EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1985 No. 360
Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Primary Industry
EXPORT INSPECTION CHARGE COLLECTION ACT 1985.
EXPORT INSPECTION CHARGE COLLECTION REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)
Section 17 of the Export Inspection Charges Collection Act 1985 (‘the Act’) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with the Act, prescribing matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.
The Act provides for the collection of taxes described as ‘quantity charge’ (imposed by the Export Inspection (Quantity Charge) Act 1985), ‘service charge’ (imposed by the Export Inspection (Service Charge) Act 1985) and ‘establishment registration charge’ (imposed by the Export Inspection (Establishment Registration Charge) Act 1985). The taxes are applicable to the 19 classes of products described as ‘prescribed commodities’ in section 3 of the Act.
Section 3A of the Act provides that an export inspection service shall be taken to have been provided at an establishment, and therefore, a service charge, if applicable, is to be payable, where there has been any attendance by an authorized officer in connection with the Export Control Act 1982, unless the attendance is of a kind declared by the regulations to be an attendance to which section 3A does not apply. Regulation 5 describes five kinds of attendances which are not to attract service charge.
• an attendance to grant an export permit;
• an attendance at a fish establishment to inspect the removal of fish unless requested by the occupier;
• an attendance at a fish establishment made only to determine compliance with hygiene and sanitation requirements
• an attendance by central office staff to evaluate a proposed quality assurance program prior to formal approval of the program;
• an inspection of a product which is not subject to service charge, in an establishment which prepares products which are subject to service charge.
Section 17 of the Act provides in paragraph (e) that the Regulations may provide for the refund of charge in specified circumstances. Regulation 6 provides that establishment registration charge may be refunded on a pro-rata basis, less one month, if registration ceases for any reason.
Other provisions in the Regulations amend references to the Act and to provisions in the Act as the result of the change to the short title of the Act, and the inclusion of additional provisions.
The Regulations commenced operation on 1 January 1986, being the date that the Act commenced operation