Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

[Index] [Search] [Download] [Related Items] [Help]

CUSTOMS REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1997 NO. 284

STATUTORY RULES 1997 No. 284

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Customs and Consumer Affairs

Customs Act 1901 (C'th)

Customs Regulations (Amendment)

Section 270 of the Customs Act 1901 (the Act) provides in part that the Governor-General may make regulations not inconsistent with the Act prescribing all matters which by the Act are required or permitted to be prescribed for giving effect to the Act.

Part IVA of the Act sets out the requirements of the depot licensing regime. Pursuant to this Part, section 77N(3) of the Act provides in part that the holder of a depot licence must pay to Customs prescribed travelling expenses, For that purpose, the regulations may prescribe particular rates of travelling expenses in relation to particular circumstances concerning travelling to and from a depot by a Collector for the purposes of the Customs Acts.

Regulation 48 of the Customs Regulations prescribes the rates of travelling expenses in relation to particular circumstances.

Previously, subregulation 48(1) provided that travelling expenses were payable where the depot was more than 20 kilometres, by the most direct convenient route, from the nearest Customs Office.

This distance was intended to ensure that existing depots would be exempt from the payment of this travelling expense while discouraging the establishment of depots outside the range of reasonable Customs service delivery.

Regulation 48 came into effect in April 1997 and since that time it has been determined that some existing depots are outside the 20 kilometre range and are therefore required to pay the travelling expenses. It was therefore decided to increase this distance to 40 kilometres to ensure that all existing depots were exempt from the payment of expenses.

Regulation 2 has repealed the reference to "20" prescribed by subregulation 48(1) and has substituted a reference to "40".

The Regulation commenced gazettal.