2018 (2) TMI 1044 - AT - Service Tax

Refund of unutilized CENVAT credit - Information Technology Software Service - Business Auxiliary Service - Held that - as far as rejection of refund on input services on Management, Maintenance or Repair Service and Management or Business Consultant s service, is wrong and not sustainable. These two services have been held to be eligible input services as per the decisions cited supra. Moreover, in appellant s own case, this Tribunal has already held them as eligible input services - the lower authorities will quantify the refund amount after verifying the documents and thereafter, sanction the eligible amount of refund - appeal allowed by way of remand.

Summary

Issues:
Refund claims on CENVAT credit for input services; Rejection of refund by original authority; Commissioner's condition for refund submission; Rejection of CENVAT credit on certain services; Requirement of SOFTEX certificate for Business Auxiliary Services.

Analysis:
The appellant filed refund claims for unutilized CENVAT credit on input services used for exported services under Rule 5 of CENVAT Credit Rules, 2004. The Commissioner (A) disposed of four Orders-in-Original, leading to two appeals against Order-in-Original No.122-R/2016 and No.123-R/2016. The Commissioner (A) set aside the original order and allowed the refund subject to the appellant submitting SOFTEX copies certified by STPI authorities for verification. The appellant's services included Information Technology Software Service and Business Auxiliary Services. The Commissioner (A) disallowed refund on specific grounds, leading to the appeals.

The Commissioner (A) rejected the refund on the basis that Business Auxiliary Service rendered by the appellant accrued to a principal located abroad, thus amounting to export by the appellant. A condition was imposed for refund, requiring submission of SOFTEX copies certified by STPI authorities. The appellant's consultant argued against this condition, stating it was not legally sustainable. The appellant sought SOFTEX copies for Business Auxiliary Service from STPI, which clarified that SOFTEX need not be filed for such services. Despite this, the Commissioner (A) did not remove the requirement, leading to the appeals.

The appellant's consultant contended that the rejection of CENVAT credit on Management, Maintenance, or Repair Service lacked nexus and cited previous Tribunal decisions supporting the eligibility of these services as input services. The Tribunal agreed with the consultant, finding the rejection of refund on these services unsustainable. Additionally, the submission of STPI certificate was deemed unnecessary for claiming refund under Business Auxiliary Services, as clarified by STPI. Consequently, the Commissioner (A)'s order was set aside, and the appeals were allowed with modifications, directing lower authorities to quantify and sanction the eligible refund amount after document verification.

In conclusion, the Tribunal's decision rectified the errors in the Commissioner (A)'s order regarding the rejection of refund on specific services and the requirement of SOFTEX certificate for Business Auxiliary Services. The judgment emphasized the eligibility of certain input services for refund and clarified the unnecessary nature of STPI certification for Business Auxiliary Services.