Surrender of Registration

[Srivatsan Krishnamachari]

Dear Experts,

Kindly provide your valuable suggestion on our issue.

We have surrendered excise registration of our one unit online and forwarded letter to our Division office. But we have a pending issue (for Interest amount) in CESTAT, where we were granted 'STAY' from CESTAT. Now department is not ready to clear our registration saying that we have pending matter Even after submission of Indemnity bond and also given reference our another unit located in the same city.

Now, i would like o know, is there any case law/Trade notice in our favor and also suggest for any other alternates.

Thanks for support

Srinivas

[YAGAY andSUN]

Dear Srinivas,

In our view a bond (surety/security) to the extent of stake involved in your matter, which is pending at Tribunal level will suffice the need of Range Superintendent of C.E. or discuss this matter with jurisdictional Commissioner of Central Excise as pending matter can be decided either way.

Regards,

YAGAY and SUN

(Management, Business & Indirect Tax Consultants)

[Mahir S]

Sir,

Kindly refer to Point No. 11 of the recent Notification No. 7/2015 CE dated 01.03.2015 amending Notification No. 35/2001 CE (NT) as follows :-

(11) De-registration: Every registered person, who ceases to carry on the business for which he is registered, shall de-register himself by making an online application in the website www.aces.gov.in, in the form specified in the website. Where there are no dues pending recovery from the assessee, application for de-registration shall be approved within thirty days from the date of filing of online declaration and the assessee shall be informed, accordingly.

In view of above, your application for surrender of excise registration can be approved only if there are no dues pending for recovery against you.

Also it may be noted that department has not gone in appeal with CESTAT, but you have gone in appeal, probably against Commissioner Appeals order, so onus is on you to pay the pending dues.

The word DUES is used above to mean not only duty but also interest and penalty amount.

Giving Bond shall not suffice the purpose as after few years when the CESTAT order is finalized, there may not be any factory or any concerned person available at the time of recovery of Govt dues. Further, CESTAT order may also impose any other interest/penalty, which is not known at present.

Best way out is to pay the pending dues and thereafter apply for refund, if in future CESTAT order is issued in your favour.

All the Best.

AI Summary

De-registration eligibility: excise registration can be surrendered only if no pending dues; bonds may be insufficient. De-registration of excise registration requires that no dues be pending for recovery; 'dues' includes duty, interest and penalty, and an application for surrender may be refused if any demand or appellate matter remains. Responses in the record note one approach of providing a bond to cover the stake in pending tribunal litigation, but the amended de-registration provision contemplates clearance only where no dues exist, making payment and subsequent refund (if any) the recommended course rather than relying solely on an indemnity bond.