Cenvat credit refund on SEZ clearances under Rule 5 confirmed; Tribunal upholds cash refund following binding precedents.

Clearances to a Special Economic Zone unit are treated as export for refund purposes, so accumulated cenvat credit becomes eligible for cash refund under the existing refund framework; the Tribunal followed prior coordinate and internal precedents and held the refund claim payable, resulting in dismissal of the revenue appeal. The Tribunal applied binding tribunal precedents treating SEZ supplies as export equivalents for refund entitlement, thereby confirming that factual clearances to SEZ units satisfy the legal requirement for grant of accumulated input tax credit refunds.

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Issues: Whether cash refund of accumulated cenvat credit under Rule 5 of the Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004 is admissible where goods are cleared to a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) unit.

Analysis: The appeal challenges the Commissioner (Appeals) order granting cash refund of accumulated cenvat credit on clearances to an SEZ unit under Rule 5 of the Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004. The Tribunal applied earlier decisions including the appellant's own precedent and decisions of coordinate Benches which treated clearances to SEZ units as export for the purpose of refund under Rule 5. The Tribunal found those precedents dispositive and followed them in the present matter.

Conclusion: The Tribunal upheld the order granting cash refund of accumulated cenvat credit on clearances to the SEZ unit; the Revenue's appeal is dismissed, favouring the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: Clearances to a Special Economic Zone unit qualify as export for the purpose of granting cash refund of accumulated cenvat credit under Rule 5 of the Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004, and existing tribunal precedents applying that principle are binding for disposal of such refund claims.

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