Aluminium foil pouches classified as articles of aluminium, not foil, once converted into finished pouches.

Aluminium foil pouches, including foil backed with plastic sheet, were held to fall under Heading 76.16/Sub-heading 7616.90 as other articles of aluminium, not under Heading 76.07 as aluminium foil. Once the material was converted into a pouch, it ceased to remain a flat-surfaced product within Note 1(d) of Chapter 76 and assumed the character of an article of aluminium. The earlier Tribunal decision and the Board circular did not assist the assessee because the goods were not merely backed foil cut to shape, but finished pouches made from backed foil. Classification therefore depended on the form and character of the final product, and the lower appellate authority's classification was sustained.

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Issues: Whether pouches made of aluminium foil, including foil backed with plastic sheet, were classifiable under Heading 76.07 as aluminium foil or under Heading 76.16 / Sub-heading 7616.90 as other articles of aluminium.

Analysis: The product, once converted into the form of a pouch, ceased to be a flat-surfaced aluminium foil product within the meaning of Note 1(d) of Chapter 76. Heading 76.07 applies to plates, sheets, strip and foil which retain the character of flat-surfaced products, even if coated, printed, backed or perforated, but not where they assume the character of articles of another heading. The reliance on the earlier Tribunal decision and the Board circular was held not to assist the assessee because the disputed goods were not merely backed foil cut to shape but pouches, and the circular indicated that classification of pouches depends on the material from which they are made. Since the goods were pouches made from backed aluminium foil, they were treated as articles of aluminium.

Conclusion: The goods were correctly classifiable under Heading 76.16 and Sub-heading 7616.90 as other articles of aluminium, not under Heading 76.07.

Final Conclusion: The classification adopted by the lower appellate authority was sustained and the assessee's challenge failed.

Ratio Decidendi: A product made from aluminium foil loses classification as foil under Heading 76.07 when, by conversion into a pouch, it ceases to remain a flat-surfaced foil product and assumes the character of an article of aluminium under Heading 76.16.

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