The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Wednesday, 13 July, detected around ₹4,389 crores of custom duty evasion by Oppo India.
The DRI officials searched the office premises of Oppo India and the residents of its key management employees.
As per the press release, senior management employees and domestic suppliers of Oppo India came into question, among others. The company’s wrongful ineligible duty exemption benefits amount to ₹2,981 crores. Moreover, the company accepted in its voluntary statement of submitting a false description before the Customs Authorities at the time of import.
Further investigation revealed that Oppo India remitted/made provisions for payment of ‘Royalty’ and ‘Licence Fee’ to various multinational companies. Instead of using the proprietary technology/brand/IPR license etc.
The absence of Royalty and License Fee charges in the transaction value of imported goods has violated Section 14 of Customs Act, 1962 and Rule 10 of Customs Valuation Rules 2007. Now, the evasion amounts to ₹1,408 crores of alleged duty by Oppo India.
In addition, Oppo India also deposited a sum of ₹450 crores as a part of differential customs duty short.
Oppo India deals with various brands of mobile phones, including Oppo, OnePlus and Realme. The company is also manufacturing, assembling, wholesale trading, and distributes mobile handsets and accessories throughout India.
