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Customs and Excise Management Act 1979

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Changes over time for: Section 159

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Version Superseded: 13/09/2018

Status:

Point in time view as at 06/04/2018. This version of this provision has been superseded. Help about Status

Changes to legislation:

Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, Section 159 is up to date with all changes known to be in force on or before 13 November 2024. There are changes that may be brought into force at a future date. Changes that have been made appear in the content and are referenced with annotations. Help about Changes to Legislation

159 Power to examine and take account of goods.U.K.

(1)Without prejudice to any other power conferred by the Customs and Excise Acts 1979, an officer may examine and take account of any goods—

(a)which are imported; or

(b)which are in a warehouse or Queen’s warehouse; or

[F1(bb)which are in a free zone; or]

(c)which have been loaded into any ship or aircraft at any place in the United Kingdom [F2or the Isle of Man]; or

(d)which are entered for exportation or for use as stores; or

(e)which are brought to any place in the United Kingdom for exportation or for shipment for exportation or as stores; or

(f)in the case of which any claim for drawback, allowance, rebate, remission or repayment of duty is made;

and may for that purpose [F3open or unpack any container or] require any container to be opened or unpacked [F4and search it or anything in it.] .

(2)Any examination of goods by an officer under the Customs and Excise Acts 1979 shall be made at such place as the Commissioners appoint for the purpose.

(3)In the case of such goods as the Commissioners may direct, and subject to such conditions as they see fit to impose, an officer may permit goods to be skipped on the quay or bulked, sorted, lotted, packed or repacked before account is taken thereof.

(4)Any opening, unpacking, weighing, measuring, repacking, bulking, sorting, lotting, marking, numbering, loading, unloading, carrying or landing of goods or their containers for the purposes of, or incidental to, the examination by an officer, removal or warehousing thereof shall be done, and any facilities or assistance required for any such examination shall be provided, by or at the expense of the proprietor of the goods.[F5; but if an officer opens or unpacks any container, or searches it or anything in it, the Commissioners are to bear the expense of doing so.]

(5)If any imported goods which an officer has power under the Customs and Excise Acts 1979 to examine are without the authority of the proper officer removed from customs and excise charge before they have been examined, those goods shall be liable to forfeiture.

(6)If any goods falling within subsection (5) above are removed by a person with intent to defraud Her Majesty of any duty chargeable thereon or to evade any prohibition or restriction for the time being in force with respect thereto under or by virtue of any enactment, that person shall be guilty of an offence under this subsection and may be detained.

(7)A person guilty of an offence under subsection (6) above shall be liable—

(a)on summary conviction, to a penalty of [F6the prescribed sum][F6£20,000] or of three times the value of the goods, whichever is the greater, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months, or to both; or

(b)on conviction on indictment, to a penalty of any amount, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding [F77 years], or to both.

(8)Without prejudice to the foregoing provisions of this section, where by this section or by or under any other provision of the Customs and Excise Acts 1979 an account is authorised or required to be taken of any goods for any purpose by an officer, the Commissioners may, with the consent of the proprietor of the goods, accept as the account of those goods for that purpose an account taken by such other person as may be approved in that behalf by both the Commissioners and the proprietor of the goods.

Textual Amendments

F3Words in s. 159(1) inserted (21.7.2008) by Finance Act 2008 (c. 9), s. 117(4)(a)

F4Words in s. 159(1) inserted (21.7.2008) by Finance Act 2008 (c. 9), s. 117(4)(b)

F5Words in s. 159(4) inserted (21.7.2008) by Finance Act 2008 (c. 9), s. 117(5)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C3S. 159(1) amended by S.I. 1990/2167, art. 4, Sch. para. 24

C4S. 159(2) excluded by 1994 c. 9, s. 24(10) (as inserted (15.3.2018) by Finance Act 2018 (c. 3), s. 46(4))

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