THE COURT of Tax Appeals has dismissed the petition for review filed by Universal Pacific Food Corp. after the Bureau of Customs moved to forfeit the company’s excess rice imports.
In a decision issued Aug. 31 by the third division of the tax appeals court, it said UPFC filed the petition with the Court beyond the 30-day period to appeal, making the contested Customs decision final and executory.
The UPFC filed its petition for review on Sept. 24, 2015, questioning the Aug. 12 decision of the BoC affirming the forfeiture order of the District Collector, Manila International Container Port against its excess rice imports, which it claimed to have received on Aug. 25.
However, in another part of its petition, UPFC said it received the BoC decision on Aug. 19. The CTA found no records to support the Aug. 25 claim.
“For petitioner’s failure to perfect an appeal within the reglementary period of thirty (30) days from receipt of the adverse decision, it has lost its right to appeal. There is nothing more to appeal as the decision sought to be appealed had already attained finality,” the CTA said.
UPCF had sought to reverse the decision by the BoC dated Aug. 12, 2015 and the order of the District Collector, MICP in seizing of its white rice shipment, which was auctioned off for P2,693,000.
The BoC only released 24 containers of imports from Thailand consigned to UPCF as there was an excess of 104,000 kilograms or 2,080 bags of white rice from the 616,000 kilograms or 14,500 bags listed in the import permit.
The District Collector of Customs, MICP had issued the Warrant of Seizure and Detention for containers with the excess rice imports for violating the Section 2530(F) Tariff and Customs Code. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
