Part I The charge to tax
Importation of goods from outside the member States
15 General provisions relating to imported goods.
(1)
For the purposes of this Act goods are imported from a place outside the member States where—
(a)
having been removed from a place outside the member States, they enter the territory of the Community;
(b)
they enter that territory by being removed to the United Kingdom or are removed to the United Kingdom after entering that territory; and
(c)
the circumstances are such that it is on their removal to the United Kingdom or subsequently while they are in the United Kingdom that any Community customs debt in respect of duty on their entry into the territory of the Community would be incurred.
(2)
Accordingly—
(a)
goods shall not be treated for the purposes of this Act as imported at any time before a Community customs debt in respect of duty on their entry into the territory of the Community would be incurred, and
(b)
the person who is to be treated for the purposes of this Act as importing any goods from a place outside the member States is the person who would be liable to discharge any such Community customs debt.
(3)
Subsections (1) and (2) above shall not apply, except in so far as the context otherwise requires or provision to the contrary is contained in regulations under section 16(1), for construing any references to importation or to an importer in any enactment or subordinate legislation applied for the purposes of this Act by section 16(1).
16 Application of customs enactments.
(1)
Subject to such exceptions and adaptations as the Commissioners may by regulations prescribe and except where the contrary intention appears—
(a)
the provision made by or under the Customs and Excise Acts 1979 and the other enactments and subordinate legislation for the time being having effect generally in relation to duties of customs and excise charged on the importation of goods into the United Kingdom; and
(b)
the Community legislation for the time being having effect in relation to Community customs duties charged on goods entering the territory of the Community,
shall apply (so far as relevant) in relation to any VAT chargeable on the importation of goods from places outside the member States as they apply in relation to any such duty of customs or excise or, as the case may be, Community customs duties.
(2)
Regulations under F1section 105 of the Postal Services Act 2000 (which provides for the application of customs enactments to postal packets) may make special provision in relation to VAT.
17 Free zone regulations.
(1)
This section applies in relation to VAT chargeable on the importation of goods from places outside the member States; and in this section “free zone” has the meaning given by section 100A(2) of the Management Act.
(2)
Subject to any contrary provision made by any directly applicable Community provision, goods which are chargeable with VAT may be moved into a free zone and may remain as free zone goods without payment of VAT.
(3)
The Commissioners may by regulations (“free zone regulations”) make provision with respect to the movement of goods into, and the removal of goods from, any free zone and the keeping, securing and treatment of goods which are within a free zone, and subject to any provision of the regulations, “free zone goods” means goods which are within a free zone.
(4)
Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (3), free zone regulations may make provision—
(a)
for enabling the Commissioners to allow goods to be removed from a free zone without payment of VAT in such circumstances and subject to such conditions as they may determine;
(b)
for determining where any VAT becomes payable in respect of goods which cease to be free zone goods—
(i)
the rates of any VAT applicable; and
(ii)
the time at which those goods cease to be free zone goods;
(c)
for determining for the purpose of enabling VAT to be charged in respect of free zone goods in a case where a person wishes to pay that VAT notwithstanding that the goods will continue to be free zone goods, the rate of VAT to be applied; and
(d)
permitting free zone goods to be destroyed without payment of VAT in such circumstances and subject to such conditions as the Commissioners may determine.
(5)
The Commissioners, with respect to free zone goods or the movement of goods into any free zone, may by regulations make provision—
(a)
for relief from the whole or part of any VAT chargeable on the importation of goods into the United Kingdom in such circumstances as they may determine;
(b)
in place of, or in addition to, any provision made by section 6 or any other enactment, for determining the time when a supply of goods which are or have been free zone goods is to be treated as taking place for the purposes of the charge to VAT; and
(c)
as to the treatment, for the purposes of VAT, of goods which are manufactured or produced within a free zone from other goods or which have other goods incorporated in them while they are free zone goods.