Address code

CHATROOM

Article 14 j of Uniform Customs and Practices for Documentary Credits (UCP), international Chamber of Commerce Publication no 600 (UCP 600 that will come into force on 1.7.2007) says that "When the addresses of the beneficiary and the applicant appear in any stipulated document, they need not be the same as those stated in the credit or in any other stipulated document, but must be within the same country as the respective addresses mentioned in the credit. Contact details (telefax, telephone, email and the like) stated as part of the beneficiary's and the applicant's address will be disregarded, however, when the address and contact details of the applicant appear as part of the consignee or notify party details on a transport document subject to articles 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 or 25, they must be as stated in the credit."

Such an explicit provision is not there in UCP 500 that is now in vogue. Even the ICC Publication no. 645 dealing with International Standard Banking Practices (ISBP-645) does not say that an address different from that stated in the LC is acceptable.

Therefore, the address in the documents must be the same as that stated in the LC. Once UCP 600 comes into force, the address different from that stated in the LC will be acceptable.

For manufacture and export of our product, we have to import 35 to 40 per cent of the components under advance license. Other components will be local. Can we claim drawback at all industry rates to cover the duty incidence of the locally procured components?

The all industry rates are notified by the government through notification no. 81/2006-cus. (N.T) dated 13.07.2006. Condition no. 7 (b) of the notification says that the rates of drawback specified in the said schedule shall not be applicable to export of a commodity or product if such a commodity or product is manufactured or exported in discharge of export obligation against an advance license or advance authorisation issued under the duty exemption scheme of the relevant export and import policy or the foreign trade policy.

Therefore, the claim of duty drawback at all industry rate is not maintainable in respect of exports made in discharge of export obligation against advance authorisation/license.

We are executing a project in Sudan against which we will be purchasing steel from SAIL, Chennai and the same will be exported by us to Sudan for our project. Can we purchase steel against form H?

So long as you will export the goods in the same form that you bought, you can issue form H.

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