Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations (Amendment)

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STATUTORY RULES.

1961. No. 112.

 

REGULATIONS UNDER THE CUSTOMS ACT 1901-1960.*

I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL in and over the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the Customs Act 1901-1960.

Dated this 9th day of September, 1961.

DE L’ISLE

Governor-General.

By His Excellency’s Command,

Minister of State for Customs and Excise.

 

Amendments of the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations.†

First Schedule.

1. The First Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations is amended by omitting item 3.

Second Schedule—Part 1.

2. The Second Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations is amended by omitting items 9 and 10 of Part I.

Third Schedule.

3. The Third Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations is amended by omitting item 30.

Sixth Schedule.

4. The Sixth Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations is amended by omitting item 1.

Seventh Schedule.

5. The Seventh Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations is amended by omitting items 3 and 5.

Ninth Schedule.

6. The Ninth Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations is repealed and the following Schedule inserted in its stead:—

NINTH SCHEDULE. Reg. 11.

GOODS THE EXPORTATION OF WHICH IS PROHIBITED UNLESS THE APPROVAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION IS PRODUCED TO THE COLLECTOR.

Item No.

Description of Goods.

1

(1) Beryllium metal (other than beryllium windows for medical x-ray machines)

(2) Beryllium alloys containing more than 50 per centum of beryllium by weight

(3) Beryllium oxide and compounds

2

(1) Centrifuges—

(a) that are capable of the enrichment or separation of isotopes;

(b) that have a peripheral speed of not less than 1,000 feet per second; and

(c) that are wholly made of, or lined with, aluminium, nickel or an alloy containing not less than 60 per centum of nickel

(2) Bowls for centrifuges capable of the enrichment or separation of isotopes, being bowls made of aluminium, nickel or an alloy containing not less than 60 per centum of nickel

* Notified in the Commonwealth Gazette on 11th September, 1961.

† Statutory Rules 1958, No. 5, as amended by Statutory Rules 1959, No. 5; and 1961, No. 16.

9742/60.—Price 3d. 10/6.7.1961.


Ninth Schedule—continued.

Item No.

Description of Goods.

3

Compressors and Blowers (turbo centrifugal and axial flow types) wholly made of, or lined with, aluminium, nickel or an alloy containing not less than 60 per centum of nickel and having a capacity of not less than 60 cubic feet per minute

4

(1) Deuterium

(2) Compounds, mixtures and solutions containing deuterium in which the ratio of the number of deuterium atoms to the number of hydrogen atoms exceeds 1:5,000

5

Dosimeters capable of measuring dosages exceeding 5 roentgens in one exposure, not being dosimeters designed specially for use with medical radiation equipment

6

Electrolytic cells for the production of fluorine

7

Equipment specially designed for the separation of isotopes of uranium, of lithium or of uranium and lithium

8

Fissionable materials, namely:—

(a) plutonium;

(b) uranium enriched in the isotope 235;

(c) the isotope 233 of uranium;

(d) irradiated uranium containing plutonium;

(e) irradiated thorium containing uranium 233 ;

(f) compounds, alloys and mixtures of any of the foregoing materials

9

(1) Fluorine

(2) The following fluorinated compounds:—

(a) chlorine trifluoride;

(b) trichlorotrifluoroethane;

(c) dichlorotrifluoroethane;

(d) monochlorodifluoromethane

10

Furnaces of the vacuum induction type, designed to operate at pressures lower than 0.1 millimetres of mercury and at temperatures higher than 1,100 degrees Centigrade

11

Graphite (artificial)—

(a) that is in the form of blocks or rods from which a cube of 2 inches side or greater can be cut;

(b) that has a boron content not exceeding one part per million; and

(c) the total thermal neutron absorption cross section of which does not exceed five millibarns per atom

12

Heat exchangers (tubular) and components for such heat exchangers (other than aluminium tubing) designed to operate at pressures of not less than 300 pounds per square inch and having flow contact surfaces made of any of the following materials:—

(a) aluminium;

(b) nickel;

(c) an alloy containing not less than 60 per centum of nickel;

(d) titanium;

(e) zirconium

13

Ion separators that are—

(a) electro-magnetic; and

(b) of high sensitivity,

including—

(c) mass spectrographs having analyser assemblies capable of handling uranium hexafluoride;

(d) mass spectrometers having such analyser assemblies;

(e) solid source mass spectrographs; and

(f) solid source mass spectrometers

14

(1) Lithium metal

(2) Lithium alloys

(3) Lithium compounds


Ninth Schedule—continued.

Item No.

Description of Goods.

15

Minerals, raw and treated (including residues and tailings), containing more than 0.05 per centum of uranium or thorium, singly or together, including the following minerals:—

(a) monazite and monazite sands;

(b) ores containing thorium (including uranothorianite); and

(c) ores containing uranium (including pitchblende)

16

Nickel in any of the following forms:—

(a) nickel wire containing not less than 95 per centum of nickel, being wire not exceeding 0.10 millimetres in diameter;

(b) woven wire mesh composed of wire containing not less than 95 per centum of nickel and containing not less than 60 wires per linear centimetre;

(c) nickel powder

17

Nuclear reactors

18

Positive ion sources suitable for use in mass spectrographs or mass spectrometers and capable of handling uranium hexafluoride

19

Refractory materials, including crucibles, moulds and pouring rods, and comprising—

(a) not less than 97 per centum of magnesium oxide;

(b) not less than 97 per centum of beryllium oxide;

(c) not less than 97 per centum of zirconium oxide; or

(d) zirconium oxide thermally stabilized with calcium oxide or magnesium oxide or both

20

Tetrafluoroethylene (whether polymerized or not) and manufactures consisting wholly of tetrafluoroethylene

21

(1) Thorium (wrought or unwrought)

(2) Alloys, mixtures and compounds containing thorium, but not including—

(a) alloys containing less than 1.5 per centum of thorium by weight ; and

(b) medicinals

22

Trifluorochloroethylene (whether polymerized or not) and manufactures consisting wholly of trifluorochloroethylene

23

(1) Uranium, natural (whether wrought or unwrought)

(2) Alloys, mixtures and compounds containing natural uranium and having a uranium content exceeding 0.05 per centum, but not including medicinals

24

Valves with bellows seal wholly made of, or lined with, aluminium, nickel or an alloy containing not less than 60 per centum of nickel

25

Zirconium, and manufactures consisting wholly of zirconium—

(a) in which the ratio of hafnium content to zirconium content is less than 1:500 parts by weight; and

(b) being—

(i) zirconium metal;

(ii) alloys containing more than 50 per centum by weight of zirconium; or

(iii) compounds of zirconium.

Tenth schedule.

7. The Tenth Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations is amended—

(a) by omitting paragraphs (a) and (b) of item 1 and inserting in their stead the following paragraph:—

“(a) billets, blooms, ingots and slabs;”;

(b) by omitting paragraph (h) of that item;

(c) by adding at the end of paragraph (i) of that item the word “and”; and

(d) by omitting paragraphs (k) and (l) of that item.

 

By Authority: A. J. Arthur, Commonwealth Government Printer, Canberra.

Overview

The Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations 1961, enacted by the Governor-General in accordance with the Customs Act 1901-1960, were introduced to address the need for stricter control over the export of certain sensitive materials and equipment to prevent their potential use in the development of nuclear weapons or other prohibited technologies. These regulations were made under the authority of the Parliament of Australia to amend the existing Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations and to enhance the enforcement of export prohibitions by listing specific items that require approval from the Australian Atomic Energy Commission before export. The policy objective of these regulations is to align Australia's export controls with international obligations and to contribute to global non-proliferation efforts by restricting the flow of materials and technologies that could be used in the development of nuclear weapons.

Scope and Application

The Statutory Rules 1961, No. 112, made under the Customs Act 1901-1960, amends the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations by modifying the schedules that detail goods whose exportation is prohibited unless approval is obtained from the Australian Atomic Energy Commission. The regulations apply to the export of specific goods by persons and entities within the Commonwealth of Australia. The scope of the Act is geographically limited to Australia and encompasses the control and regulation of exports of strategic materials and technology related to nuclear processes and materials. The regulations exclude certain goods from the prohibited list, such as medicinals, alloys containing less than 1.5 per centum of thorium by weight, and certain types of beryllium windows for medical x-ray machines. The application of the Act extends through subordinate instruments, which can further refine or expand upon the list of restricted exports.

Key Provisions

The main operative sections of the Statutory Rules 1961, No. 112, under the Customs Act 1901-1960, involve amendments to the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations. Specifically, Section 1 of the First Schedule omits item 3, while Section 2 of the Second Schedule omits items 9 and 10 of Part I. The Third Schedule is amended by omitting item 30, and the Sixth Schedule omits item 1. The Seventh Schedule omits items 3 and 5, and the Ninth Schedule is entirely replaced with a new schedule listing goods whose export is prohibited unless approved by the Australian Atomic Energy Commission. This new Ninth Schedule includes specific descriptions of goods such as beryllium metal, centrifuges, deuterium, and various materials and equipment related to nuclear technology and isotope separation (Regulation 11). These regulations impose obligations on parties seeking to export the specified goods. They must obtain approval from the Australian Atomic Energy Commission before exporting any of the listed items. This requirement ensures that the export of potentially sensitive or dangerous materials is subject to scrutiny and authorisation, thereby regulating and potentially restricting the flow of these materials out of Australia. The regulations necessitate that exporters provide detailed information about the goods, their intended use, and the destination, ensuring transparency and oversight in the export process. Breaches of these regulations can lead to significant legal consequences. The Customs Act 1901-1960, under which these regulations are made, provides for both civil and criminal penalties for non-compliance. Civil penalties may include fines, while criminal penalties could result in imprisonment. The specific penalties are not detailed within the regulations themselves but are stipulated in the overarching Customs Act. The severity of the penalties reflects the importance of adhering to the regulations, which are designed to prevent the illicit transfer of materials that could be used for harmful purposes.

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