Interest for Delay of Refund: Service Provider cannot take advantage of their own Mistake of Delay caused by them, rules CESTAT [Read Order]

The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate (CESTAT), Chennai bench has held that the Service Provider cannot take advantage of their own mistake of delay caused by them in filing the refund application.

The appellant, S. Sivamurugan Chit Fund (P) Limitedwere engaged in chit fund business and after the introduction of negative taxation regime, they were compelled to pay Service Tax on the foreman charges collected for theirchit fund activities for the period from 01.07.2012 to 31.05.2013.they were aggrieved by the order of the adjudicating authority rejecting the refund claim on ground of limitation of time as prescribed under Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944.

While upholding the order of the adjudicating authority, Judicial Member P Dineshanoted that there is no doubt that Section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1961.

“The provision prescribes the period of limitation for filing the refund claim, but admittedly here, the application for refund was filed on 19.01.2018; the date of the judgement of the Hon’ble Supreme Court is 07.01.2014. There is a clear four-year delay in filing the refund claim. My view therefore is that the appellant is not entitled for any interest for the delay caused by it. In other words, the appellant cannot take advantage of its own mistake of filing a delayed refund claim and thus cannot claim the interest for that delayed period during which time it slept over its rights. For working out refund along with consequential benefits, the matter is restored to the file of the Original Authority, who shall work out the refund in the light of my observations made hereinabove,” the Tribunal said.

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