Customs classification of tin alloy dross turns on tariff note limits for ash and residues, not metal content alone.

Heading 26.20 of the Customs Tariff applies only to ash and residues of the kind described in the tariff notes and HSN, namely materials used in industry for extraction of metal or manufacture of chemical compounds. Tin alloy dross that was not shown to be ash, residue, or intermediate metallurgical waste of that description could not be classified under sub-heading 2620.90 merely because it contained tin and lead. The chemical report and the nature of the goods supported classification as tin/lead alloy waste or scrap. Denial of cross-examination of the Chief Chemist did not affect the classification, because the dispute turned on the character of the goods and the relevant reports had been furnished. The classification adopted by the adjudicating authority was upheld.

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Issues: Whether the imported goods described as tin alloy dross were correctly classifiable under sub-heading 2620.90 of the Customs Tariff, and whether denial of cross-examination of the Chief Chemist affected the classification.

Analysis: The goods were declared as containing tin and lead, but the record did not show that they were ash or residues from the treatment of ores, intermediate metallurgical products, or processes contemplated by Heading 26.20. Under Chapter Note 3 of Chapter 26, Heading 26.20 applies only to ash and residues used in industry for extraction of metal or manufacture of chemical compounds, and the HSN notes likewise confine the heading to such residues. The material on record and the chemical report indicated that the goods were not dross in the commercial sense but were more in the nature of tin/lead alloy waste or scrap. Since the classification dispute turned on the nature of the goods and the reports had been supplied, the refusal to permit cross-examination of the Chief Chemist did not affect the proper tariff classification.

Conclusion: The goods were not classifiable under sub-heading 2620.90 and the classification adopted by the adjudicating authority was upheld. The challenge based on denial of cross-examination also failed.

Final Conclusion: The appeal was rejected and the Revenue's classification stood confirmed.

Ratio Decidendi: Classification under Heading 26.20 is confined to ash and residues of the kind specifically described in the tariff notes and HSN, and goods not answering that commercial and technical description cannot be brought within that heading merely because they contain metal content.

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