Refund of service tax, interest on delayed sanction of refund,...

Refund of service tax, interest on delayed sanction of refund, and time limitation u/s 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944, made applicable to service tax matters u/s 83 of the Finance Act, 1994. The authorities cannot alter the statutory time limit prescribed for considering refund applications. The Hon'ble Supreme Court has categorized refund claims into three heads: unconstitutional levy, illegal levy, and tax paid under mistake of law. Since the refund applications were filed beyond the stipulated one-year period, rejection of the claim by the Commissioner (Appeals) is in consonance with statutory provisions. However, the assessee-appellants are entitled to interest for the period computed from the expiry of three months from the date of filing refund applications till sanction of the refund amount. The matter is remanded to the original authority for quantification of interest. The appeal is allowed by way of remand.