Excise help centres to focus on defaulters

The help centres proposed by the finance ministry for small-scale sector manufacturers, will focus on non-filers and defaulters of monthly payment of Customs and excise duties. The centres are to be made functional from July 1.

According to a circular issued by the Central Board of Excise and Customs, the primary objective of these centres, consisting of 6-8 members, will be to help honest taxpayers, small assessees, importers and exporters and service providers by providing an institutional mechanism for guiding and educating them in all matters relating to Customs, excise and service tax.

The board has also introduced amendments in certain sections of the Central Excise Act. "Changes have been made in Form ER-1 and ER-3 for filing of monthly excise return. As per the new forms, in the return, description of goods should also be given. Assessees would also be required to give details of the challans for duty payment," J K Mittal, co-chairman, Expert Committee on Indirect Taxes, Assocham said.

Mittal said manufacturers have been allowed to take cenvat credit for the input or capital goods sent to job worker for manufacture of intermediate goods necessary for the manufacture of a final product.

In another circular, the board has clarified that processes outsourced in gem and jewellery sector which amount to 'manufacture' would not be liable to service tax.

This follows representations that certain field formations had interpreted service tax as being leviable on certain processing activities undertaken by job-workers even though such activities does amount to 'manufacture' under Central Excise Law.

The board has in a separate notification appointed the director general service tax as the authority for granting centralised registration under Rule 4(3)(b) of the Service Tax Rules, 1994.