Time-barred rejection of VCES declaration held invalid; scheme benefit restored after expiry of prescribed 30-day period.

A declaration under the Service Tax Voluntary Compliance Encouragement Scheme, 2013 could not be rejected after the 30-day period prescribed in the governing CBEC circular. The rejection notice was issued beyond that stipulated time, so the denial of scheme benefit was unsustainable. The rejection notice was held non est, the order rejecting the declaration was set aside, and the assessee was granted consequential relief.

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Issues: Whether the notice rejecting the declaration under the Service Tax Voluntary Compliance Encouragement Scheme, 2013 was barred by the prescribed period of 30 days and therefore invalid, and whether the declaration was liable to be accepted.

Analysis: The declaration had been filed under the scheme and the rejection notice was issued after the expiry of 30 days contemplated by the CBEC circular governing the scheme. The rejection was therefore beyond the stipulated period and could not sustain the denial of the scheme benefit.

Conclusion: The rejection notice was held to be non est, the impugned order rejecting the declaration was set aside, and the appeal was allowed with consequential relief.

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