EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
CONSULAR PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES ACT 1972
CONSULAR PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES REGULATIONS
Statutory Rules 1989 No. 286 issued by the authority of the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Section 13 of the Consular Privileges and Immunities Act 1972 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with the Act, prescribing matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.
Section 8A of the Act provides that tax imposed under any of the Sales Tax Acts is not payable in respect of goods intended for the official use of a consular post of a prescribed overseas country provided that the goods are purchased from a registered sales taxpayer.
Section 3 of the Act provides that an overseas country may by regulation be prescribed as a prescribed overseas country for the purposes of the Act.
The Regulations prescribe the United States of America for the purposes of Section 8A of the Act. The prescription is deemed to have come into force on 1 July 1987 and gives effect to a reciprocal arrangement with the Government of the United States of America signed in Canberra on 13 November 1986 to accord consular posts of each country sales tax exemptions on goods purchased for the official use of the posts after 1 July 1987.
Details of the Regulations are as follow:
Regulation 1 is a citation clause.
Regulation 2 prescribes the United States of America for the purposes of section 8A of the Act.
Regulation 3 provides that proposed regulation 2 shall be deemed to have come into force in relation to purchases made on or after 1 July 1987.