2018 (12) TMI 476 - AAR - GST

Classification of an item - tutty-fruity - Whether Tutti-fruity be classified under HSN 08111010 or 20060000? - Held that - The Customs Tariff Act, 1975 including the Section & Chapter Notes, General Explanatory Notes shall apply to the classification of the goods under GST also - Chapter 8 of the Customs Tariff Act of India relates to Edible fruits and nuts; peels of citrus fruit or melons. Tariff item 0811 deals with fruits and nuts, uncooked or cooked by steaming or boiling in water, frozen, whether or not containing added sugar or other sweetening matter. It becomes evident that the main requirement for a commodity to be classified under the tariff heading 08.11 must be They are fruits and nuts, a. uncooked or cooked by steaming or boiling in water; b. frozen; c. Whether or not containing added sugar or other sweetening matter - The explanatory notes also provide that the heading 08.11 applies to fruits which may have been cooked by boiling and are then frozen - In the instant case the flow chart provided by the applicant, though shows boiling of the fruit, does not indicate the freezing of the fruit consequent to processing. Therefore, the product as presented by the applicant does not qualify classification under Tariff Heading 08.11. Reference is made to the explanatory notes to the Hormonised Commodity Description and Coding System, with respect to the CTH 2006 - In the instant case the process of preparation of the product tutti-frutti by the applicant tallies with the process referred to in the explanation - thus the product tutti-frutti is rightly classifiable under CTH -20060000. Ruling - The Tutti-frutti being the product of papaya is covered under Chapter / Heading / Sub-heading / Tariff item 20 06 00 00.

Summary

Issues:
Classification of Tutti-frutti under HSN code 08111010 or 20060000.

Analysis:
The applicant, a partnership firm manufacturing Tutti-frutti, sought an advance ruling on its classification under HSN codes 08111010 and 20060000. Tutti-frutti, primarily candied raw papaya, involves a process including boiling in water and cooking with sugar. The applicant argued that since both cooking and adding sugar are essential, HSN code 08111010 is the correct classification. However, the authority analyzed the process and relevant tariff items.

The authority examined the Customs Tariff Act, which states that for a commodity to be classified under tariff heading 08.11, it must be fruits or nuts, uncooked or cooked by steaming or boiling in water, frozen, and may contain added sugar. The explanatory notes further clarified that fruits cooked by boiling and frozen fall under this heading. However, the applicant's process did not indicate freezing after boiling, leading to the conclusion that Tutti-frutti does not qualify under tariff heading 08.11.

On the other hand, Chapter 20 covers preparations of vegetables, fruits, nuts, or other plant parts preserved by sugar. The authority referred to explanatory notes stating the process involving treatment with boiling water and impregnation with sugar for preservation. The products under this chapter include whole fruits, sections, fruit-peel, and other plant parts preserved by sugar. The process of preparing Tutti-frutti aligns with this description, leading to the classification under CTH 20060000.

Therefore, the authority ruled that Tutti-frutti, being a product of papaya, is correctly classified under Chapter/Heading/Sub-heading/Tariff item 20060000.