Transaction value for imported used machinery upheld where the department failed to disprove the declared invoice price.

Declared invoice value for imported used machinery was upheld as the transaction value because the earlier valuation basis had already been set aside and the re-determination had to rest on the evidence on record. The adjudicating authority rejected the importer's documents and returned to a discredited valuation method, but the department did not satisfactorily disprove the declared price or obtain independent local verification when it doubted the foreign certificate. In these circumstances, the evidence supporting the import price remained unshaken, and the enhanced assessable value was found unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether the declared invoice value of the imported used machinery was liable to be rejected and the assessable value re-determined on the basis adopted in the de novo adjudication.

Analysis: The earlier valuation method based on the foreign fax response and the values adopted in the prior round had already been set aside. The High Court directed re-determination on the basis of the evidence available, the invoices produced, and any other material placed on record. The adjudicating authority nevertheless rejected the evidence produced by the importer and reverted to a method of valuation that had already lost its foundation. The Tribunal found that the department had not satisfactorily disproved the declared value, nor had it obtained independent local verification when it doubted the foreign certificate. In these circumstances, the declared import price remained unshaken and had to be accepted as the transaction value.

Conclusion: The declared invoice value was accepted and the enhanced assessable value was unsustainable.

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