Clearance of goods for home consumption
Section 47 of the Customs Act, 1962 deals with clearance of goods for home consumption. ] Where the proper officer is satisfied that any goods entered for home consumption are not prohibited goods and the importer has paid the import duty, if any, assessed thereon and any charges payable under this Act in respect of the same, the proper officer may make an order permitting clearance of The Act came into force on 01 Feb 1963.
1[(1)] Where the proper officer is satisfied that any goods entered for home consumption are not prohibited goods and the importer has paid the import duty, if any, assessed thereon and any charges payable under this Act in respect of the same, the proper officer may make an order permitting clearance of the goods for home consumption:
2[ 3[Provided that such order may also be made electronically through the customs automated system system on the basis or risk evaluation through appropriate selection criteria:
Provided further that the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, permit certain class of importers to make deferred payment of said duty or any charges in such manner as may be provided by rules.]
4[(2) 5[The importer shall pay the import duty--
(a) on the date of presentation of the bill of entry in the case of self assessment; or
(b) within one day (excluding holidays) from the date on which the bill of entry is returned to him by the proper officer for payment of duty in the case of assessment, reassessment or provisional assessment; or
(c) in the case of deferred payment under the proviso to sub-section (1), from such due date as may be specified by rules made in this behalf,
and if he fails to pay the duty within the time so specified, he shall pay interest on the duty not paid or short-paid till the date of its payment, at such rate, not less than ten per cent. but not exceeding thirty-six per cent. per annum, as may be fixed by the Central Government, by notification in the Official Gazette.]
6[Provided that the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify the class or classes of importers who shall pay such duty electronically:
Provided further that where the bill of entry is returned for payment of duty before the commencement of the Customs (Amendment) Act, 1991 (55 of 1991) and the importer has not paid such duty before such commencement, the date of return of such bill of entry to him shall be deemed to be the date of such commencement for the purpose of this section:]
7[8[Provided also that if the Board is satisfied that it is necessary in the public interest so to do, it may, by order for reasons to be recorded, waive the whole or part of any interest payable under this section.]
Section 47, The Customs Act, 1962 (Act 52 of 1962).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
Referred to by 6
- s. 23 Remission of duty on lost, destroyed or abandoned goods
- s. 26A Refund of import duty in certain cases
- s. 61 Period for which goods may remain warehoused
- s. 109 Power to require production of order permitting clearance of goods imported by land
- s. 156 General power to make rules
- Finance Act s. 72 Amendment of section 47
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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Commr. of Customs vs Sayed Ali
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
A proper officer under Section 2(34) of the Customs Act, 1962, is only such a customs officer who has been assigned the specific functions of assessment and reassessment of duty by the Board or Commissioner of Customs. Mere appointment as an officer of Customs with territorial jurisdiction over a port is insufficient to confer proper officer status. Accordingly, a show cause notice under Section 28 of the Act for reassessment of goods cleared for home consumption can only be issued by the officer assigned assessment functions in the jurisdictional area where the bill of entry was filed and the goods were cleared, not by any other officer even if he has territorial jurisdiction over that area. In the present case, since the Commissioner of Customs (Preventive), Mumbai, was never assigned the specific function of assessment or reassessment of goods entered for home consumption under Section 28, he was not competent to issue the show cause notice, notwithstanding his territorial jurisdiction.
On this section: Clearance of goods for home consumption by proper officer upon payment of duty; vests this assessment function with Imports officer, not Preventive officer.
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Union of India vs G. S. Chatha Rice Mills
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
A notification issued under Section 8A of the Customs Tariff Act 1975 increasing import duty takes effect prospectively from the time it is published in the e-Gazette, not from the commencement of the day on which it is issued. The rate of duty applicable to imported goods entered for home consumption is determined with reference to the date and time of presentation of the bill of entry under Section 15 of the Customs Act 1962 read with Regulation 4(2) of the Bill of Entry Regulations 2018. Bills of entry presented before the notification is published in the e-Gazette are assessed at the rate of duty in force at the time of their presentation. Subordinate legislation issued under Section 8A cannot have retrospective effect unless the parent statute expressly or by necessary implication authorizes it. The General Clauses Act 1897 Section 5(3) does not apply to delegated legislation. In the electronic age, the precise time of publication of notifications in e-gazettes and the precise time of filing of bills of entry on the customs automated system are legally significant for determining the applicable rate of duty.
On this section: Provides for clearance of goods for home consumption upon satisfaction of conditions including payment of assessed duty
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Union of India vs Devansh Overseas
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
A notification issued under Section 8A of the Customs Tariff Act 1975 increasing import duty takes effect prospectively from the precise time of its publication in the e-gazette and cannot apply retrospectively to bills of entry presented before such publication. The rate of duty applicable to imported goods entered for home consumption under Section 46 of the Customs Act 1962 is determined with reference to the date and time of presentation of the bill of entry as crystallized by the deeming fiction in Regulation 4(2) of the Bill of Entry (Electronic Integrated Declaration and Paperless Processing) Regulations 2018. Once a bill of entry is deemed to have been presented and self-assessment completed under Regulation 4(2), the rate of duty stands crystallized and cannot be altered by a subsequently issued notification. Customs authorities cannot reassess bills of entry under Section 17(4) on the basis of a subsequently issued notification where the self-assessment was correctly done at the time of presentation based on the rate of duty then in force.
On this section: Provides for clearance of goods for home consumption upon satisfaction of conditions including payment of assessed duty; importer must pay duty on date of presentation in case of self-assessment
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Bharat Petroluem Corporation LTD vs Commissioner of Customs (import), Mumbai
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The quantity of goods to be assessed for customs duty purposes is the actual quantity of goods physically imported and received at the place of importation in India (at the shore tanks at Indian ports), not the quantity stated in the bill of lading from the country of export. This is because: (a) the taxable event under Section 12 of the Customs Act is 'importation', which is complete only when goods become part of the land mass within India and are cleared for home consumption; (b) Sections 13 and 23 establish that duty is not payable on goods lost, pilfered, or destroyed before clearance for home consumption; (c) Section 14 requires valuation 'at the time and place of importation'; (d) the Customs Valuation Rules' definition of 'transaction value' refers to goods 'actually imported'; and (e) whether customs duty is levied at a specific rate or on an ad valorem basis does not change this fundamental principle.
On this section: Establishes that proper officer makes clearance order only after importer has paid assessed duty, and that the quantity for assessment is the quantity entered for home consumption.
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
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… He would submit that neither is the rate of duty dependent on the date of payment of duty nor is it based on Entry Inward. An order is contemplated under Section 47 of the Customs Act for clearing the goods, which contemplates payment of duty as a condition precedent for such an order. This is irrelevant. He would submit that in the present-day world of international trade, innumerable transactions take place at different points of time during the course of the day. The Law …
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… He would submit that neither is the rate of duty dependent on the date of payment of duty nor is it based on Entry Inward. An order is contemplated under Section 47 of the Customs Act for clearing the goods, which contemplates payment of duty as a condition precedent for such an order. This is irrelevant. He would submit that in the present-day world of international trade, innumerable transactions take place at different points of time during the course of the day. The Law …
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… He would submit that neither is the rate of duty dependent on the date of payment of duty nor is it based on Entry Inward. An order is contemplated under Section 47 of the Customs Act for clearing the goods, which contemplates payment of duty as a condition precedent for such an order. This is irrelevant. He would submit that in the present-day world of international trade, innumerable transactions take place at different points of time during the course of the day. The Law …
Made under this section, and citing it
7 instruments state that it was made under this provision — the power to make it comes from here, so a change to any of them changes what this section requires in practice. Newest first.
- Notification No.28/2017-Cus(NT), Dated 31.3.2017Notification 2017
- Notification NO.134/2016-Cus(NT) dated 2.11.2016Notification 2016
- Notification No.134/2016-Cus(NT), dated 2.11.2016Notification 2016
- Notification No.135/2016-Cus(NT), dated 2.11.2016Notification 2016
- Notification No.135/2016-Cus(NT), dated 2.11.2016Notification 2016
- Notification No.83/2012-Cus(NT), dated 17.09.2012Notification 2012
- Exemption from Declarations - Goods sent for testing abroad subject to re-import - instructions.- Circular No.19/2003-Customs, dated 27.3.2003Circular 2003
Another 7 instruments name this provision in its title or its text without being made under it.
- Notification No.36/2018-Cus(NT), dated 11.5.2018Notification 2018
- Clarification regarding legislative changes relating to Customs Act,1962 proposed in the Finance Bill,2017. - Circular No.12/2017-Cus., dated 31.3.17Circular 2017
- Notification No.35/2017-Cus(NT), Dated 11.4.2017Notification 2017
- Notification No.12/2014-Cus(NT), dated 17.2.2014Notification 2014
- Import of edible / food products -Circular No.3/2011-Customs, dated 6.1.2011Circular 2011
- Advance notice of Bs/ E before the delivery of IGM in the Import Deptt.- Noting involving Mother Vessel and Feeder Vessel - Reg. - Circular No.22/1997-Customs, dated 4.7.1997Circular 1997
- Notification No.62/1995-Cus(NT), dated 5.10.1995Notification 1995
Questions about Section 47
What have the courts held on Section 47 of the Customs Act?
Commr. of Customs vs Sayed Ali (18 Feb 2011) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Clearance of goods for home consumption by proper officer upon payment of duty; vests this assessment function with Imports officer, not Preventive officer. Another 3 judgments on this section are set out below, all of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2011 to 2020.
How do I find court cases under Section 47 of the Customs Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Customs Act 1962 47, section 47 Customs Act 1962, section 47 of the Customs Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 4 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with Commr. of Customs vs Sayed Ali (18 Feb 2011).
What should I read with Section 47 of the Customs Act, and has it changed?
6 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. The rules and notifications made under it are where it actually bites, and there are 7: most recently Notification No.28/2017-Cus(NT), Dated 31.3.2017 (2017), then Notification NO.134/2016-Cus(NT) dated 2.11.2016 (2016), and 5 more.
When did Section 47 of the Customs Act come into force?
Section 47 of the Customs Act, cited as Customs Act 1962 47, came into force on 01 Feb 1963, having been enacted on 13 Dec 1962. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 28. Recovery of duties not levied or not paid or short-levied or short-paid or erroneously refunded2145 words
- 2. Definitions1638 words
- 129A. Appeals to the Appellate Tribunal1170 words
- 27. Claim for refund of duty1060 words
- 127C. Procedure on receipt of an application under section 127B1056 words
- 138C. Admissibility of micro films, facsimile copies of documents and computer print outs as documents and as evidence872 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 15 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.