2015 (11) TMI 1483 - AT - Service Tax

Refund claim - C&F Agents Service - Held that - The appellant has entered into an agreement with its principal for rendering services of C&F Agents. As per the said agreement, the appellant is paid consideration of an amount as commission/ remuneration for rendering services and is also reimbursed amounts of actual expenses incurred by them for rendering such service. There is no dispute that the appellant has discharged the service tax liability under C&F Agent s Service on the amount received as remuneration/commission. The dispute is regarding service tax liability on the amount received by the appellant as reimbursable expenses. It is undisputed that the amounts on which service tax is sought to be demanded are reimbursable expenses. If that be so, the judgment of the Hon ble High Court of Delhi in the case of Intercontinental Consultants and Technocrats Pvt. Ltd. vs. Union of India 2012 (12) TMI 150 - DELHI HIGH COURT will cover the issue in favour of the appellant-assessee. - If the appellant has taken the credit for such an amount the said amount cannot be included in the refund claim. The lower authority to pass an order after disallowing the amount of ₹ 44,957/-. It is also to be noted that the appellant has reversed an amount of ₹ 44,957/- along with interest and the said amount need not be considered by the lower authority while granting the refund - Decided in favour of assessee.

Summary

Issues:
1. Appeal filed by Revenue against the order of Commissioner (Appeals) on limitation.
2. Appeal filed by appellant-assessee against Order-in-Review.
3. Appeal filed by appellant-assessee for rejection of refund claim.

Analysis:

Issue 1: Appeal filed by Revenue
- The Revenue filed an appeal against the Commissioner (Appeals) order on limitation.
- The Tribunal dismissed the appeal as infructuous.

Issue 2: Appeal filed by appellant-assessee against Order-in-Review
- The appellant challenged the Order-in-Review dated 09/11/2009 under Section 84 of the Finance Act, 1994.
- The issue was regarding service tax liability under 'C&F Agents' Service'.
- The Tribunal held that the Order-in-Review was unsustainable in law and set it aside, allowing the appeal.

Issue 3: Appeal filed by appellant-assessee for rejection of refund claim
- The appellant filed an appeal for rejection of refund claims related to reimbursable expenses.
- The Tribunal noted that the taxability of reimbursable expenses was settled in favor of the appellant.
- The impugned order rejecting the refund claim was set aside.
- An amount claimed for service tax paid on mobile telephone service, for which credit was already taken, was disallowed.
- The appellant's appeal was allowed with consequential relief.

In summary, the Tribunal disposed of all three interconnected appeals. The appeal filed by the Revenue was dismissed as infructuous. The appellant's appeal against the Order-in-Review was allowed as the Tribunal found the service tax liability on reimbursable expenses in favor of the appellant. The appeal for rejection of refund claims was also allowed, with a specific amount disallowed due to already claimed credit. The Tribunal provided detailed reasoning and legal analysis for each issue, ensuring a fair and just decision in each case.