Cap. 337 чл. 20ARefund of duty paid.

(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of articles 1012 to 1028 of the Civil Code, duty paid in accordance with a declaration made to the Commissioner by the importer or by a person authorised to make such a declaration on the importer’s behalf, shall be deemed to have been properly paid and to have been due and shall not be refundable.

(2) Subject to the provisions of subarticle (1) above, it shall be lawful for any person to demand the refund of any duty paid in respect of the importation of any product, provided that -

(a) at the time of payment the Commissioner is informed in writing that the legality of such payment is contested; and

(b) the demand for the refund of any such duty is notified to the Commissioner not later than one year from the release of the imported goods; and

(c) a claim for the refund of the duty is made in a judicial protest or a judicial letter served upon the Commissioner not later than two years from the release of the imported goods; and

(d) where said claim for a refund is based on a claim to the effect that the product was not charged according to the correct classification, the classification of the goods made by the Commissioner is manifestly erroneous.

(3) No person shall have, or be deemed to have ever had, a right to claim the refund of any duty which, although having been paid in excess, has been, or can reasonably be presumed to have been, collected by such person as part of the price at which the goods in respect of which such duty was paid were sold to others.

(4) For the purpose of this article “duty” shall include any import duty, excise duty, or any other tax payable to or collected by the Commissioner upon the importation of any goods.

(5) The provisions of subarticle (3), which refer to the time prior to the coming into force of the said subarticle, are simply declaratory for the avoidance of doubt as to the interpretation of the law as it stood prior to the coming into force of the said subarticle.