Limitation laid down in the Statute or Notification for Claiming Refund can’t be modified by Tribunal: CESTAT [Read Order]

The Hyderabad Bench of Customs, Excise and Service Appellate Tribunal ( CESTAT ) dismissing the present appeal M/s MMTC Limited v. CCE, CST, Visakhapatnam-1 held that the time limit laid down in the statute or a notification for claiming a refund cannot be modified either by the officers or by the Tribunal.

The appellant-assessee, registered with the Service Department for rendering Business Auxiliary Services filed a refund claim of Service Tax paid on various services provided by their service providers for export of Indian milling wheat. The jurisdictional Assistant commissioner rejected the refund on the ground that it is time-barred and this order was upheld by Commissioner (Appeals)

The appellant contended that they can claim the refund only after they got an invoice from the service provider on 3.12.2012, the period of limitation of which starts from the date of receipt of invoice and not the date of export as is stipulated in the notification.

The learned Departmental representative, on the other hand, based his argument solely on the governing Notification which clearly lays down the method to claim the refund including the period within which it has to be claimed. It was contended that stipulated period cannot be altered.

The key issue in the case before the Hon’ble Tribunal is that whether the limitation of time imposed by the notification for claiming the refund of Service Tax on inputs can be altered by the officers of the Tribunal.

After hearing both the sides, the Tribunal explained that the Notification is a subordinate legislation made by the Government and not to the officers or to this Tribunal. The Apex Court and the High Courts of India have laid down in a number of judgments that a statutory time limit has to be adhered to and the Courts cannot modify them.

Hence, the Tribunal after relying upon a number of decisions held that a time limit laid down in the statute or a notification for claiming a refund cannot be modified either by the officers or by the Tribunal when the statute itself does not provide for such relaxation.