2015 (12) TMI 60

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.... sixteen Orders-in-Original had been disposed. 2. Briefly stated facts of the case are that the Appellant are exporters of Iron Ore Fines. Export duty, on ad-valorem basis had been imposed on the Iron Ore Fines. The Appellant filed seventeen shipping bills during the relevant period . At the time of export of the said Iron Ore Fines, the assessment was made provisional and the Appellant had directed to discharge duty, considering the FOB value as transaction value instead of cum-duty price, and they had discharged duty accordingly, under protest. On finalization of the assessment, the Ld. Adjudicating authority had issued Orders-in-Original, considering the FOB value as cum-duty price. Consequently, the Appellants had filed refund claims....

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....o bring uniformity in the assessment practice of export duty, followed by different Customs Houses spread over the country. 5. Heard both sides and perused the records. There is no dispute that the present export of iron ore fines against seventeen bills of entry relate to the period prior to 01.01.2009, that is, after the export duty of iron fines was levied on ad-valorem basis from 13.06.2008. Consequently, the Circular bearing No.18/2008-Cus. dated 10.11.2008, was issued by the Board, clarifying the method of assessment to be adopted for computation of export value under Section 14 of the Customs Act, 1962, in relation to levy of export duty. The said Circular reads as follows:- Circular No. 18/2008-Cus., dated 10-11-2008 ....

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.... of charging export duty in a situation where the exporter has not collected any amount in excess of what has been declared in the shipping bill/invoice. As per practice in vogue for the last more than four decades, transaction value of export goods has invariably been taken as cum-duty price. This practice is not in conflict with any of the statutory provisions. Amendments made in Section 14 of the Customs Act by the Finance Act, 2007 have also not brought any change in the procedure for calculation of assessable value for the purpose of charging export duty. However, any decision on this issue is essentially a matter of policy on which decision is to be taken by the administrative department. 4. In view of the above, a policy d....

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.... on the assessment of export duty till 31.12.2008. It is stated that the existing method of assessment of computation of export duty and cesses would be continued, that is, by adopting the FOB price as the cum-duty price, till 31.12.2008. We do not find force in the observation of the ld. Commissioner (Appeals) that the said practice of assessment relates to those Customs Houses only, where the practice of export-levy was adopted by considering the FOB price as the cum-duty price, and cannot be extended to other places. On the other hand, the very purpose of issuing the said Circular is to bring uniformity to the divergent assessment practice followed in the collection of Customs Export Duty across the country. Also, we find that after a de....