Customs Can't Make Passengers/Lawyers Sign Waiver Of SCN Or Hearing At Goods Appraisement Stage: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has made it clear that the Customs Department cannot make a passenger or his lawyer sign an undertaking for waiver of show cause notice or personal hearing, when they appear for appraisement of seized articles.A division bench of Justices Prathiba M. Singh and Renu Bhatnagar made the observation while dealing with an NRI's plea, whose gold chain was seized by the Customs on his arrival from Saudi Arabia.The Petitioner contended that neither any SCN was issued not personal hearing was afforded to him.Disputing this, the Department submitted that Petitioner had executed a Special Power of Attorney authorising his counsel to act on his behalf and the counsel had waived the personal hearing by way of an undertaking. Further, they had received the oral SCN.Petitioner's counsel on the other hand submitted that when she had appeared before the Customs Department to get the goods of the Petitioner appraised, the said undertaking was taken from her by the Customs Department. Further, it was submitted that the notice for personal hearing has not been served upon her.On service of notices, the High Court said it has been emphasized repeatedly to the Customs Department that in addition to physical letters and communications, notices ought to be sent on e-mail address and mobile number.Reliance was placed on Bonanza Enterprises v. The Assistant Commissioner of Customs & Anr. (2024) where the High Court asked the Customs to scrupulously comply with its “repeated” direction to serve notices, orders on an assessee under the Customs Act, 1962 via email.“The Court notices that the personal hearing notice in the present case has been sent to the Petitioner in Tamil Nadu and to Mr. D.S. Chadha, ld. Counsel for the Petitioner at his office in Lajpat Nagar, New Delhi. It is not even clear if the notice has even been served or not,” it said in the present case.So far as undertaking waiving notice is concerned, the High Court said “even if any passenger, lawyer or Power of Attorney holder appears for appraisement, it would be contrary to law to get any undertaking signed in terms of waiver of personal hearing or SCN…This Court has held repeatedly that standard pre-printed waivers of SCN and personal hearing would not be valid in law as held in Amit Kumar v. The Commissioner of Customs, 2025.”Therefore, the Court clarified that the Customs Department ought to: i. Not insist upon any undertaking being signed at the time of appraisement of goods – that too by passengers who do not understand the implications of the same; ii. Send communications to ld. Counsels and to Passengers/Petitioners on the physical address as also on the email address and mobile number.Coming to merits of the case, the Court ordered that the Department provide personal hearing to the Petitioner. Further, noting that he is a resident of Saudi Arabia for the last 13 years, Court said, “If the Petitioner is willing to re-export the gold chain, the same shall also be considered by the Adjudicating Authority.”Appearance: Mr. D. S. Chadha, Adv. for Petitioner; Mr. Aakarsh Srivastava, SSC, Mr. Anand Pandey, Adv. for RespondentCase title: Javed Ali Gouse v. Commissioner Of Customs New DelhiCitation: 2025 LiveLaw (Del) 1642Case no.: W.P.(C) 15765/2025Click here to read order

Customs Can't Make Passengers/Lawyers Sign Waiver Of SCN Or Hearing At Goods Appraisement Stage: Delhi High Court

Kapil Dhyani

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