Section 18 provisional assessments of Bills of Entry are subject...

Section 18 provisional assessments of Bills of Entry are subject to a two-year outer limit for finalisation, extendable by one year for sufficient cause recorded in writing and approved by the Commissioner, with the procedure applying to pending and future provisional assessments. The proper officer must requisition missing documents within 15 days; the importer/exporter must furnish them within 2 months, extendable up to 4 months by the proper officer and up to a maximum of 14 months from provisional assessment by a senior officer, failing which finalisation proceeds on available records after hearing and a speaking order. Finalisation should occur within 3 months of document receipt/expiry of time/enquiry conclusion, with limited extensions but not beyond the statutory outer limit; where specified impediments exist, the two-year period runs from cessation of the impediment. On finalisation, security/bonds are released if no dues, unpaid final dues beyond 90 days may be adjusted/recovered, self-assessed interim duty payments are adjustable, differential duty attracts interest, and regulatory non-compliance attracts penalty.