Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements
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CUSTOMS AMENDMENT REGULATION 2012 (NO. 2) (SLI NO 60 OF 2012)
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Select Legislative Instrument 2012 No. 60
Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Home Affairs
Customs Act 1901
Customs Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 2)
Subsection 270(1) of the Customs Act 1901 (the Customs Act) provides, in part, that the Governor-General may make regulations not inconsistent with the Customs Act prescribing all matters which by the Customs Act are required or permitted to be prescribed, or as may be necessary or convenient to be prescribed, for giving effect to the Customs Act.
The purpose of the amending Regulation is to amend the Customs Regulations 1926 (the Principal Regulations) to prescribe certain goods as "like customable goods" for the purposes of new section 69 of the Customs Act.
Previously, section 69 of the Customs Act set out a regime whereby a person could obtain permission to take certain imported goods into home consumption without having to provide a formal entry to Customs or pay duty on the goods at that time. The permission holder provided a return to Customs at regular intervals in respect of such goods and paid the duty on the goods at the time the return is given. In practice, such returns and payments were made on a weekly basis. A similar regime existed in section 61C of the Excise Act 1901 in respect of excisable goods.
The permission under section 69 could only be made in respect of certain goods known as "like customable goods" which was defined in section 69 as including goods prescribed for the purposes of section 69. These goods were prescribed in regulation 32 of the Principal Regulations.
The Customs Amendment (Reducing Business Compliance Burden) Act 2012 has recently amended the Customs Act, with effect from 15 April 2012. This Act repealed and substituted section 69 of the Customs Act. New section 69 operates in the same manner as previous section 69, but it codifies the existing standard weekly permission cycle for like customable goods. In addition, new section 69 allows eligible small business entities, prescribed persons and importers of prescribed goods to defer the payment of customs duties from the weekly cycle to a monthly cycle. At this stage, in the Customs context, it is not proposed to prescribe persons or goods for the purposes of the monthly arrangements.
However, new section 69 no longer contains the definition of "like customable goods". This definition is now set out in subsection 4(1) of the Customs Act. Therefore, it is necessary to prescribe "like customable goods" for the purposes of this new definition.
The amending Regulation repeals current regulation 32. In its place, the amending Regulation inserts new regulation 1E into the Principal Regulations which prescribes "like customable goods" for the purposes of the new definition in subsection 4(1) of the Customs Act. These goods are prescribed by reference to their classification under a subheading in Schedule 3 to the Customs Tariff Act 1995.
As the amending Regulation are of a machinery nature, no consultation was undertaken in relation to the amending Regulation.
The amending Regulation commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
(Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011)
Customs Amendment Regulation 2012 (No. 2)
This regulation amendment is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in the definition of human rights in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
Overview of the Regulation
The purpose of this regulation amendment is to amend the Customs Regulations 1926 (Customs Regulations) to update the definition of "like customable goods" as a consequence of the measures introduced by the Customs Amendment (Reducing Business Compliance Burden) Act 2012.
"Like customable goods" are goods for which a deferred settlement permission arrangement may be made. In place of a formal entry being made on an importation by importation basis, a weekly return is provided to Customs and Border Protection at which time the applicable excise equivalent customs duty, and/or WET and GST is paid. These goods are alcohol including wine, tobacco and petroleum products.
The regulation amendments repeal the current regulation 32 and insert new regulation 1E into the Customs Regulations which prescribes "like customable goods". There is no change otherwise in the coverage of "like customable goods".
Human Rights implications
This legislative instrument does not engage, impact on, or limit in any way, the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in the definition of human rights at section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
Conclusion
This legislative instrument does not raise any human rights issues.
Minister for Home Affairs
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