the rate prevailing on the date of actual import into the State, not at the rate prevailing on the date of issue of the permit. The demand of differential duty was justified, and the appeal fails.

Ratio Decidendi: For countervailing duty, the taxable event is the actual import of the excisable article into the State, and the applicable rate is the rate in force on that date.

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