45.—(1) HMRC may grant to an applicant fulfilling the following conditions authorisation for the use of the paper-based common transit procedure for goods carried by rail—
(a)the applicant is a railway undertaking;
(b)the applicant is established in the United Kingdom (in accordance with the criteria in paragraph 18(3));
(c)the applicant regularly uses the common transit procedure, or HMRC know that the applicant can meet the obligations under the procedure;
(d)the applicant, and any director or senior employee of the applicant, have not been involved in a breach of an obligation relating to tax or a Customs obligation, which in the opinion of an officer of Revenue and Customs is—
(i)a serious breach having regard to the circumstances and nature of any breach and the number of any breaches; and
(ii)relevant to the suitability of the applicant to be authorised under this paragraph; and
(e)the applicant, and any director or senior employee of the applicant, have no criminal convictions which in the opinion of an officer of Revenue and Customs are—
(i)serious having regard to the type of conviction; and
(ii)relevant to the suitability of the applicant to be authorised under this paragraph.
(2) The authorisation for the use of the paper-based common transit procedure for goods carried by rail only applies in the common transit countries specified in the authorisation.
(3) The authorisation operates as a simplification of the common transit procedure in Parts 1 and 2.