Customs and Excise Duties (General Reliefs) Act 1979

Personal reliefs

13 Power to provide, in relation to persons entering the United Kingdom, for reliefs from duty and value added tax and for simplified computation of duty and tax

(1) The Commissioners may by order make provision for conferring on persons entering the United Kingdom reliefs from duty and value added tax; and any such relief may take the form either of an exemption from payment of duty and tax or of a provision whereby the sum payable by way of duty or tax is less than it would otherwise be.

(2) Without prejudice to subsection (1) above, the Commissioners may by order make provision whereby, in such cases and to such extent as may be specified in the order, a sum calculated at a rate specified in the order is treated as the aggregate amount payable by way of duty and tax in respect of goods imported by a person entering the United Kingdom; but any order making such provision shall enable the person concerned to elect that duty and tax shall be charged on the goods in question at the rate which would be applicable apart from that provision.

(3) An order under this section—

(a) may make any relief for which it provides subject to conditions, including conditions which are to be complied with after the importation of the goods to which the relief applies;

(b) may contain such incidental and supplementary provisions as the Commissioners think necessary or expedient, including provisions for the forfeiture of goods in the event of non-compliance with any condition subject to which they have been relieved from duty or tax ; and

(c) may make different provision for different cases.

(4) In this section—

• " duty " means customs or excise duty chargeable on goods imported into the United Kingdom and, in the case of excise duty, includes any addition thereto by virtue of section 1 of the [1979 c. 8.] Excise Duties (Surcharges or Rebates) Act 1979 ; and

• " value added tax " or " tax" means value added tax chargeable on the importation of goods.

(5) Nothing in any order under this section shall be construed as authorising any person to import any thing in contravention of any prohibition or restriction for the time being in force with respect thereto under or by virtue of any enactment.