Central Excise Act, 1944
Under the Central Excise Act, 1944, the excise duty is payable on the assessable value for which detailed valuation rules are provided. An excise or excise tax/ duty is a type of tax charged on goods produced within the country. It is a tax on the production or manufacturer or sale of a good. Excise duty is a tax levied on certain goods and commodities produced or sold within a country and on licenses granted for certain activities.
It is tax levied on manufacture of goods and the liability to pay excise duty arises immediately on manufacture or production of goods. In India excise duty is levied in accordance with the provisions of the Central Excise Act, 1944.
Power to levy excise duty is derived from Constitution. Excise is a duty on excisable goods manufactured or produced in India. Each word of this definition is vitally important to fix liability of Central Excise Duty.
Short title, Extent and Commencement of Central Excise Act, 1944
- This Act may be called the Central Excise Act, 1944
- It extends to the whole of India
- It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint in this behalf.
Definitions Under the Central Excise Act, 1944
1. Central Excise Officer: Means the Chief Commissioner of Central Excise, Commissioner of Central Excise, Commissioner of Central Excise (Appeals), Additional Commissioner of Central Excise, Deputy Commissioner of Central Excise, Assistant Commissioner of Central Excise or any other officer of the Central Excise Department, or any person (including an officer of the State Government) invested by the Central Board of Excise and Customs constituted under the Central Boards of Revenue Act, 1963, with any of the powers of a Central Excise Officer under this Act.
2. Excisable Goods: Means goods specified in 8[the First Schedule and the Second Schedule] to the Central Excise Tariff Act, 1985 (5 of 1986)] as being subject to a duty of excise and includes salt.
3. Curing: Includes wilting, drying, fermenting and any process for rendering an unmanufactured product fit for marketing or manufacture.
4. “Sale” and “Purchase: with their grammatical variations and cognate expressions, mean any transfer of the possession of goods by one person to another in the ordinary course of trade or business for cash or deferred payment or other valuable consideration.
5. Wholesale Dealer” Means a person who buys or sells excisable goods wholesale for the purpose of trade or manufacture, and includes a broker or commission agent who, in addition to making contracts for the sale or purchase of excisable goods for others, stocks such goods belonging to others as an agent for the purpose of sale.