Processing of refund claim - CBEC's Customs Manual 2023 - Customs

4. Processing of refund claim: 4.1 The application for refund is required to be filed with documentary or other evidence including documents relating to assessment, sales invoice and other like documents to support the claim that the duty and interest was paid in excess, incidence of duty or interest has not been passed on by him to any other person, and the refund has not been obtained already. 4.2 Where on scrutiny, the application is found to be complete in all respects the Customs issues an acknowledgement in the prescribed Form. However, in case the application is found to be incomplete, the Customs will return the same to the applicant, pointing out the deficiency. The applicant has to then re-submit the application after making good the deficiency. 4.3 The application of refund found to be complete in all respects by Customs, is processed to see if the whole or any part of the duty and interest paid by the applicant is refundable. In case, the whole or any part of the duty and interest is found to be refundable, an order for refund is passed. However, in view of the provisions of unjust enrichment enshrined in the Customs Act, the amount found refundable has to be transferred to the Consumer Welfare Fund except in the following situations when it is to be paid to the applicant: (a) If the importer has not passed on the incidence of such duty and interest to any other person; (b) If such duty and interest was paid in respect of imports made by an individual for his personal use; (c) If the buyer who has borne the duty and interest, has not passed on the incidence of such duty and interest to any other person; (d) If amount found refundable relates to export duty paid on goods which were returned to exporter as specified in Section 26 of the Customs Act, 1962 ; (e) If amount relates to Drawback of duty payable under Sections 74 and 75 of the Customs Act, 1962 ; and (f) If the duty or interest was borne by a class of applicants which has been notified for such purpose in the Official Gazette by the Central Government. (g) If the duty was paid in excess by the importer before an order permitting clearance of goods for home consumption is made where such excess payment of duty is evident from the bill of entry in the case of self-assessed bill of entry or the duty actually payable is reflected in the reassessed bill of entry in the case of reassessment.