2013 (1) TMI 40 - HC - Income Tax

Exemption u/s 10B - Tax holiday in respect of profits and gains - 100% E.O.U Calculation of turnover - Whether job work chargers are included in total turnover to calculate profit for the purpose of giving exemption u/s 10B - Assessee is engage in business of purchase of textile material, stitching and exporting garments - Export turnover in respect of articles or things in proportion to total turnover Held that - The Section 10B defines the export turnover . The total turnover carried on by the assessee need not necessarily be confined to export sales or local sales, but would also include the job work done by the assessee. Therefore, sub contract receipts and stitching charges as amounting to local sales for the purpose of granting 100% exemption to the assessee. In favour of revenue

Summary

Issues:
1. Eligibility for benefit of Section 10B regarding contract receipts of stitching charges.
2. Treatment of contract receipts for stitching charges as domestic sales for Section 10B.

Analysis:

Issue 1:
The appellant, engaged in textile business, received stitching charges apart from export receipts. The Assessing Officer disallowed these charges under Section 10B, assessing them under 'other sources'. The Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) allowed the exemption, considering stitching charges as less than 25% of total sales. The Tribunal upheld this decision, leading to the Revenue's appeal.

Issue 2:
The Revenue argued that the sub contract receipts were not sales and should not qualify for Section 10B exemption. They highlighted the importance of the second proviso to Section 10B, which deems profits from domestic sales as export profits if they do not exceed 25% of total sales. The appellant contended that since stitching charges were less than 25% of total sales, they should be eligible for Section 10B relief.

The judgment analyzed Section 10B and its provisos, emphasizing the distinction between export turnover and total turnover for calculating profits derived from exports. It noted the legislative intent to grant relief under Section 10B based on specific criteria, particularly the 25% threshold for domestic sales to be considered as export profits. The Court agreed with the Revenue's argument that sub contract receipts should not be treated as local sales for Section 10B purposes.

Ultimately, the Tribunal's decision was set aside, and the Assessing Officer's order was reinstated, denying the appellant the Section 10B exemption for stitching charges. The appeal was allowed with no costs incurred.