I
PRELIMINARY
1.
Short title extent and commencement
1. (1)
This Act may be called the Customs Act 1962.
(2) It
extends to the whole of India.
(3) It
shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may by
notification in the Official Gazette appoint.
2.
Definitions
2. In
this Act unless the context otherwise requires -
(1)
"adjudicating authority" means any authority competent to pass any
order or decision under this Act but does not include the Board Commissioner
(Appeals) or Appellate Tribunal;
(1A)
"aircraft" has the same meaning as in the Aircraft Act 1934 (22 of
1934);
(1B)
"Appellate Tribunal" means the Customs Excise and Gold (Control)
Appellate Tribunal constituted under section 129;
(2)
"assessment" includes provisional assessment reassessment and any
order of assessment in which the duty assessed is nil;
(3)
"baggage" includes unaccompanied baggage but does not include motor
vehicles;
(4)
"bill of entry" means a bill of entry referred to in section 46;
(5)
"bill of export" means a bill of entry referred to in section 50;
(6)
"Board" means the Central Board of Excise and Customs constituted
under the Central Boards of Revenue Act 1963 (54 of 1963);
(7)
"coastal goods" means goods other than imported goods transported in
a vessel from one port in India to another;
(7A)
"Commissioner (Appeals)" means a person appointed to be a
Commissioner of Customs (Appeals) under sub-section (1) of section 4;
(8)
"Commissioner of Customs" except for the purposes of Chapter XV
includes an Additional Commissioner of Customs;
(9)
"conveyance" includes a vessel an aircraft and a vehicle;
(10)
"customs airport" means any airport appointed under clause (a) of
section 7 to be a customs airport;
(11)
"customs area" means the area of a customs station and includes any
area in which imported goods or export goods are ordinarily kept before
clearance by Customs Authorities;
(12)
"customs port" means any port appointed under clause (a) of section 7
to be a customs port and includes a place appointed under clause (aa) of that
section to be an inland container depot;
(13)
"customs station" means any customs port customs airport or land
customs station;
(14)
"dutiable goods" means any goods which are chargeable to duty and on
which duty has not been paid :
(15)
"duty" means a duty of customs leviable under this Act;
(16)
"entry" in relation to goods means an entry made in a bill of entry
shipping bill or bill of export and includes in the case of goods imported or
to be exported by post the entry referred to in section 82 or the entry made
under the regulations made under section 84;
(17)
"examination" in relation to any goods includes measurement and
weighment thereof;
(18)
"export" with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions
means taking out of India to a place outside India;
(19)
"export goods" means any goods which are to be taken out of India to
a place outside India;
(20)
"exporter" in relation to any goods at any time between their entry
for export and the time when they are exported includes any owner or any person
holding himself out to be the exporter;
(21)
"foreign-going vessel or aircraft" means any vessel or aircraft for
the time being engaged in the carriage of goods or passengers between any port
or airport in India and any port or airport outside India whether touching any
intermediate port or airport in India or not and includes -
(i) any
naval vessel of a foreign government taking part in any naval exercises;
(ii)
any vessel engaged in fishing or any other operations outside the territorial
waters of India;
(iii)
any vessel or aircraft proceeding to a place outside India for any purpose
whatsoever;
(21A)
"Fund" means the Consumer Welfare Fund established under section 12C
of the Central Excises and Salt Act 1944 (1 of 1944);
(22)
"goods" includes -
(a)
vessels aircraft and vehicles;
(b)
stores;
(c)
baggage;
(d)
currency and negotiable instruments; and
(e) any
other kind of movable property;
(23)
"import" with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions
means bringing into India from a place outside India;
(24)
"import manifest" or "import report" means the manifest or
report required to be delivered under section 30;
(25)
"imported goods" means any goods brought into India from a place
outside India but does not include goods which have been cleared for home
consumption;
(26)
"importer" in relation to any goods at any time between their
importation and the time when they are cleared for home consumption includes
any owner or any person holding himself out to be the importer;
(27)
"India" includes the territorial waters of India;
(28)
"Indian customs waters" means the waters extending into the sea up to
the limit of contiguous zone of India under section 5 of the Territorial Waters
Continental Shelf Exclusive Economic Zone and other Maritime Zones Act 1976 (80
of 1976) and includes any bay gulf harbour creek or tidal river;
(29)
"land customs station" means any place appointed under clause (a) of
section 7 to be a land customs station;
(30)
"market price" in relation to any goods means the wholesale price of
the goods in the ordinary course of trade in India;
(31)
"person-in-charge" means -
(a) in
relation to a vessel the mater of the vessel;
(b) in
relation to an aircraft the commander of pilot-in-charge of the aircraft;
(c) in
relation to a railway train the conductor guard or other person having the
chief direction of the train;
(d) in
relation to any other conveyance the driver or other person-in-charge of the
conveyances;
(32)
"prescribed" means prescribed by regulations made under this Act;
(33)
"prohibited goods" means any goods the import or export of which is
subject to any prohibition under this Act or any other law for the time being
in force but does not include any such goods in respect of which the conditions
subject to which the goods are permitted to be imported or exported have been
complied with;
(34)
"proper officer" in relation to any functions to be performed under
this Act means the officer of customs who is assigned those functions by the
Board or the Commissioner of Customs;
(35)
"regulations" means the regulations made by the Board under any
provision of this Act;
(36)
"rules" means the rules made by the Central Government under any
provision of this Act;
(37)
"shipping bill" means a shipping bill referred to in section 50;
(38)
"stores" means goods for use in a vessel or aircraft and includes
fuel and spare parts and other articles of equipment whether or not for
immediate fitting;
(39)
"smuggling" in relation to any goods means any act or omission which
will render such goods liable to confiscation under section 111 or section 113;
(40)
"tariff value" in relation to any goods means the tariff value fixed
in respect thereof under sub-section (2) of section 14;
(41)
"value" means relation to any goods means the value thereof
determined in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 14;
(42)
"vehicle" means conveyance of any kind used on land and includes a
railway vehicle;
(43)
"warehouse" means a public warehouse appointed under section 57 or
private warehouse licensed under section 58;
(44)
"warehoused goods" means goods deposited in a warehouse;
(45)
"warehousing station" means a place declared as a warehousing station
under section 9.
II
OFFICERS OF CUSTOMS
3.
Classes of officers of customs
3. There shall be the following classes of
officers of customs namely :
(a)
Chief Commissioners of Customs;
(b)
Commissioners of Customs (Appeals);
(c)
Deputy Commissioners of Customs;
(d)
Assistant Commissioners of Customs; and
(e)
such other class of officers of customs as may be appointed for the purposes of
this Act.
4.
Appointment of officers of customs
4. (1)
The Central Government may appoint such persons as it thinks fit to be officers
of customs.
(2)
Without prejudice to the provisions of sub-section (1) the Central Government
may authorise the Board a Commissioner of Customs or a Deputy or Assistant
Commissioner of Customs to appoint officers of customs below the rank of
Assistant Commissioner of Customs.
5.
Powers of officers of customs
5. (1)
Subject to such conditions and limitations as the Board may impose an officer
of customs may exercise the powers and discharge the duties conferred or
imposed on him under this Act.
(2) An
officer of customs may exercise the powers and discharge the duties conferred
or imposed under this Act on any other officer of customs who is subordinate to
him.
(3) Not
withstanding anything contained in this section a Commissioner (Appeals) shall
not exercise the powers and discharge the duties conferred or imposed on an
officer of customs other than those specified in Chapter XV and section 108.
6.
Entrustment of functions of Board and Customs Officers on certain other
officers
6. The
Central Government may by notification in the Official Gazette entrust either
conditionally or unconditionally to any officer of the Central or the State
Government or a local authority any functions of the Board or any officer of
customs under this Act.
III
APPOINTMENT OF CUSTOMS PORTS AIRPORTS WAREHOUSING STATIONS ETC.
7.
Appointment of customs ports airports etc.
7. The Central Government may by notification
in the Official Gazette appoint
(a) the
ports and airports which alone shall be customs ports or customs airports for
the unloading of imported goods and the loading of export goods or any class of
such goods;
(aa)
the places which alone shall be inland container depots for the unloading of
imported goods and the loading of export goods or any class of such goods;
(b) the
places which alone shall be land customs stations for the clearance of goods
imported or to be exported by land or inland water or any class of such goods.
(c) the
routes by which alone goods or any class of goods specified in the notification
may pass by land or inland waters into or out of India or to or from any land
customs station from or to any land frontier;
(d) the
ports which alone shall be coastal ports for the carrying on of trade in
coastal goods or any class of such goods with all or any specified ports in
India.
8.
Power to approve landing places and specify limits of customs area
8. The
Commissioner of Customs may -
(a)
approve proper places in any customs port or customs airport or coastal port
for the unloading and loading of goods or for any class of goods;
(b)
specify the limits of any customs area.
9.
Power to declare places to be warehousing stations
9. The Board
may by notification in the Official Gazette declare places to be warehousing
stations at which alone public warehouses may be appointed and private
warehouses may be licensed.
10.
Appointment of boarding stations
10. The
Commissioner of Customs may by notification in the Official Gazette appoint in
or near any customs port a boarding station for the purpose of boarding of or
disembarkation from vessels by officers of customs.
IV
PROHIBITIONS ON IMPORTATION AND EXPORTATION OF GOODS
11.
Power to prohibit importation or exportation of goods
11. (1)
If the Central Government is satisfied that it is necessary so to do for any of
the purposes specified in sub-section (2) it may by notification in the
Official Gazette prohibit either absolutely or subject to such conditions (to
be fulfilled before or after clearance) as may be specified in the
notification the import or export of
goods of any specified description.
(2) The
purposes referred to in sub-section (1) are the following :-
(a) the
maintenance of the security of India;
(b) the
maintenance of public order and standards of decency or morality;
(c) the
prevention of smuggling;
(d) the
prevention of shortage of goods or any description;
(e) the
conservation of foreign exchange and the safeguarding of balance of payments;
(f) the
prevention of injury to the economy of the country by the uncontrolled import
or export of gold or silver;
(g) the
prevention of surplus of any agricultural product or the product of fisheries;
(h) the
maintenance of standards for the classification grading or marketing of goods
in international trade;
(i) the
establishment of any industry;
(j) the
prevention of serious injury to domestic production of goods of any
description;
(k) the
protection of human animal or plant life or health;
(l) the
protection of national treasures of artistic historic or archaeological value;
(m) the
conservation of exhaustible natural resources;
(n) the
protection of patents trademarks and copyrights;
(o) the
prevention of deceptive practices;
(p) the
carrying on of foreign trade in any goods by the State or by a corporation
owned or controlled by the State to the exclusion complete or partial of
citizens of India.
(q) the
fulfilment of obligations under the Charter of the United Nations for the
maintenance of international peace and security;
(r) the
implementation of any treaty agreement or convention with any country;
(s) the
compliance of imported goods with any laws which are applicable to similar
goods produced or manufactured in India;
(t) the
prevention of dissemination of documents containing any matter which is likely
to prejudicially affect friendly relations with any foreign State or is
derogatory to national prestige;
(u) the
prevention of the contravention of any law for the time being in force; and
(v) any
other purpose conducive to the interests of the general public.