EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
By-law No. 0340004
Customs Act 1901
Section 271 of the Customs Act 1901 (the Act) provides, in part, that where an item of a Customs Tariff is expressed to apply to goods, or to a class or kind of goods, as prescribed by a by-law, the Chief Executive Officer of Customs may make by-laws for the purposes of that item. A Customs Tariff is defined in section 4 of the Act to mean an Act imposing duties of customs, that is the Customs Tariff Act 1995 (the Customs Tariff Act).
Background
Item 25A in Part II of Schedule 4 to the Customs Tariff Act sets out a duty rate of ‘Free’ for trophies, as prescribed by by-law, which are won outside Australia.
For item 25A in Part II of Schedule 4, By-law No. 0340004, which was signed by a delegate of the Chief Executive Officer of Customs on 13 June 2003, prescribed trophies won outside Australia in competition being ornamental or utilitarian machines, appliances or articles of a kind used in an office or the household, or for display on walls or on stands or similar mounts.
By-law No. 0340004 also provided that a certificate from the organisers of the competition stipulating the name of the winner, the event and the date of the competition and the scope of the competitor taking part in the competition or copies of daily news media in which the competition was reported and with which the importer can be identified as a winner, will be sufficient to establish eligibility.
On 1 October 2006 By-law No. 0340004 (as signed by the delegate of the Chief Executive Officer of Customs on 13 June 2003) ceased to be enforceable and was taken to have been repealed by the operation of section 32 of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
To preserve the duty rate of ‘Free’ for trophies that were covered by the repealed by-law, a new By-law 0340004 prescribing the same trophies as the repealed by-law has been made.
Instrument
New By-law No. 0340004, which has effect on and from 1 October 2006, prescribes for Item 25A in Part II of Schedule 4 to the Customs Tariff Act the same trophies and requirements to establish eligibility as the by-law (By-law No. 0340004) which was signed by the delegate of the Chief Executive Officer of Customs on 13 June 2003 and was subsequently repealed by the operation of section 32 of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
Consultation
No consultation was undertaken in relation to new By-law No. 0340004 as it is of a minor and machinery nature and does not alter existing arrangements.
Commencement
New By-law No. 0340004 takes effect on and from 1 October 2006. Paragraph 273B(1)(b)(i) of the Act provides that a by-law shall take effect, or be deemed to have taken effect, from the date of publication, or from a date (whether before or after the date of publication) specified by or under the by-law. As the by-law does not increase duty, section 273C of the Act does not prohibit the by-law taking effect from 1 October 2006.