Health cess exemption on spectrometers under customs notification required fresh factual examination of non-medical use before relief could be granted.

Exemption from health cess on spectrometers classified under CTH 9022 under Notification No. 08/2020-Customs depended on whether the goods were in fact for non-medical use. As the exemption was not claimed at the bill of entry stage and supporting certificates and resale invoices were produced only at the appellate stage, the factual basis for eligibility required examination by the first appellate authority. The Tribunal therefore did not grant the exemption outright, but remanded the matter to the Commissioner (Appeals) for fresh consideration of the additional evidence and determination of entitlement.

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Issues: Whether the importer was entitled to exemption from health cess on spectrometers classifiable under CTH 9022 under Notification No. 08/2020-Customs, and whether the matter required remand for consideration of additional evidence.

Analysis: The exemption was claimed for goods falling under CTH 9022 on the basis that they were not for medical, surgical or veterinary use. The appellant had not claimed the exemption at the stage of filing the bills of entry, and the new material produced before the Tribunal, including certificates and resale invoices, was placed for the first time at the appellate stage. In these circumstances, the question whether the goods were actually used for non-medical purposes required examination of evidence by the first appellate authority.

Conclusion: The importer was not granted the exemption directly by the Tribunal, but the appeals were allowed by way of remand to the Commissioner (Appeals) for fresh consideration of the evidence and decision on entitlement to exemption.

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