Customs refund within limitation, with notification benefit remanded for fresh merits examination

Refund limitation under Section 27 of the Customs Act was satisfied because the claim was filed within six months from payment of duty. The earlier rejection, based only on the fact that the assessment order at the port of importation had not been challenged, did not address whether the imported goods qualified for Notification No. 91/89. As the notification benefit had not been examined on merits, the matter was remanded for fresh consideration of that issue.

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Issues: Whether the refund claim was within the limitation period under Section 27 of the Customs Act, and whether the claim to the benefit of Notification No. 91/89 required examination on merits.

Analysis: The refund claim was found to have been filed within six months from the date of payment of duty. The earlier authorities had rejected the claim only on the ground that the assessment order at the port of importation had not been challenged, without examining whether the imported goods were entitled to the benefit of the notification. Since the merits of the notification claim had not been considered, the matter required fresh examination.

Conclusion: The refund claim was held to be within time, and the matter was remanded to the Assistant Collector to determine the availability of the notification benefit.

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