QUARANTINE CHARGES (IMPOSITION-CUSTOMS) BILL 2014

2013-2014

The Parliament of the

Commonwealth of Australia

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Presented and read a first time

Quarantine Charges (Imposition--

Customs) Bill 2014

No. , 2014

(Agriculture)

A Bill for an Act to impose, as taxes, charges in

relation to matters connected with the

administration of the Quarantine Act 1908, so far as

those charges are duties of customs, and for related

purposes

No. , 2014

Quarantine Charges (Imposition--Customs) Bill 2014

Contents

Part 1--Preliminary

Short title ........................................................................................... 1

Commencement ................................................................................. 2

Act binds the Crown .......................................................................... 2

Extension to external Territories ........................................................ 3

Extraterritorial application ................................................................. 3

Act does not impose tax on property of a State ................................. 3

Part 2--Charges

Imposition of charges ......................................................................... 4

Matters relating to amount of charges................................................ 4

Who is liable to pay charges .............................................................. 4

Exemptions from charges .................................................................. 5

Part 3--Validation

Validation of fees charged under the Quarantine Act 1908 ............... 6

Part 4--Miscellaneous

Regulations ........................................................................................ 8

No. , 2014

Quarantine Charges (Imposition--Customs) Bill 2014

A Bill for an Act to impose, as taxes, charges in

relation to matters connected with the

administration of the Quarantine Act 1908, so far as

those charges are duties of customs, and for related

purposes

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

Part 1--Preliminary

1 Short title

This Act may be cited as the Quarantine Charges (Imposition--

Customs) Act 2014.

Part 1 Preliminary

Section 2

Quarantine Charges (Imposition--Customs) Bill 2014

No. , 2014

2 Commencement

(1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table

commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with

column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect

according to its terms.

Commencement information

Column 1

Column 2

Column 3

Provision(s)

Commencement

Date/Details

1. Sections 1 and

2 and anything in

this Act not

elsewhere covered

by this table

The day this Act receives the Royal Assent.

2. Sections 3 to

The later of:

(a) the start of the day after this Act receives

the Royal Assent; and

(b) immediately after the commencement of

section 3 of the Quarantine Charges

(Collection) Act 2014.

However, the provision(s) do not commence

at all if the event mentioned in paragraph (b)

does not occur.

Note:

This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally

enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of

this Act.

(2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act.

Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it

may be edited, in any published version of this Act.

3 Act binds the Crown

This Act binds the Crown in each of its capacities.

Preliminary Part 1

Section 4

No. , 2014

Quarantine Charges (Imposition--Customs) Bill 2014

4 Extension to external Territories

(1) This Act extends to the Territory of Christmas Island and the

Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands.

(2) A regulation may extend this Act or any provisions of this Act to

any other external Territory that is prescribed by the regulation.

5 Extraterritorial application

Extension to acts etc. outside Australian territory

(1) This Act extends to acts, omissions, matters and things outside the

Australian territory.

Meaning of Australian territory

(2) A reference in a provision of this Act to Australian territory is a

reference to:

(a) Australia, the Territory of Christmas Island, the Territory of

Cocos (Keeling) Islands and any external Territory to which

that provision extends; and

(b) the airspace over an area covered by paragraph (a); and

Island, of the Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands and of any

other external Territory to which that provision extends.

Note 1:

Under subsection 4(2), a regulation may extend this Act, or any

provisions of this Act, to external Territories.

Note 2:

The definition of coastal sea of Australia or an external Territory in

subsection 15B(4) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 includes the

airspace over Australia or the external Territory.

6 Act does not impose tax on property of a State

(1) This Act does not impose a tax on property of any kind belonging

to a State.

(2) In this section:

property of any kind belonging to a State has the same meaning as

in section 114 of the Constitution.

Part 2 Charges

Section 7

Quarantine Charges (Imposition--Customs) Bill 2014

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Part 2--Charges

7 Imposition of charges

(1) A regulation may prescribe a charge in relation to a prescribed

matter connected with the administration of the Quarantine Act

1908.

(2) The charges prescribed under subsection (1) are imposed, and are

so imposed as taxes.

(3) Two or more charges may be prescribed in relation to the same

matter, and a single charge may be prescribed in relation to 2 or

more matters.

(4) This section imposes a charge only so far as that charge is a duty of

customs within the meaning of section 55 of the Constitution.

8 Matters relating to amount of charges

(1) A regulation may prescribe a charge under subsection 7(1):

(a) by specifying an amount as the charge; or

(b) by specifying a method for calculating the amount of the

charge.

(2) Before the Governor-General makes a regulation under

subsection 7(1) prescribing a charge in relation to a matter, the

Minister must be satisfied that the amount of the charge is set at a

level that is designed to recover no more than the Commonwealth's

likely costs in connection with the matter.

9 Who is liable to pay charges

A regulation may prescribe one or more persons who are liable to

pay a specified charge prescribed under subsection 7(1).

Note:

For matters related to the collection of charges prescribed under

subsection 7(1), see the Quarantine Charges (Collection) Act 2014.

Part 3 Validation

Section 11

Quarantine Charges (Imposition--Customs) Bill 2014

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Part 3--Validation

11 Validation of fees charged under the Quarantine Act 1908

(1) This section applies to each amount of a fee (including a booking

fee or a late payment fee) that a section 86E determination

purported to require a person to pay in relation to a matter, to the

extent that the determination could not validly require the fee to be

paid in relation to the matter.

(2) By force of this section, a charge of an equal amount is taken to

have been imposed on the person in relation to the matter, and to

have been so imposed as a tax.

(3) The amount of the charge for which the person is liable is:

(a) reduced by:

(i) the sum of any amounts paid by the person on account

of the purported fee and not subsequently refunded

under the Quarantine Act 1908; and

(ii) the sum of any amounts subsequently refunded to the

person under that Act in respect of the purported fee;

and

(iii) the sum of any amounts remitted under that Act in

respect of the purported fee; and

(b) increased by so much of the sum of the amounts paid by the

person on account of the purported fee as the person recovers

from the Commonwealth.

Note:

For matters related to the collection of charges that are taken to have

been imposed by this section, see section 42 of the Quarantine

Charges (Collection) Act 2014.

(4) A charge is taken to have been imposed by this section only so far

as the charge would be a duty of customs within the meaning of

section 55 of the Constitution.

(5) In this section:

Part 4 Miscellaneous

Section 12

Quarantine Charges (Imposition--Customs) Bill 2014

No. , 2014

Part 4--Miscellaneous

12 Regulations

The Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters:

(a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or

(b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or

giving effect to this Act.

Commonwealth of Australia Bills

QUARANTINE CHARGES (IMPOSITION-CUSTOMS) BILL 2014