EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Customs By-law No. 1300551
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 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. The Customs Tariff Act 1995 (the Customs Tariff Act) is a Customs Tariff for the purposes of the Act.
Background
The Customs Tariff Amendment (Schedule 4) Act 2012 will repeal the existing Schedule 4 of the Customs Tariff Act and replace it with a new Schedule 4. As part of this process, new by-laws are required for all items that provide for goods to be prescribed by by-law.
Item 28 in the new Schedule 4 replaces item 12 of the previous Schedule 4 to the Customs Tariff Act. Item 28 provides that aids and appliances, as prescribed by by-law, for persons with disabilities, are dutiable at the rate of “Free”.
New By-law No. 1300551 replaces previous By-laws Nos. 9640042, 9640043, 9640044, 9640045 and 9640047.
Instrument
By-law No. 1300551 prescribes:
a) pedestrian safety equipment for the blind, being Braille tiles and Braille road rivets;
b) reading machines, capable of converting printed matter into tactile images and speech;
c) reading systems, capable of scanning printed matter and reproducing the enlarged text on the screen;
d) sound reproducers and sounds recorders, having an output rms of less than 2.5 Watts, using a magnetic tape as the recording medium, monophonic, DC or AC/DC operated, designed for carrying, with colour coded, raised symbol control speeds and dual playing speeds.
Consultation
No consultation was undertaken in relation to By-law No. 1300551 as it does not alter existing arrangements.
Human Rights Implications
This by-law 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.
Commencement
By-law No. 1300551 takes effect on and from the date that the Customs Tariff Amendment (Schedule 4) Act 2012 commences, that is 1 March 2013.