2012 (11) TMI 997 - AT - Customs

Conversion of two Free Shipping Bills into Export Promotion Scheme Shipping Bills Held that - No dispute as regards description, value and fact that goods were being exported for fulfillment of export obligation - no allegation of fraud against the assessee and there is no allegation of manipulation also - essential requirements for conversion of Shipping Bills from one scheme to another have been fulfilled by the appellant - conversion was allowed on the ground that in the ARE-1 form, there was a certification from the Superintendent certifying that the export took place under his supervision and the documents were existing at the time of export - Commissioner of Customs directed to allow conversion of the Free Shipping Bills to the Export Promotion Scheme Shipping Bills as requested.

Summary

Issues:
Request for conversion of Free Shipping Bills into Export Promotion Scheme Shipping Bills.

Analysis:
The appeal was against the Commissioner's order rejecting the request for conversion of two Free Shipping Bills into Export Promotion Scheme Shipping Bills. The appellant, engaged in manufacturing Bulk Drugs, omitted to declare Advance Authorization number in two Shipping Bills out of 52. The omission led to the inability to complete the redemption of the Advance Authorization by the DGFT for those two exports. The appellant applied for conversion, which was rejected. The appellant argued that goods were exported under the ARE-1 procedure, certified by Central Excise officers, and met the conditions for conversion as per the Board's Circular No. 36/2010-Cus. The Revenue contended that conversion cannot be allowed due to missing details in the Shipping Bill and the ERE-1 procedure being followed.

The Tribunal considered the submissions and found that the goods' description, value, and export for fulfilling obligations were certified in the ARE-1 form by Central Excise officers. There were no allegations of fraud or manipulation against the appellant. The Tribunal noted that the rejection order did not specify reasons for refusal. It was observed that the essential requirements for conversion, as per the Board's Circular, were met by the appellant. A previous Tribunal decision in a similar case supported the conversion based on certification in the ARE-1 form. The Tribunal concluded that the issue was covered by the previous decision and directed the Commissioner to allow the conversion of Free Shipping Bills to Export Promotion Scheme Shipping Bills as requested.

In conclusion, the Tribunal allowed the appeal and directed the conversion of the Shipping Bills based on fulfilling the conditions outlined in the Board's Circular and previous judicial precedents.