Valuation under Section 67: recipient provided facilities excluded from taxable value; extended limitation under Section 73 requires suppression.

Rent free accommodation, electricity and like facilities provided directly by the service recipient do not constitute consideration for valuation under Section 67 of the Finance Act, 1994, and therefore are not includible in the taxable value; valuation Rules (including Rule 5(1)) cannot expand the statutory concept of consideration beyond Section 67. Separately, the extended limitation under Section 73(1) is not invokable in the absence of suppression or evidence of misrepresentation or mens rea, so assessments relying on the extended period are impermissible without such a finding.

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Issues: (i) Whether rent-free accommodation, electricity and other facilities provided by the service recipient to security personnel constitute consideration includible in the taxable value of security agency services under Section 67 of the Finance Act, 1994; (ii) Whether the extended period of limitation under Section 73(1) of the Finance Act, 1994 is invokable in absence of suppression.

Analysis: The question on valuation turns on the scope of consideration under Section 67 of the Finance Act, 1994 and the permissible reach of valuation rules. Prior tribunal decisions in the appellant's own cases have held that reimbursements and facilities provided directly by the service recipient, without monetary flow to the service provider or contractual enhancement of consideration, do not qualify as consideration within Section 67. Rule 5(1) of the Service Tax (Determination of Value) Rules, 2006 cannot extend the statutory concept of consideration beyond Section 67. On limitation, the extended period under Section 73(1) requires suppression or misrepresentation; absent evidence of suppression or mens rea, invocation of the extended period is impermissible.

Conclusion: (i) Rent-free accommodation, electricity and similar facilities provided directly by the service recipient do not constitute consideration includible in the taxable value under Section 67 of the Finance Act, 1994 - conclusion in favour of the assessee. (ii) The extended period of limitation under Section 73(1) of the Finance Act, 1994 is not invokable in absence of suppression - conclusion in favour of the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: Facilities and reimbursements provided directly by a service recipient, without monetary payment to or contractual augmentation of the service provider's charges, are not consideration under Section 67 of the Finance Act, 1994; valuation rules cannot extend assessable value beyond that statutory conception, and the extended period under Section 73(1) cannot be invoked without suppression.

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