The Customs AAR has held thatFoil Balloons are made of Nylon/HDPE not of Latex/Rubber and imported for the purpose of party decoration or entertainment, merit classification under the heading 9505 and specifically under subheading 9505 9090 of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975.
The applicant, M/s. Bharat Balloon House has sought the advance ruling on the classification of ‘Foil Balloons’ which they intend to import from China.
The applicant has submitted that they are a partnership firm involved in the business of import, trading and re-packing of Toy Balloon made of Natural Rubber Latex. The applicant is intending to import “Foil Balloon” from China, which arc used for party decoration and for entertainment purposes. These balloons ordinarily have shiny reflective surfaces and arc often printed with colour pictures and patterns for gifts and parties. They are used for decoration for various events such as birthday, and marriage.
The foil balloons are available in various kinds. Some are of the shape of alphabets, numbers and other shapes such as heart, star etc. The said foil balloons are not used as toys but are only used for decoration and entertainment purposes. The applicant is of the view that the subject item is classifiable under heading CTI-I 9505 9090 under the heading “other” and the main heading deals with festive, carnival and other entertainment articles, including conjuring tricks and novelty jokes.
The applicant further submitted that even by applying the common parlance test, the goods in question cannot be termed to be a ‘toy’. The goods arc not sold as a toy in the market and are only sold for decorative purposes.
The AAR held that goods imported by the respondent under HSN 39269099/95059090 are not covered under Toy Control Order, 2020. Thus, from the perusal of above cited order of CESTAT, Kolkata it is clear that subject goods “Foil Balloons” cannot be considered as toys and no BIS Registration is required to import the same. Further, CESTAT, Kolkata has held NCTC report inconclusive.