Split import licence validity upheld where actual user condition was satisfied and confiscation was found unsustainable.

A split import licence for restricted goods was treated as valid for the full permissible value where the licence expressly linked the split licence to the parent licence and imposed an actual user condition under Schedule V of the Imports (Control) Order, 1955. The parent licence had a face value of Rs. 2,07,500 and the split non-transferable licence represented 20% of that value. Because the importers were actual users and imported the goods for their own use, the licence conditions were complied with and no additional value restriction applied. The confiscation order was therefore unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether the split import licence for restricted goods was validly available to the appellants for the full permissible value and, consequently, whether the order of confiscation was sustainable.

Analysis: The licence documents showed that the parent licence had a face value of Rs. 2,07,500/- and that a separate non-transferable licence for Rs. 41,500/- had been issued under the import policy for restricted items, subject to the actual user condition under Schedule V of the Imports (Control) Order, 1955. The endorsement indicated that the split licence was to be read with the parent licence, and the value of Rs. 41,500/- represented 20% of the parent licence value. Since the appellants were actual users and the import was for their own use, the condition attached to the split licence stood complied with, and no further value restriction was warranted.

Conclusion: The confiscation order was unsustainable and the issue was decided in favour of the appellants.

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