New Delhi, 19 December (H.S.): The Delhi High Court directed the Customs department on Friday to respond within two weeks to a petition by InterGlobe Aviation, operator of IndiGo airline, seeking refund of over ₹900 crore in customs duty levied on aircraft engines and parts re-imported after overseas repairs.

Justices V Kameswar Rao and Vinod Kumar issued notice to the Deputy Commissioner (Refund) at the Principal Commissioner of Customs, Air Cargo Complex (Import), and scheduled the next hearing for April 8, 2026.

IndiGo argues the re-levy constitutes unconstitutional double taxation, as repair services abroad were already taxed under GST, while Customs treats re-imports as fresh goods imports across over 4,000 bills of entry paid under protest.

Customs tribunals previously ruled against re-levying duty on such re-imports post-repairs, deeming amendments to exemption notifications prospective only, yet authorities denied refunds insisting on per-entry reassessments that remain pending.

This echoes Supreme Court affirmation in March 2025 upholding no retrospective IGST on repaired aircraft parts, clarifying cross-border repairs as services rather than goods.

The dispute highlights ongoing tensions between airlines and revenue authorities over re-import duties, potentially affecting operational costs for carriers like IndiGo reliant on global maintenance amid high fleet demands.

A favorable ruling could set precedent, easing financial burdens and ensuring tax certainty for the industry.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar