Single Registration for Importer & Trader - CBEC Invites Suggestions on Draft

What is the purpose of this permission? As per the verification report submitted by the Jurisdictional Central Excise to the Customs, the Central Excise officials will see the feasibility study of availability of space for container stuffing etc.

Now following question arises due to this procedure.

1. Central Excise rules allows “self-removal of goods” for domestic as well for export.
2. It appears that if factory stuffing permission is not taken than the assessee cannot remove the goods for export. Does this not in conflict with the Central Excise Law itself. What is meaning of self-removal if one cannot load the goods in a container or truck?
3. Whether a container is not a covered truck for all practical and legal purpose? Does loading goods in a refrigerated or covered container in a factory should need permission? In my understanding of the central excise law, there is no such requirement.
4. A manufacturer is allowed to stuff goods in a container for domestic clearance but for export permission is required for factory stuffing – under which law? There seems to be no law either in Central Excise and or in Customs Act/Rules. Actually Customs Act is not applicable as far as manufacturer of goods is concerned.
5. Even if a factory does not have enough space to load container inside the factory – can he not load the goods on the gate of the factory itself – whether it is mandatory that the vehicle should take a round inside the factory for export of goods?
6. What is the revenue safeguard in this permission?
7. Excise registered manufacturers are regulated under Central Excise Rules and are subject to audit each year by the Central Excise and CAG. Jurisdictional excise and preventive, anti-evasion teams also visits these factories occasionally/regularly – are they not aware of the existence of the factory?
8. ARE-1 is submitted to the Central Excise within 24 hours of removal of goods in case of self-sealing and in case of sealing by Central Excise officials, he himself seals the container – whether all this can be done without feasibility?
9. Further this permission will not be granted to the exporters exporting under “free shipping bills” – why do they need this?
10. Suppose one assessee has 50 factories in India and all are registered with central excise. Each unit will export through their local ICD/Customs Station – as per present Trade Notices in this regard each unit will apply for permission to their jurisdictional ICD/Customs.
11. Why such permission is not required for de-stuffing of container in a factory – whereas the container remains the same? If import consignment can be downloaded than export consignment can be loaded also.
12. See few of the many requirements for applying for this permission. And at many places it is written that the permission will be reviewed and may be cancelled for any violation etc. This means that goods are not allowed to be stuffed in a container even if you are well within the Central Excise laws and Customs Law?

(i) IEC issued to them by DGFT – this is mentioned on all the export documents and can be verified online. Always available on DGFT website and all documents (export or import)
(ii) PAN Card and Central Excise Registration Certificate (if applicable) – all these numbers are mentioned on the excise invoice – in fact it is mandatory to mention all these numbers.
(iii) Status Holder Certificate (if any)
(iv) RCMC certificate for non-excisable goods, if any – why a person of non-excisable goods would need the permission for factory stuffing?
(v) All of these documents shall be duly certified by authorized signatory of the exporter.
(vi) Permission will be given incentive scheme-wise – does this means many permissions to one factory?

(vii) Permission will be granted only on receipt of prior verification report regarding the genuineness of existence and functioning of the units and the No objection Certificate from the concerned jurisdictional Central Excise Authorities regarding deputing of officers for supervising the export stuffing – now what the Customs will do with this verification or the Central Excise has granted registration, collecting taxes from “nonexistence units”? Further whether presence of excise officers is required to stuff a container in this era of self-removal and self-sealing?

(viii) The Central Excise officers supervising the examination and stuffing of the cargo are required to follow the Examination Order and INSTRUCTIONS as being already followed – whether in case of self-sealing the excise officer can do this verification?

(ix) The exporters clearing goods under the factory stuffing permission shall invariably produce, at the time of goods registration at the port of export, a copy of the letter of FSP duly attested by the jurisdictional Central Excise officer along with the ARE-1 and other documents – do they see the factory stuffing permission before allowing export of “self-sealed cargo” that too duly attested by the central excise officer?

The application format and the conditions are such that an ordinary factory would not be able to understand and fulfill the requirements easily. Does this mean he should export at all? Such archival procedures continue till now and create more hurdles to the business but without any objective what so ever?

Schneider1 Schneider1 25/05/2016