Relevant date for service of SCN on account of wrong availment of cenvat credit

[VINOD KUMAR]

A manufacturer has wrongly taken cenvat credit on input services during the year 2011-12 on 16-4-2011 and reversed the same on 20-12-2012. Now the relevant date for service of scn will start from the date of filing of st-3 for April-September 2011 or crom the date of entry of wrongly availed cenvat credit i. e. from 16-4-2011.Please guide with rekevant section and rules.

[Mahir S]

Section 73(6), prescribes the term "relevant date" as, -

Situation	Relevant Date
Where return was required to be filed and so filed	The date on which return has been filed.

[YAGAY andSUN]

Dear Vinod,

In such matter, the relevant date is the date of filing of return under the specific Act. Because from this very date the department gets the first hand information in these matters.

Regards

YAGAY and SUN

(Management and Indirect Tax Consultants)

AI Summary

Relevant date for SCN service is the return filing date, determining when limitation period begins to run. Section 73(6) provides that where a return was required and has been filed, the relevant date is the date on which the return was filed; therefore the relevant date for service of a show-cause notice for wrongly availed CENVAT credit is the date the ST-3 return for the applicable period was filed rather than the date the credit was entered.