Categories: GST (Goods and Services Tax)Indirect Tax

UPDATE ON DELHI VAT

Whether importing decorative goods predominantly made by handis classified as Handicrafts– Delhi VAT

Recently in the case of AME De Verre (P.) Ltd. V Commissioner Trade and Taxes (2015) 57 taxmann.com 147 (Delhi) it has been held by the Delhi High Court that decorative items imported from Italy, which were predominantly made by hand, are classified as “Handicrafts” under entry no. 128 of Third Schedule of VAT Act and thus chargeable to tax @ 4%.

In the said case, the assessee was engaged in sale of decorative items of glass under the brand name of ‘Badli’ which were manufactured primarily using designs given by craftsmen and statedly involved crystal playing, engraving, polishing, assembling, chiseling and then final product was made, in addition the same was subject to hand polishing, dismantling, pregilding and then finally assembled. Hence, the assessee classified the same as ‘Handicrafts’ and consequently paid tax at the rate of 4%.

However, the Commissioner rejected the assessee’s claim and held that the said items should be categorized as unclassified goods and taxable at the rate of 12.5% under section 4(1)(e). On appeal by the Assessee, the Tribunal also upheld the same.

The assessee further appealed to the Delhi High Court where it was observed that the said items qualify as ‘Handicrafts’ as they fulfill the following characteristics-

It must be predominantly made by hand. It does not matter if some machinery is also used in the process.
Items must be graced with visual appeal in the nature of ornamentation or in work or some similar work lending it an element of artistic improvement. Such ornamentation must be of a substantial nature and not a pretence.

Further, it was noticed that there is nothing contained in VAT Act or rules, or in any other instructions, notification, etc. to require that a commodity in order to be accepted as ‘Handicrafts’ must be one indigenously made, or to put it conversely, not be one imported into India. Hence, the Delhi High Court held that goods sold by the assessee fall in category of ‘Handicrafts’ and consequently attract VAT at 4%.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances; Hope the information will assist you in your Professional endeavors. For query or help, contact:singh@carajput.com or call at 9555555480

Tags: Commissioner Trade and Taxes (2015) 57Handicraftstaxable at the rate of 12.5% under section 4(1)(e)Third Schedule of VAT Act

11 years ago

Rajput Jain & Associates

Rajput Jain & Associates is a Chartered Accountants firm, with it's headquarter situated at New Delhi (the capital of India). The firm has been set up by a group of young, enthusiastic, highly skilled and motivated professionals who have taken experience from top consulting firms and are extensively experienced in their chosen fields has providing a wide array of Accounting, Auditing, Taxation, Assurance and Business advisory services to various clients and their stakeholders. Rajput jain & Associates, a professional firm, offers its clients a full range of services, To serve better and to bring bucket of services under one roof, the firm has merged with it various Chartered Accountancy firms pioneer in diversified fields. We have associates all over India in big cities. All our offices are well equipped with latest technological support with updated reference materials. We have a large team of professionals other than our Core Team members to meet the requirements of our prospective clients including the existing ones. However, considering our commitment towards high quality services to our clients, our team keeps on growing with more and more associates having strong professional background with good exposure in the related areas of responsibility.