https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=450974 CESTAT Kolkata held that service tax levy on export services was improper. The appellant provided agency services for overseas exporter to Indian Railways, receiving commission in INR but calculated in USD terms per contract specifications. The tribunal found this constituted export of services despite INR payment, as appellant acted as agent for foreign principal, not purchase agent for Indian Railways. The contract required Railways to pay net USD amount to Chinese company plus separate USD commission to appellant, converted at specified exchange rate. Department's narrow interpretation would deny benefits of foreign exchange earnings to Indian citizens. Additionally, the tribunal ruled the show cause notice was time-barred as no concealment occurred - all commission receipts were disclosed in appellant's financial statements from which department collected data. Appeal allowed on both merits and limitation grounds. en-us Wed, 13 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0530 Sun, 17 Mar 2024 06:28:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=450974 CESTAT Kolkata held that service tax levy on export services was improper. The appellant provided agency services for overseas exporter to Indian Railways, receiving commission in INR but calculated in USD terms per contract specifications. The tribunal found this constituted export of services despite INR payment, as appellant acted as agent for foreign principal, not purchase agent for Indian Railways. The contract required Railways to pay net USD amount to Chinese company plus separate USD commission to appellant, converted at specified exchange rate. Department's narrow interpretation would deny benefits of foreign exchange earnings to Indian citizens. Additionally, the tribunal ruled the show cause notice was time-barred as no concealment occurred - all commission receipts were disclosed in appellant's financial statements from which department collected data. Appeal allowed on both merits and limitation grounds. Case-Laws Service Tax Wed, 13 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=450974