Finance Act 1994 (c. 9)

(The document as of February, 2008)

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(i) has become liable to a penalty under section 8 above, or

(ii) has been convicted of an offence of fraud or dishonesty; or

(b) any conduct in respect of which proceedings for an offence of fraud or dishonesty would have been commenced or continued against any person (whether or not the person assessed), but for their having been compounded under section 152(a) of the Management Act.

(6) The reference in subsection (4) above to the time when a person's liability to a duty of excise arose are references--

(a) in the case of a duty of excise on goods, to the excise duty point; and

(b) in any other case, to the time when the duty was charged.

(7) In this section references to an offence of fraud or dishonesty include references to an offence under any of the following provisions, that is to say--

(a) sections 100(3), 136(1), 159(6), 167(1), 168(1), 170(1) and (2) and 170B(1) of the Management Act,

(b) section 24(6) of the [1981 c. 63.] Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981 and paragraph 13(3) of Schedule 1, paragraph 7(3) of Schedule 2 and paragraph 16(1) of Schedule 3 to that Act,

(d) section 41(1) and (3) below,

and also include references to attempting or conspiring to commit an offence of fraud or dishonesty and to inciting the commission of such an offence.

(8) In this section "representative", in relation to a person appearing to the Commissioners to be a person from whom any amount has become due in respect of any duty of excise, means his personal representative or trustee in bankruptcy, any receiver or liquidator appointed in relation to that person or any of his property or any other person acting in a representative capacity in relation to that person.

13 Assessments to penalties

(1) Where any person is liable to a penalty under this Chapter, the Commissioners may assess the amount due by way of penalty and notify that person, or his representative, accordingly.

(2) An assessment under this section may be combined with an assessment under section 12 above, but any notification for the purposes of any such combined assessment shall separately identify any amount assessed by way of a penalty.

(3) In the case of any amount due from any person by way of a penalty under section 9 above for conduct consisting in a contravention which attracts daily penalties--

(a) a notification of an assessment under this section shall specify a date, being a date no later than the date of the notification, to which the penalty as assessed is to be calculated; and

(b) if the contravention continues after that date, a further assessment, or (subject to this subsection) further assessments, may be made under this section in respect of any continuation of the contravention after that date.

(4) If--

(a) a person is assessed to a penalty in accordance with paragraph (a) of subsection (3) above, and

(b) the contravention to which that penalty relates is remedied within such period after the date specified for the purposes of that subsection in the notification of assessment as may for the purposes of this subsection be notified to that person by the Commissioners,

that contravention shall be treated for the purposes of this Chapter as having been remedied, and accordingly the conduct shall be deemed to have ceased, immediately before that date.

(5) If an amount has been assessed as due from any person and notified in accordance with this section, then unless, or except to the extent that, the assessment has subsequently been withdrawn or reduced, that amount shall, subject to any appeal under section 16 below, be recoverable as if it were an amount due from that person as an amount of the appropriate duty.

(6) In subsection (5) above "the appropriate duty" means--

(a) the duty of excise (if any) by reference to an amount of which the penalty in question is calculated; or

(b) where there is no such duty, the duty of excise the provisions relating to which are contravened by the conduct giving rise to the penalty or, if those provisions relate to more than one duty, such of the duties as appear to the Commissioners and are certified by them to be relevant in the case in question.

(7) In this section "representative", in relation to a person liable to a penalty under this Chapter, means his personal representative or trustee in bankruptcy, any receiver or liquidator appointed in relation to that person or any of his property or any other person acting in a representative capacity in relation to that person.

Customs and excise reviews and appeals

14 Requirement for review of a decision

(1) This section applies to the following decisions, not being decisions under this section or section 15 below, that is to say--

(a) any decision by the Commissioners, in relation to any customs duty or to any agricultural levy of the European Community, as to--

(i) whether or not, and at what time, anything is charged in any case with any such duty or levy;

(ii) the rate at which any such duty or levy is charged in any case, or the amount charged;

(iii) the person liable in any case to pay any amount charged, or the amount of his liability; or

(iv) whether or not any person is entitled in any case to relief or to any repayment, remission or drawback of any such duty or levy, or the amount of the relief, repayment, remission or drawback to which any person is entitled;

(b) so much of any decision by the Commissioners that a person is liable to any duty of excise, or as to the amount of his liability, as is contained in any assessment under section 12 above;

(c) so much of any decision by the Commissioners that a person is liable to any penalty under any of the provisions of this Chapter, or as to the amount of his liability, as is contained in any assessment under section 13 above; and

(d) any decision by the Commissioners or any officer which is of a description specified in Schedule 5 to this Act.

(2) Any person who is--

(a) a person whose liability to pay any relevant duty or penalty is determined by, results from or is or will be affected by any decision to which this section applies,

(b) a person in relation to whom, or on whose application, such a decision has been made, or

(c) a person on or to whom the conditions, limitations, restrictions, prohibitions or other requirements to which such a decision relates are or are to be imposed or applied,

may by notice in writing to the Commissioners require them to review that decision.

(3) The Commissioners shall not be required under this section to review any decision unless the notice requiring the review is given before the end of the period of forty-five days beginning with the day on which written notification of the decision, or of the assessment containing the decision, was first given to the person requiring the review.

(4) For the purposes of subsection (3) above it shall be the duty of the Commissioners to give written notification of any decision to which this section applies to any person who--

(a) requests such a notification;

(b) has not previously been given written notification of that decision; and

(5) A person shall be entitled to give a notice under this section requiring a decision to be reviewed for a second or subsequent time only if--

(a) the grounds on which he requires the further review are that the Commissioners did not, on any previous review, have the opportunity to consider certain facts or other matters; and

(b) he does not, on the further review, require the Commissioners to consider any facts or matters which were considered on a previous review except in so far as they are relevant to any issue to which the facts or matters not previously considered relate.

(6) If it appears to the Commissioners that there is any description of decisions falling to be made for the purposes of any provision of--

(a) the Community Customs Code,

(b) any Community legislation made for the purpose of implementing that Code, or

which are not decisions to which this section otherwise applies, the Commissioners may by regulations provide for this section to apply to decisions of that description as it applies to the decisions mentioned in subsection (1) above.

(7) The power to make regulations under subsection (6) above shall be exercisable by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament and shall include power--

(a) to provide, in relation to any description of decisions to which this section is applied by any such regulations, that section 16(4) below shall have effect as if those decisions were of a description specified in Schedule 5 to this Act; and

(b) to make such other incidental, supplemental, consequential and transitional provision as the Commissioners think fit.

15 Review procedure

(1) Where the Commissioners are required in accordance with this Chapter to review any decision, it shall be their duty to do so and they may, on that review, either--

(a) confirm the decision; or

(b) withdraw or vary the decision and take such further steps (if any) in consequence of the withdrawal or variation as they may consider appropriate.

(2) Where--

(a) it is the duty of the Commissioners in pursuance of a requirement by any person under section 14 above to review any decision; and

(b) they do not, within the period of forty-five days beginning with the day on which the review was required, give notice to that person of their determination on the review,

they shall be assumed for the purposes of this Chapter to have confirmed the decision.

(3) The Commissioners shall not by virtue of any requirement under this Chapter to review a decision have any power, apart from their power in pursuance of section 8(4) above, to mitigate the amount of any penalty imposed under this Chapter.

16 Appeals to a tribunal

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this section, an appeal shall lie to an appeal tribunal with respect to any of the following decisions, that is to say--

(a) any decision by the Commissioners on a review under section 15 above (including a deemed confirmation under subsection (2) of that section); and

(b) any decision by the Commissioners on such review of a decision to which section 14 above applies as the Commissioners have agreed to undertake in consequence of a request made after the end of the period mentioned in section 14(3) above.

(2) An appeal under this section shall not be entertained unless the appellant is the person who required the review in question.

(3) An appeal which relates to, or to any decision on a review of, any decision falling within any of paragraphs (a) to (c) of section 14(1) above shall not be entertained if any amount is outstanding from the appellant in respect of any liability of the appellant to pay any relevant duty to the Commissioners (including an amount of any such duty which would be so outstanding if the appeal had already been decided in favour of the Commissioners) unless--

(a) the Commissioners have, on the application of the appellant, issued a certificate stating either--

(i) that such security as appears to them to be adequate has been given to them for the payment of that amount; or

(ii) that, on the grounds of the hardship that would otherwise be suffered by the appellant, they either do not require the giving of security for the payment of that amount or have accepted such lesser security as they consider appropriate;

(b) the tribunal to which the appeal is made decide that the Commissioners should not have refused to issue a certificate under paragraph (a) above and are satisfied that such security (if any) as it would have been reasonable for the Commissioners to accept in the circumstances has been given to the Commissioners.

(4) In relation to any decision as to an ancillary matter, or any decision on the review of such a decision, the powers of an appeal tribunal on an appeal under this section shall be confined to a power, where the tribunal are satisfied that the Commissioners or other person making that decision could not reasonably have arrived at it, to do one or more of the following, that is to say--

(a) to direct that the decision, so far as it remains in force, is to cease to have effect from such time as the tribunal may direct;

(b) to require the Commissioners to conduct, in accordance with the directions of the tribunal, a further review of the original decision; and

(c) in the case of a decision which has already been acted on or taken effect and cannot be remedied by a further review, to declare the decision to have been unreasonable and to give directions to the Commissioners as to the steps to be taken for securing that repetitions of the unreasonableness do not occur when comparable circumstances arise in future.

(5) In relation to other decisions, the powers of an appeal tribunal on an appeal under this section shall also include power to quash or vary any decision and power to substitute their own decision for any decision quashed on appeal.

(6) On an appeal under this section the burden of proof as to--

(a) the matters mentioned in subsection (1)(a) and (b) of section 8 above,

(b) the question whether any person has acted knowingly in using any substance or liquor in contravention of section 114(2) of the Management Act, and

(c) the question whether any person had such knowledge or reasonable cause for belief as is required for liability to a penalty to arise under section 22(1) or 23(1) of the [1979 c. 5.] Hydrocarbon Oil Duties Act 1979 (use of fuel substitute or road fuel gas on which duty not paid),

shall lie upon the Commissioners; but it shall otherwise be for the appellant to show that the grounds on which any such appeal is brought have been established.

(7) An appeal tribunal shall not, by virtue of anything contained in this section, have any power, apart from their power in pursuance of section 8(4) above, to mitigate the amount of any penalty imposed under this Chapter.

(8) References in this section to a decision as to an ancillary matter are references to any decision of a description specified in Schedule 5 to this Act which is not comprised in a decision falling within section 14(1)(a) to (c) above.

Supplemental provisions

17 Interpretation

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this section, expressions used in this Chapter and in the Management Act have the same meanings in this Chapter as in that Act.

(2) In this Chapter--

"appeal tribunal" shall be construed in accordance with section 7(3) above;
"conduct" includes any act, omission or statement;
"contravention" includes a failure to comply, and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly;
"the Community Customs Code" means the Regulation of the Council of the European Communities dated 12 October 1992 (EEC) No. 2913/92 for establishing the Community Customs Code;
"the Management Act" means the [1979 c. 2.] Customs and Excise Management Act 1979;
"relevant duty" means any Community customs duty or agricultural levy of the European Community or any duty of excise; and
"subordinate legislation" has the same meaning as in the [1978 c. 30.] Interpretation Act 1978.

(3) For the purposes of this Chapter a contravention consisting in a failure to do something at or before a particular time shall be taken to continue after that time until the thing is done, and references in this Chapter to the remedying of such a contravention shall be construed accordingly.

(4) References in this Chapter to a duty of excise do not include references to vehicles excise duty.

18 Consequential modifications of enactments

(1) Subject to subsection (2) below, references in the Management Act to a penalty shall not include references to a penalty under this Chapter.

(2) Section 117 of the Management Act (execution and distress against revenue traders) shall have effect--

(a) as if any amount assessed as due from any person by way of a penalty under this Chapter, not being an amount in relation to which subsection (4) below applies, were an amount of excise duty payable by that person; and

(b) with the substitution, in subsection (7A)--

(i) for "estimated under section 116A above" of "assessed under section 12 of the Finance Act 1994"; and

(ii) for the word "estimated", in the second and third places where it occurs, of "assessed".

(3) Section 127 of the Management Act (determination of disputes as to duties on imported goods) shall cease to have effect; and for subsection (5) of section 40 of the [1983 c. 55.] Value Added Tax Act 1983 (which provides for there to be no appeal with respect to any matter falling to be determined in accordance with section 127 of the Management Act) there shall be substituted the following subsection--

" (5) No appeal shall lie under this section with respect to the subject-matter of any decision which by virtue of section 24 above is a decision to which section 14 of the Finance Act 1994 (decisions subject to review) applies unless the decision--

(a) relates exclusively to one or both of the following matters, namely whether or not section 16(3) above applies in relation to the importation of the goods in question and (if it does not) the rate of tax charged on those goods; and

(b) is not one in respect of which notice has been given to the Commissioners under section 14 of that Act requiring them to review it. "

(4) Sections 28 and 29 of the [1981 c. 63.] Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981 (distress and poinding) shall apply, as they apply in relation to any amount recoverable by way of general betting duty, in relation to any amount assessed as due from any person by way of a penalty incurred under this Chapter with respect to conduct connected with a duty or licence under that Act.

(5) In section 29A(1)(d) of that Act of 1981 (certificate to be evidence of certain matters), for the words "or estimate made in pursuance of this Act" there shall be substituted "made in pursuance of this Act or in any assessment made under section 12 of the Finance Act 1994".

(6) In section 35(1)(c) of the [1993 c. 34.] Finance Act 1993 (certificate to be evidence of certain matters), for the words "in an estimate made under section 116A of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979" there shall be substituted "in any assessment made under section 12 of the Finance Act 1994".

(7) In section 827 of the Taxes Act 1988 (VAT penalties etc.), after subsection (1) there shall be inserted the following subsection--

" (1A) Where a person is liable to make a payment by way of a penalty under any of sections 8 to 11 of the Finance Act 1994 (penalties relating to excise), that payment shall not be allowed as a deduction in computing any income, profits or losses for any tax purposes. "

(8) Subsections (1), (2) and (4) above shall be without prejudice to section 13(5) above; and subsection (7) above shall have effect in relation to any chargeable period ending after the coming into force of the provision which provides for the imposition of the penalty in question.

19 Commencement of Chapter

(1) Subject to section 18(8) above, this Chapter shall come into force on such day as the Commissioners may by order made by statutory instrument appoint, and different days may be appointed under this subsection for different provisions and for different purposes.

(2) An order under this section may make such transitional provision and savings as appear to the Commissioners to be appropriate in connection with the bringing into force by such an order of any provision of this Chapter.

(3) Nothing in any provision of this Chapter shall, in respect of conduct occurring before the coming into force of that provision, impose or affect any liability to any civil or criminal penalty or any liability of goods to forfeiture.

Chapter III Customs: Enforcement Powers

20 Interpretation, etc

(1) This Chapter applies to any person carrying on a trade or business which consists of or includes any of the following activities--

(a) importing or exporting any goods of a class or description subject to a duty of customs (whether or not in fact chargeable with that duty);

(b) producing, manufacturing or applying a process to them;

(d) handling or storing them;

(e) financing or facilitating any activity mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (d) above.

(2) In subsection (1) above "duty of customs" includes any agricultural levy of the European Community.

(3) In this Chapter--

(a) "customs goods" means any goods mentioned in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) above; and

(b) any reference to the business of a person to whom this Chapter applies is a reference to the trade or business carried on by him as mentioned in that subsection.

(4) This Chapter shall have effect and be construed as if it were contained in the [1979 c. 2.] Customs and Excise Management Act 1979.

(5) In consequence of the provision made by sections 21 to 27 below, any power under--

(a) section 75A, 75B or 75C of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 to require a person importing or exporting goods to keep or preserve records, or

(b) section 77A, 77B or 77C of that Act to require a person to furnish information or produce documents relating to imported or exported goods,

shall cease to be exercisable in relation to a person to the extent that the goods in question are customs goods.

21 Requirements about keeping records

(1) The Commissioners may by regulations require any person to whom this Chapter applies--

(a) to keep such records as may be prescribed in the regulations; and

(b) to preserve those records--

(i) for such period not exceeding four years as may be prescribed in the regulations, or

(ii) for such lesser period as the Commissioners may require.

(2) The Commissioners may also require any person mentioned in subsection (3) below--

(a) to keep such records as they may specify; and

(b) to preserve those records for such period not exceeding four years as they may require.

(3) The person referred to is any person who--

(a) is not carrying on a trade or business which consists of or includes the importation or exportation of customs goods, but

(b) is concerned in some other capacity in such importation or exportation.

(4) A duty imposed under subsection (1)(b) or (2)(b) above to preserve records may be discharged by the preservation of the information contained in them by such means as the Commissioners may approve.

(5) On giving approval under subsection (4) above, the Commissioners may impose such reasonable requirements as appear to them necessary for securing that the information will be as readily available to them as if the records themselves had been preserved.

(6) Regulations under this section may--

(a) make different provision for different cases; and

(b) be framed by reference to such records as may be specified in any notice published by the Commissioners in pursuance of the regulations and not withdrawn by a further notice.

(7) Any person who fails to comply with a requirement imposed by virtue of this section shall be liable on summary conviction to a penalty not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

22 Records and rules of evidence

(1) Where any information is preserved by approved means as mentioned in section 21(4) above, a copy of any document in which it is contained shall, subject to subsection (2) below, be admissible in evidence in any proceedings, whether civil or criminal, to the same extent as the records themselves.

(2) A statement contained in a document produced by a computer shall not by virtue of subsection (1) above be admissible in evidence--

(a) in civil proceedings in England and Wales, except in accordance with sections 5 and 6 of the [1968 c. 64.] Civil Evidence Act 1968;

(b) in criminal proceedings in England and Wales, except in accordance with sections 69 and 70 of the [1984 c. 60.] Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and Part II of the [1988 c. 33.] Criminal Justice Act 1988;

(c) in civil proceedings in Scotland, except in accordance with sections 5 and 6 of the [1988 c. 32.] Civil Evidence (Scotland) Act 1988;

(d) in criminal proceedings in Scotland, except in accordance with Schedule 3 to the [1993 c. 9.] Prisoners and Criminal Proceedings (Scotland) Act 1993;

(e) in civil proceedings in Northern Ireland, except in accordance with sections 2 and 3 of the [1971 c. 36 (N.I.).] Civil Evidence Act (Northern Ireland) 1971; and

(f) in criminal proceedings in Northern Ireland, except in accordance with Article 68 of the [S.I. 1989/1341 (N.I. 12).] Police and Criminal Evidence (Northern Ireland) Order 1989 and Part II of the [S.I. 1988/1847 (N.I. 17).] Criminal Justice (Evidence, Etc.) (Northern Ireland) Order 1988.

23 Furnishing of information and production of documents

(1) Every person to whom this Chapter applies shall furnish the Commissioners, within such time and in such form as they may reasonably require, with such information relating to his business as they may reasonably specify.

(2) Every person to whom this Chapter applies shall, if required to do so by an officer, produce or cause to be produced for inspection by the officer--

(a) at that person's principal place of business or at such other place as the officer may reasonably require, and

(b) at such time as the officer may reasonably require,

any documents which relate to his business.

(3) Where it appears to an officer that any documents which relate to a business of a person to whom this Chapter applies are in the possession of another person, the officer may require that other person, at such time and place as the officer may reasonably require, to produce those documents or cause them to be produced.

(4) For the purposes of this section, the documents which relate to a business of a person to whom this Chapter applies shall be taken to include--

(a) any profit and loss account and balance sheet, and

(b) any documents required to be kept by virtue of section 21(1) above.

(5) Every person mentioned in section 21(3) above shall furnish the Commissioners, within such time and in such form as they may reasonably require, with such information relating to the importation or exportation of customs goods in which he is concerned as they may reasonably specify.

(6) Every person mentioned in section 21(3) above shall, if required to do so by an officer, produce or cause to be produced for inspection by the officer at such time and place as the officer may reasonably require, any documents which relate to the importation or exportation of customs goods in which he is concerned.

(7) An officer may take copies of, or make extracts from, any document produced under this section.

(8) If it appears to an officer to be necessary to do so, he may, at a reasonable time and for a reasonable period, remove any document produced under this section.

(9) Where a document is removed under subsection (8) above--

(a) if the person from whom the document is removed so requests, he shall be given a record of what was removed;

(b) if the document is reasonably required for the proper conduct of any business, the person by whom the document was produced or caused to be produced shall be provided as soon as practicable with a copy of the document free of charge;

(c) if the document is lost or damaged, the Commissioners shall be liable to compensate the owner of it for any expenses reasonably incurred by him in replacing or repairing it.

(10) If a person claims a lien on any document produced by him under subsection (3) or (6) above--

(a) the production of the document shall be without prejudice to the lien; and

(b) the removal of the document under subsection (8) above shall not be regarded as breaking the lien.

(11) Any person who fails to comply with a requirement imposed under this section shall be liable on summary conviction to a penalty not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

24 Power of entry

Where an officer has reasonable cause to believe that--

(a) any premises are used in connection with a business of a person to whom this Chapter applies, and

(b) any customs goods are on those premises,

he may at any reasonable time enter and inspect those premises and inspect any goods found on them.

25 Order for production of documents

(1) Where, on an application by an officer, a justice is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for believing--

(a) that an offence in connection with a duty of customs is being, has been or is about to be committed, and

(b) that any information or documents which may be required as evidence for the purpose of any proceedings in respect of such an offence is in the possession of any person,

he may make an order under this section.

(2) An order under this section is an order that the person who appears to the justice to be in possession of the information or documents to which the application relates shall--

(a) furnish an officer with the information or produce the document,

(b) permit an officer to take copies of or make extracts of any document produced, and

not later than the end of the period of seven days beginning with the date of the order or the end of such longer period as the order may specify.

(3) In this section "justice" means a justice of the peace or, in relation to Scotland, a justice within the meaning of section 462 of the [1975 c. 21.] Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1975.

26 Procedure when documents are removed

(1) An officer who removes any document in the exercise of a power conferred under section 25 above shall, if so requested by a person showing himself--

(a) to be the occupier of premises from which it was removed, or

(b) to have had custody or control of it immediately before the removal,

provide that person with a record of what he removed.

(2) The officer shall provide the record within a reasonable time from the making of the request for it.

(3) Subject to subsection (7) below, if a request for permission to be granted access to any document which--

(a) has been removed by an officer, and

(b) is retained by the Commissioners for the purposes of investigating an offence,

is made to the officer in charge of the investigation by a person who had custody or control of the document immediately before it was so removed or by someone acting on behalf of such a person, the officer shall allow the person who made the request access to it under the supervision of an officer.

(4) Subject to subsection (7) below, if a request for a photograph or copy of any such document is made to the officer in charge of the investigation by a person who had custody or control of the document immediately before it was so removed, or by someone acting on behalf of such a person, the officer shall--

(a) allow the person who made the request access to it under the supervision of an officer for the purpose of photographing it or copying it, or

(b) photograph or copy it, or cause it to be photographed or copied.

(5) Where any document is photographed or copied under subsection (4)(b) above, the photograph or copy shall be supplied to the person who made the request.

(6) The photograph or copy shall be supplied within a reasonable time from the making of the request.

(7) There is no duty under this section to grant access to, or to supply a photograph or copy of, any document if the officer in charge of the investigation for the purposes of which it was removed has reasonable grounds for believing that to do so would prejudice--

(a) that investigation;

(b) the investigation of an offence other than the offence for the purposes of the investigation of which the document was removed; or

(i) the investigation of which he is in charge; or

(ii) any such investigation as is mentioned in paragraph (b) above.

(8) Any reference in this section to the officer in charge of the investigation is a reference to the person whose name and address are endorsed on the order concerned as being the officer in charge of it.

27 Failure of officer to comply with requirements under section 26

(1) Where, on an application made as mentioned in subsection (2) below, the appropriate judicial authority is satisfied that a person has failed to comply with a requirement imposed by section 26 above, the authority may order that person to comply with the requirement within such time and in such manner as may be specified in the order.

(2) An application under subsection (1) above shall be made--

(a) in the case of a failure to comply with any of the requirements imposed by subsections (1) and (2) of section 26 above, by the occupier of the premises from which the document in question was removed or by the person who had custody or control of it immediately before it was so removed, and

(b) in any other case, by the person who has such custody or control.

(3) In this section "the appropriate judicial authority" means--

(a) in England and Wales, a magistrates' court;

(b) in Scotland, the sheriff; and

(c) in Northern Ireland, a court of summary jurisdiction, as defined in Article 2(2)(a) of the [S.I. 1981/1675 (N.I. 26).] Magistrates' Courts (Northern Ireland) Order 1981.

(4) Any application for an order under this section--

(a) in England and Wales, shall be made by way of complaint; or

(b) in Northern Ireland, shall be made by way of civil proceedings upon complaint.

(5) Sections 21 and 42(2) of the [1954 c. 33 (N.I.).] Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 (rules and orders regulating procedure of courts etc and assignment of business to particular courts) shall apply as if any reference in those provisions to any enactment included a reference to this section.

Chapter IV Air Passenger Duty

The duty

28 Air passenger duty

(1) A duty to be known as air passenger duty shall be charged in accordance with this Chapter on the carriage on a chargeable aircraft of any chargeable passenger.

(2) Subject to the provisions of this Chapter about accounting and payment, the duty in respect of any carriage on an aircraft of a chargeable passenger--

(a) becomes due when the aircraft first takes off on the passenger's flight, and

(b) shall be paid by the operator of the aircraft.

(3) Subject to section 29 below, every aircraft designed or adapted to carry persons in addition to the flight crew is a chargeable aircraft for the purposes of this Chapter.

(4) Subject to sections 31 and 32 below, every passenger on an aircraft is a chargeable passenger for the purposes of this Chapter if his flight begins at an airport in the United Kingdom.

(5) In this Chapter, "flight", in relation to any person, means his carriage on an aircraft; and for the purposes of this Chapter, a person's flight is to be treated as beginning when he first boards the aircraft and ending when he finally disembarks from the aircraft.

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