Customs duty refund denied where exemption certificate was filed after clearance and the claim was time-barred.

Concessional customs duty under Notification No. 345/86 was available only on production of the required certificate at the time of clearance of the imported goods. Because the certificate was produced only after clearance, the goods were neither provisionally assessed nor was duty paid under protest, so the duty collected at clearance represented the correct liability. The refund claim was also beyond the prescribed limitation period, making it time-barred. On these facts, refund was not admissible and rejection of the claim was sustained.

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Issues: Whether refund of customs duty was admissible when the exemption certificate required for concessional duty under Notification No. 345/86 was produced only after clearance of the goods and the refund claim was otherwise time-barred.

Analysis: The concessional rate under the notification was conditional upon production of a certificate issued by the Industrial Advisor in the DGTD at the time of clearance of the imported goods. The certificate was not available when the goods were cleared, and was produced only later. The goods were neither provisionally assessed nor was duty paid under protest. In these circumstances, the duty paid during clearance represented the correct duty liability, and the refund claim was also beyond the prescribed period.

Conclusion: The refund claim was not admissible and its rejection was ; the appeal failed.

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