Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations (Amendment)

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Statutory Rules 1981 No. 3831

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Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations2 (Amendment)

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

 Dated 21 December 1981.

 ZELMAN COWEN

 Governor-General

 By His Excellency’s Command,

JOHN MOORE

Minister of State for Business and Consumer Affairs

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 1. After regulation 4K of the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations the following regulation is inserted:

Importation of ships

 “4L. (1) The importation into Australia of a ship is prohibited unless the person importing the ship is the holder of a permission to import the ship granted under this regulation by the Minister or an authorized officer.

 “(2) A permission to import a ship—

 (a) shall be in writing;

 (b) shall specify the date on or before which the ship may be imported under the permission;

 (c) may specify conditions or requirements, being conditions or requirements with respect to the possession, control, movement, use, disposal or exportation from Australia of the ship, to be complied with by the holder of the permission; and

 (d) may, in respect of any condition or requirement referred to in paragraph (c), specify the time, being a time either before or after the importation of the ship, before which the condition or requirement is to be complied with by the holder of the permission.

 “(3) The holder of a permission to import a ship may, with the consent in writing of the Minister or an authorized officer, but without that consent shall not, assign the permission to another person.

 “(4) Where, in accordance with the sub-regulation (3), the holder of a permission to import a ship assigns the permission to another person, the person—

 (a) shall be deemed to become the holder of the permission for the purposes of this regulation; and

 (b) shall assume all the rights, duties and obligations of the former holder under the permission.

 “(5) The holder of a permission to import a ship may, by delivery of the permission to the Minister or an authorized officer, surrender the permission—

 (a) absolutely; or

 (b) in exchange for the granting to him of another permission to import the ship or another ship.

 “(6) Where—

 (a) a permission to import a ship specifies a condition or requirement to be complied with by the holder of the permission; and

 (b) the holder of the permission fails to comply with the condition or requirement,

the Minister or an authorized officer may revoke the permission, whether or not the holder of the permission is charged with an offence against sub-section 50 (4) of the Act in respect of the failure to comply with the condition or requirement.

 “(7) In this regulation—

‘authorized officer’ means an officer of the Department of Transport appointed in writing by the Minister to be an authorized officer for the purposes of this regulation;

‘fishing operations’ include any operations relating to fish or other animals, including marine organisms, that live in the sea or other waters;

‘fishing vessel’ means a vessel designed for commercial fishing operations;

‘Minister’ means the Minister of State for Transport;

‘ship’ means a vessel designed for use in navigation other than air navigation, and includes—

 (a) a barge, lighter or like vessel;

 (b) a floating structure designed for use in the exploration of, or the exploitation of the natural resources of, any submerged lands;

 (c) a dredger; and

 (d) a floating dock,

but does not include—

 (e) a hovercraft;

 (f) a new vessel of 150 gross construction tons or less, being—

 (i) a vessel other than a fishing vessel; or

 (ii) a fishing vessel the length of which on the designed load water line is 21 metres or less; and

 (g) a vessel that is not a new vessel and is of 70 gross construction tons or less.

 “(8) In sub-regulation (7), a reference to a new vessel shall be read as reference to a vessel shipped to Australia as new stock or sailed direct to Australia on its delivery voyage.

 “(9) For the purposes of sub-regulation (7), the number of tons in the gross construction tonnage of a vessel shall be ascertained in accordance with the formula , where Z is a number equal to the number of cubic metres in the total volume, measured in relation to their moulded lines, of the enclosed spaces in the vessel, including tween-deck spaces, water ballast spaces, voids, cofferdams, machinery spaces, erections, superstructures, houses, casings and funnel and mast spaces.”.

Third Schedule

 2. The Third Schedule to the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations is amended by omitting Item 24.

 

NOTES

1. Notified in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette on 31 December 1981.

2. Statutory Rules 1956 No. 90 as amended to date. For previous amendments see Note 2 to Statutory Rules 1981 No. 29 and see also Statutory Rules 1981 Nos. 29, 71, 176, 309 and 369 and Act No. 75, 1981.

 

Overview

The Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations 1981, as amended by Statutory Rules 1981 No. 383, were enacted to address the need for stringent control over the importation of ships into Australia. This legislative instrument was established by the Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, under the Customs Act 1901. The primary objective of these regulations is to ensure that the importation of ships is tightly regulated, requiring permission from the Minister or an authorised officer, and to impose specific conditions that the holder of the permission must comply with. These conditions may relate to the possession, control, movement, use, disposal, or exportation of the ship, either before or after its importation into Australia. The policy intent behind these regulations is to maintain stringent oversight of ship imports to protect national security and maritime interests.

Scope and Application

The Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations, as amended, govern the importation of ships into Australia, applying to any person or entity intending to import such ships. These regulations are applicable across the Commonwealth of Australia and are enforced by the Minister of State for Transport or authorized officers of the Department of Transport. The regulations prohibit the importation of ships without a written permission from the Minister or an authorized officer, which can be subject to specific conditions and requirements. The scope of the regulations extends to vessels designed for navigation, including barges, dredgers, and floating docks, while excluding hovercraft and smaller vessels under certain gross construction tonnage limits. The regulations also allow for the assignment, surrender, and revocation of permissions under specified circumstances. This legislative instrument amends the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations by inserting a new regulation regarding the importation of ships and modifying the Third Schedule, reflecting its jurisdictional and operational reach within the Commonwealth of Australia.

Key Provisions

The Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations 1981 (Amendment) introduce new regulations regarding the importation of ships into Australia. Under regulation 4L, the importation of ships is strictly controlled, with the importation being prohibited unless the importer holds a permission granted by the Minister or an authorized officer (sub-regulation 4L(1)). The permission must be in writing, specify the import date, and may include conditions related to the ship’s possession, control, movement, use, disposal, or exportation (sub-regulation 4L(2)). Such permissions can be assigned to another party with the Minister’s or an authorized officer’s consent (sub-regulation 4L(3)). Additionally, the holder of a permission can surrender it absolutely or in exchange for another permission (sub-regulation 4L(5)). Failure to comply with specified conditions may lead to the revocation of the permission by the Minister or an authorized officer (sub-regulation 4L(6)). The regulation also provides definitions for key terms such as "authorized officer," "fishing operations," "fishing vessel," "Minister," and "ship" (sub-regulation 4L(7)). The amended regulations impose several obligations on parties importing ships. Importers must obtain a written permission from the Minister or an authorized officer before importing a ship (sub-regulation 4L(1)). This permission must outline specific details, such as the date by which the ship can be imported, and may include additional conditions regarding the ship's possession and use (sub-regulation 4L(2)). If the permission is assigned to another party, the new holder must adhere to all conditions specified in the original permission (sub-regulation 4L(4)). Furthermore, holders of a permission must ensure compliance with any specified conditions or risk the revocation of their permission (sub-regulation 4L(6)). Breach of the conditions set out in the permission to import a ship may result in the revocation of the permission by the Minister or an authorized officer, irrespective of any other charges that may be brought under section 50(4) of the Act (sub-regulation 4L(6)). While the regulations do not explicitly outline criminal or civil penalties for the breach of conditions, the revocation of a permission to import a ship is a significant consequence that could impact the importer’s ability to legally bring the ship into Australia. The specific penalties for other breaches are not detailed within the regulation itself, suggesting that further recourse might be available under the broader provisions of the Customs Act 1901.

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