Cenvat credit refund for export services remains available despite invoices to unregistered premises and objections to input service eligibility.

Refund of accumulated Cenvat credit under Rule 5 is described as available for input services used in export of services despite invoices being addressed to unregistered premises, because Rule 4A of the Service Tax Rules does not require the recipient's premises to be registered for invoice validity. The text also treats objections to the nature and timing of certain input services by reference to an earlier ruling involving the same assessee, where those service categories were accepted as input services. On that basis, the denial of refund for exported Consulting Engineering Services and Information Technology Software Services is presented as unjustified, with entitlement to refund recognised substantially.

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Issues: Entitlement to refund of accumulated Cenvat credit under Rule 5 of the Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004 for input services used in export of services, where the refund was denied on the ground that invoices were addressed to unregistered premises and certain input services were treated as ineligible.

Analysis: The refund claim arose from export of Consulting Engineering Services and Information Technology Software Services. The denial was principally based on the invoices being issued to unregistered premises and on objections to the nature and timing of some input services. The Tribunal noted that, under Rule 4A of the Service Tax Rules, 1994, there is no requirement that the service recipient's premises be registered for the purpose of invoice validity. It also followed the appellant's own earlier case, where the same classes of services were held to fall within the ambit of input service and the refund was allowed substantially.

Conclusion: The denial of refund was unjustified, and the appellant was held entitled to the refund claim.

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