Commonwealth of Australia Explanatory Memoranda Commonwealth of Australia Explanatory Memoranda[Index] [Search] [Download] [Bill] [Help]
2002
THE PARLIAMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF
AUSTRALIA
SENATE
REPLACEMENT EXPLANATORY
MEMORANDUM
THIS MEMORANDUM REPLACES THE EXPLANATORY
MEMORANDUM
PRESENTED TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ON 19 JUNE
2002
(Circulated by authority of the Minister for Justice
and Customs,
Senator the Honourable Christopher Martin Ellison)
IMPORT PROCESSING CHARGES (AMENDMENT AND REPEAL) BILL
2002
OUTLINE
The purpose of this Bill is to continue
the operation of the Import Processing Charges Act 1997 after it is
repealed and to clarify the amount of self-assessed declaration charge that is
payable in respect of reportable documents.
This Bill has no financial impact. Although the continued application of
the Import Processing Charges Act 1997 will result in higher revenue collection
than if the Import Processing Charges Act 2001 were in operation, the higher
charges reflect the higher costs to Customs in continuing to operate the old IT
systems until the trading community is ready to use the new Integrated Cargo
System.
IMPORT PROCESSING CHARGES (AMENDMENT AND REPEAL) BILL
2002
NOTES ON CLAUSES
Clause 1 – Short
title
This clause provides for the Act, when enacted, to be cited as
the Import Processing Charges (Amendment and Repeal) Act
2002.
Clause 2 - Commencement
Subclause (1) provides
that each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table in that
subclause commences or is taken to have commenced on the day or at the time
specified in column 2 of the table.
Item 1 of the table provides that
sections 1 to 3 and anything in this Act not elsewhere covered by this table
commence on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.
Item 2
of the table provides that section 4 commences on the earlier of:
– the
commencement of section 5 of this Act; and
– the commencement of
section 6 of this Act.
Section 4 contains definitions for the purposes of
sections 5 and 6 of the Act. The definitions will commence when section 5 or 6
commences, whichever is the earlier.
Item 3 of the table provides that
section 5 commences immediately after the commencement of item 62 of Schedule 3
to the Customs Legislation Amendment Act (No. 1) 2002. Section 5
continues the operation of the Import Processing Charges Act 1997 after
it is repealed.
Item 4 of the table provides that section 6 commences at
the same time as the commencement of item 1 of Schedule 4 to the Customs
Legislation Amendment and Repeal (International Trade Modernisation) Act
2001(the Trade Modernisation Act). Section 6 continues the operation of the
Import Processing Charges Act 1997 for the purposes of charging cargo
report processing charge during the moratorium periods. Item 1 of Schedule 4 to
the Trade Modernisation Act commences on a day to be fixed by Proclamation and
it has not commenced yet. Under subsection 2(6) of the Trade Modernisation Act,
if that item has not been Proclaimed to commence by 21 July 2003, it will
commence on 21 July 2003. However, the Customs Legislation Amendment Bill (No.
1) 2002 and this Bill propose to extend that time until 21 July 2004. If these
Bills are passed, it is not expected that item 1 of Schedule 4 to the Trade
Modernisation Act will be Proclaimed to commence until sometime in
2004.
Item 5 of the table provides that section 7 commences on the
earlier of:
– the commencement of section 5 of this Act;
and
– the commencement of section 6 of this Act.
Section 7
imposes charges for the purposes of section 5 and 6 of this Act.
Item 6
of the table provides that Schedule 1 commences on the later
of:
– immediately after the Import Processing Charges Act 2001
commences; and
– the day on which this Act receives the Royal
Assent.
Schedule 1 amends the Import Processing Charges Act 2001
to clarify how much self-assessed clearance declaration charge is payable in
respect of reportable documents.
Subclause (2) provides that column 3 of
the table is for additional information that is not part of this Act. This
information may be included in any published version of this
Act.
Clause 3 - Schedule(s)
This clause is the formal
enabling provision for the Schedule to the Bill, providing that each Act
specified in a Schedule is amended in accordance with the applicable items of
the Schedule. In this Bill the Import Processing Charges Act 2001 is
being amended.
The clause also provides that the other items of the
Schedules have effect according to their terms. This is a standard enabling
clause for transitional, savings and application items in amending legislation.
Clause 4 - Definitions
This clause defines two terms
“Charges Act” and “Repeal Act”. Charges Act is defined
to mean the Import Processing Charges Act 1997 (“the IPC Act
1997”) and Repeal Act is defined to mean the Customs Legislation
Amendment and Repeal (International Trade Modernisation) Act 2001
(“the Trade Modernisation Act”).
Clause 5 - Continued
application of Charges Act after its repeal
This clause continues the
operation of the IPC Act 1997 in certain circumstances after it has been
repealed.
The Trade Modernisation Act repeals the IPC Act 1997. It was
intended that the IPC Act 1997 would be repealed at the same time that the Trade
Modernisation Act made substantial amendments to import reporting/entry
processes (Parts 2 and 6 of the Trade Modernisation Act refer). It was also
intended that the repeal and the new processes would commence on a day to be
fixed by Proclamation and if the provisions were not Proclaimed, they would
commence automatically 2 years after the Trade Modernisation Act received the
Royal Assent (being 21 July 2003).
Many provisions of the Trade
Modernisation Act depend directly or indirectly on the introduction of Customs
new cargo management computer system. The 2 year proclamation period was to
allow sufficient time for the trading community to be ready for the procedural
and computer system changes. Since the Trade Modernisation Act was enacted it
has become apparent that industry would not be in a position to implement its
computer system changes by July 2003. The Customs Legislation Amendment Bill
(No. 1) 2002 will extend the time in which those provisions can be Proclaimed to
commence to 3 years to allow the trading community the extra time it would need
to be ready (21 July 2004).
For Constitutional reasons it was not
possible to amend the Trade Modernisation Act to extend the time in which the
IPC Act 1997 can be repealed. That is, the IPC Act 1997 will still be repealed
2 years after the Trade Modernisation Act received the Royal Assent, if Schedule
4 to the Trade Modernisation Act is not Proclaimed to commence
earlier.
This causes a problem because the substantive provisions that
make people liable to pay the charges set out in the IPC Act 1997 may continue
to operate for another year after the IPC Act 1997 is repealed.
This item
ensures that if the IPC Act 1997 is repealed (that is Schedule 4 to the Trade
Modernisation Act has commenced) and at that time, not all of the import
reporting/entry processes (that is Parts 2 and 6 of Schedule 3 to the Trade
Modernisation Act) have commenced, then the IPC Act 1997 continues to apply as
if it had not been repealed. This application will continue to operate until
all of the import reporting/entry processes amendments have
commenced.
Clause 6 - Continued application of Charges Act during
moratorium period
The IPC Act 1997 provides that cargo report
processing charge is imposed and sets out the amount of that charge. That
charge is only payable in respect of documentary cargo reports (section 64ABB of
the Customs Act).
Under new section 64AB as inserted by the Trade
Modernisation Act, cargo reporters will be required to make electronic cargo
reports. However, new subsections 64AB(12) and (13) provide that during the six
month period after the section commences (the general moratorium period) reports
can be made by document. Further, under subsections 64AB(12) and (14)
documentary reports can be made during the further moratorium period (not being
more than 18 months), if the CEO grants a cargo reporter such a
period.
Since documentary cargo reports will only be able to be made for
a maximum of 2 years after the commencement of new section 64AB, the Trade
Modernisation Act also repeals section 64ABB. Hence under the amendments that
will be made by the Trade Modernisation Act cargo report processing charge will
not be payable in respect of documentary cargo reports made during the general
and further moratorium periods.
Item 67 of Schedule 3 to the Customs
Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2002 provides that cargo report processing
charge will still be payable during those moratorium periods.
Subclauses
6(1) and (2) make consequential amendments so that the IPC Act 1997 continues to
apply, during those moratorium periods.
Subclause 6(3) makes it clear
that sections 5 and 6 do not limit the effect of each other.
This clause
will commence when the IPC Act 1997 is repealed. That Act will be repealed by
item 1 of Schedule 4 to the Trade Modernisation Act. Under subsection 2(3) of
the Trade Modernisation Act that item commences on a day to be fixed by
Proclamation. No such day has yet been fixed and hence item 1 has not
commenced. Under subsection 2(6) of the Trade Modernisation Act, if that item
has not been Proclaimed to commence by 21 July 2003, it will commence on 21 July
2003. However, the Customs Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2002 and this
Bill propose to extend that time until 21 July 2004. If these Bills are passed,
it is not expected that item 1 of Schedule 4 to the Trade Modernisation Act will
be Proclaimed to commence until sometime in 2004.
Clause 7 -
Imposition of charges
This item imposes, to the extent necessary to
give effect to sections 5 and 6 of this Bill, the charges of the kind mentioned
in section 4 of the IPC Act 1997 are imposed.
Schedule 1 -
Amendment of the Import Processing Charges Act
2001
Item 1 - Paragraph 5(2)(a)
Subsection
5(2) of the Import Processing Charges Act 2001 prescribes the charges for
self-assessed clearance (“SAC”) declarations. Self-assessed
clearance declarations provide information to Customs about goods not requiring
entry. Each reportable document requires its own self-assessed clearance
declaration. The current wording of subparagraph 5(2)(a) provides for a
‘rolled-up’ charge for a self-assessed clearance declaration that is
made by a cargo reporter in respect of twenty-one or more reportable documents.
This implies that a SAC declaration can be for more than one reportable document
which is not the case.
This item makes it clear that the rolled-up
charge is for twenty-one or more self-assessed clearance declarations in respect
of reportable documents.