EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
CEO Instrument of Approval No. 1 of 2014
Customs Act 1901
Subsection 4A(1) of the Customs Act 1901 (the Act) defines an approved statement as a statement that is approved, by instrument in writing, by the Chief Executive Officer of Customs (the CEO). Subsection 4A(2) of the Act provides that the instrument by which a statement is approved by the CEO under subsection 4A(1), is a disallowable instrument for the purposes of section 46A of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901. Under paragraph 6(d) of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003, approved statements are legislative instruments.
Background
Section 117A of the Act requires persons in charge of a place at which the consolidation of goods for exportation by a ship or aircraft is to be carried out, to prepare and communicate electronically to the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (ACBPS) a submanifest in respect of the goods, to enable the exportation.
Subsection 117A(2) of the Act requires a submanifest to communicate information as set out in an approved statement.
This information is transmitted to the ACBPS in the Integrated Cargo System (ICS). The ICS provides a single window for a variety of stakeholders in the supply chain to report core import and export data which is used for risk assessment and clearance purposes. The ICS is the only method of electronically reporting the legitimate movement of cargo across Australia’s borders.
When an export submanifest is reported, the ICS applies a status to each line of cargo. The status advises the ACBPS and the originator whether the submanifest has been validated and processed and also indicates whether the cargo may be moved from a depot to a Cargo Terminal Operator (CTO) for export.
A status of “clear” in the ICS indicates that cargo reported in the export submanifest is approved to move to a CTO. The cargo is then consolidated in the depot and moved to a CTO.
A status of “error” in the ICS indicates that there is a data or validation error. If this occurs, the cargo cannot be moved to a CTO until the error is resolved.
When ACBPS have an interest in a particular line(s) of cargo, the cargo is currently held at a CTO for further investigation or examination. This is because ACBPS’s interest in particular cargo is only actioned once it arrives at a CTO. However, when cargo is “cleared” to move from a depot to a CTO, it is consolidated for transport and once consolidated, ACBPS are unable to ‘hold’ individual lines of cargo that are of interest. As a result, whole consolidations are held at CTOs if ACBPS have an interest in some or all of the cargo. Unfortunately, this often results in legitimate cargo also being at held CTOs if it has been consolidated with cargo that is of interest to the ACBPS. As a result, licensed freight forwarders and licensed depot operators are often unaware of the true status of cargo after it arrives at a CTO because they are not currently notified when consolidations are being held and cannot, therefore, rely on the “clear” status in the ICS.
The amendments to the export submanifest will enable the ICS to apply an “error” status to lines of cargo which require further examination by the ACBPS, while at a depot. In effect, the amendments will notify licensed freight forwarders and licensed depot operators of the line(s) of cargo that have been held by the ACBPS for further investigation or examination and ensure that those lines of cargo are not consolidated and moved to a CTO until “cleared”.
In particular, the amendments insert two new fields into the export submanifest, being a Depot Establishment Code and a House Bill Number.
The Depot Establishment Code is a unique identifier used by the ACBPS to identify an approved/licensed premise for loading and unloading of goods under Customs control until a clearance is issued. It also identifies the physical location of the depot and the cargo in question.
The House Bill Number will identify which line(s) of cargo have been held for further investigation or examination by applying an “error” status.
This will enable ACBPS to hold particular lines of cargo, rather than whole consolidations, while allowing legitimate cargo with a “clear” status to continue to be processed for export. Most importantly the ACBPS can hold the affected lines at the depot rather than having the whole consolidation moved to the CTO and then held at the departure premises impacting on all lines for export.
Instrument
CEO Instrument of Approval No. 1 of 2014 (the instrument) repeals and replaces CEO Instrument of Approval No. 12 of 2004 dated 9 September 2004 which approved the “EXPORT SUBMANIFEST” as an approved statement for the purposes of communicating to the ACBPS an electronic submanifest in accordance with section 117A of the Act.
The instrument is being re-made to incorporate two new fields into the “EXPORT SUBMANIFEST”, being a “Depot Establishment Code” and a “House Bill Number”. The new fields enable the ACBPS to transmit an accurate status of export cargo to licensed freight forwarders and licensed depot operators in the ICS.
Consultation
The Customs Brokers and Forwarders Council of Australia Inc. have been consulted and supported the amendments.
Commencement
The instrument commences on 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
CEO Instrument of Approval No. 1 of 2014
This legislative instrument 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 Legislative Instrument
The instrument repeals and replaces CEO Instrument of Approval No. 12 of 2004 dated 9 September 2004 which approves the “EXPORT SUBMANIFEST” as an approved statement for the purposes of communicating to the ACBPS an electronic submanifest in accordance with section 117A of the Act.
This instrument replaces the previously approved “EXPORT SUBMANIFEST” as an approved statement to incorporate two additional fields being the “Depot Establishment Code” and the “House Bill Number”.
Human Rights Implications
The 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.
Michael Pezzullo,
Chief Executive Officer, Australian Customs and Border Protection Service