CESTAT Restores Concessional Customs Duty on MCPCBs Inputs, Rejects Reclassification by Department
Reclassification of metal-core laminates struck down; Tribunal reaffirms MCPCBs qualify for exemption under customs notification
The Delhi Bench of Customs Department, the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) has quashed a Commissioner’s order that denied concessional customs duty on aluminium-based copper clad laminates used in manufacturing Metal Clad Printed Circuit Boards (MCPCBs).
The bench of Justice Dilip Gupta (President) and Mr. P.V. Subba Rao (Technical Member) relied on the Tribunal’s earlier rulings in Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals Ltd, which had held that MCPCBs are indeed PCBs and eligible for the concessional rate. The Supreme Court had also upheld this view in November 2024 by dismissing the Department’s appeal.
The appellant, a manufacturer of Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs), imported aluminium-based copper clad laminates through 23 separate Bills of Entry. They claimed exemption from customs duty under Serial No. 39 of Notification No. 24/2005-Cus dated March 1, 2005, which allows concessional duty for goods used in manufacturing PCBs classifiable under Customs Tariff Item (CTI) 8534 00 00, subject to procedural compliance under the Import of Goods at Concessional Rate of Duty Rules, 2017.
However, the Department disputed this classification and instead argued that the imported laminates were more appropriately classifiable under CTI 9405 99 00 — a heading typically covering parts of lighting and fittings — and therefore not eligible for the concessional duty. Accordingly, the Commissioner passed an Order-in-Original dated September 26, 2023, denying the exemption and confirming the demand for differential duty, interest, and penalty.
The core issue in the case was the reclassification of the imported laminates by the Department under Customs Tariff Item (CTI) 9405 99 00, instead of 8534 00 00, thereby disallowing the importer’s claim for exemption under Serial No. 39 of Notification No. 24/2005-Cus. The order had confirmed differential duty, interest, and penalty.
The Tribunal confirmed that composite laminates with metal cores fall under the exemption even if classified under metal-based tariff chapters.
Case Details
Case Title: Arktron Electronics Versus Commissioner of Customs (Preventive) New Customs House
Case No.: Customs Appeal No. 50013 of 2024
Date: 27/06/2025
Counsel For Appellant: Anurag Kapur and Shri Kaushal Jaisalmer, Advocates
Counsel For Respondent: Shankar, Authorised Representative
Mariya is the Senior Editor at JurisHour. She has 5+ years of experience on covering tax litigation stories from the Supreme Court, High Courts and various tribunals including CESTAT, ITAT, NCLAT, NCLT, etc. Mariya graduated from MLSU Law College, Udaipur (Raj.) with B.A.LL.B. and also holds an LL.M. She started as a freelance tax reporter in the leading online legal news companies like LiveLaw & Taxscan.
