Pneumatically operated hand tools treated as importable hand tools under Open General Licence, not licensable machines.

Pneumatically operated hand tools classified under Heading 8467.19 were treated as hand tools, not machines, for import control purposes. Because the Department did not challenge that classification, refusal of clearance on the basis that the goods were machines could not be sustained. The import policy allowed all hand tools, including pneumatically operated tools, under Open General Licence unless specifically excluded in Appendix 3 Part A. As the imported items were not shown to fall within any exclusion, their import under OGL was permissible and the clearance objection failed.

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Issues: Whether pneumatically operated hand tools imported by the appellants were to be treated as "tools" and therefore importable under Open General Licence, or as "machines" requiring a valid import licence.

Analysis: The items were classified by the appellate authority as pneumatically operated hand tools under Heading 8467.19, which covers tools for working in the hand, pneumatic or with self-contained non-electric motor. That classification treated the goods as tools and not machines, and the Department had not challenged that finding. Once the goods were accepted as tools, refusal of clearance on the premise that they were machines could not stand. The relevant import policy entry covered all hand tools, including pneumatically operated tools, except those specifically excluded in Appendix 3 Part A. The imported items were not shown to fall within the excluded entry, and the policy therefore permitted their import under OGL.

Conclusion: The imported goods were held to be tools, not machines, and their import under OGL was permissible; the finding against clearance was unsustainable.

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