Circular No.ES/ 74/ 2016-17 August 26, 2016
To: Members of the Council
Sub: Guidelines regarding Provisional Assessment u/s 18 of the Customs Act, 1962.
Dear Member,
This is to inform you that the Central Board of Excise and Customs has issued a Circular No. 38/2016- Customs dated 22nd August, 2016 on the above subject.
In view of the above, CBEC has withdrawn the Customs (Provisional Duty Assessment) Regulations 2011 vide Notification No. 113/2016 — Cus (NT) dated 22nd August 2016 since section 18 itself lays down the procedure to be followed in the case of provisional assessment. The only issue which is required to be addressed is regarding the amount of security since section 18 requires the same to be obtained as “deemed fit” by the proper officer. For the sake of uniformity of practice, transparency and predictability for the tax payer, the Board has decided that the following procedure and guidelines will be followed by all Customs stations while assessing goods provisionally.
CBEC has also reviewed Customs (Provisional Duty Assessment) Regulations 2011 issued under Notification No. 81/2011-Customs (NT) dated 25th November, 2011 in view of references from the field formations regarding guidelines on the implementation of Regulation 2(2) and Regulation 4.
It is also clarified that provisional assessments under section 18 are to be carried out with respect to cases where the duty is in dispute. Cases relating to execution of a bond or undertaking specified as a condition to a notification or those requiring compliance of conditions under allied acts are not to be provisionally assessed under section 18 of the Customs Act. This position had been earlier clarified by the Ministry of Law and Justice and circulated vide Ministry F.No. 353/91/74-Cus dated 28th January 1977. The format of the Bond is enclosed in the Circular No. 38/2016- Customs dated 22nd August, 2016
For more information, you may download the above Notifications.
Members are requested to make note of the above and do the needful.
Thanking you,
V.ANIL KUMAR
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
