2014 (5) TMI 558 - AT - Central Excise

Denial of CENVAT Credit - Service availed from CHA - Held that - the place of removal of the goods is the port where the goods have been exported - service availed by the exporter upto the loading port where the goods are being exported, any service availed by exporter is entitled for inputs service credit - appellants are entitled for inputs service credit of the service of CHA availed by them during the course of export of goods, as the service has been availed for exported goods at loading port - Following decisions of Modern Petrofils Vs. CCE, Vadodara, reported in 2010 (2) TMI 328 - CESTAT, AHMEDABAD , CCE, Surat Vs. Colour Synth Industries Pvt Ltd., reported in 2009 (1) TMI 130 - CESTAT AHMEDABAD and Kuntal Granites Ltd. Vs. CCE, Bangalore reported in 2007 (3) TMI 540 - CESTAT, BANGALORE , Decided in favour of assessee.

Summary

Issues:
Appeal against denial of input service credit from CHA under Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004.

Analysis:

Issue 1: Denial of input service credit
The appellants appealed against the denial of input service credit from CHA as per the impugned order, citing that the service did not meet the definition under Rule 2(l) of the Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004.

Issue 2: Waiver of pre-deposit
The Tribunal found the issue to be narrow in scope, thus waiving the requirement of pre-deposit of the entire demanded amount and proceeding with the appeal for final disposal.

Issue 3: Precedents and legal interpretation
The Tribunal referred to previous judgments such as Modern Petrofils Vs. CCE, Vadodara, CCE, Surat Vs. Colour Synth Industries Pvt Ltd., and Kuntal Granites Ltd. Vs. CCE, Bangalore to support the appellants' claim. These judgments established that services availed by the exporter up to the loading port for exported goods are eligible for input service credit. Since the goods in this case were exported from the loading port where the service was availed, the Tribunal held that the appellants were entitled to the input service credit from CHA.

Issue 4: Tribunal's decision
Based on the legal interpretation and precedents, the Tribunal set aside the impugned order and allowed the appeal, granting consequential relief to the appellants.

This judgment highlights the importance of legal definitions, precedents, and the specific circumstances surrounding the availing of services for determining eligibility for input service credit under the Cenvat Credit Rules, 2004.