Textile screen classification turns on a distinct article test; mounted screens qualify for exemption only after notification amendment.

Printing screens made of silk were treated as a distinct textile product after mounting on a frame, because the process created a new article with a separate name, character and use as a printing frame for patterns and colours on fabric. The classification under sub-heading 5909.00 was upheld by reference to the tariff headings and Harmonised System of Nomenclature explanatory notes, and the objection that the tariff and nomenclature did not align was rejected. Exemption under Notification No. 201/87 was available only from the date of amendment extending its scope to such goods, so prior-period relief was denied.

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Issues: Whether printing screens made of silk were correctly classifiable under sub-heading 5909.00 and whether they were entitled to exemption under Notification No. 201/87 only from the date of its amendment.

Analysis: The classification issue was tested against the tariff headings and the Harmonised System of Nomenclature explanatory notes. The goods were held to fall within the relevant textile product entry, and the argument that the tariff and nomenclature mismatch prevented reliance on the explanatory notes was rejected. On the nature of the product, mounting the cloth on a frame resulted in a new and different article, namely a printing frame used for printing patterns and colours on fabric, with a distinct nomenclature and use. The claim that the mounted screen remained the same item and did not become a separate product was not accepted. As to exemption, the benefit of Notification No. 201/87 was held available only from the date of amendment bringing such goods within its scope.

Conclusion: The classification adopted below was upheld and the exemption claim prior to the amendment failed; the appeal was dismissed.

Ratio Decidendi: When mounting a textile screen on a frame brings into existence a distinct article with a separate name, character, and use, it is classifiable as such and can receive exemption only from the date the relevant notification expressly extends to it.

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