HMAG70700 - Importing Excise Goods: case studies

Scenario 1 – Regular importation

An excise warehousekeeper reports to HMRC that a consignment of beer from Poland has arrived at their warehouse without being under the cover of an eAD. Upon investigation with Customs colleagues, it is found that the goods had been correctly declared on CHIEF (i.e. entered to free circulation and excise duty suspension). However, upon their release to free circulation, the excise duty suspended movement was not entered onto EMCS so, in effect, an excise duty suspended movement did not start. At that point, the beer was effectively ‘released for consumption’ and an excise duty point occurred under HMDP regulation 6(1)(d).

As HMRC are satisfied that the import declaration was correct, and any customs duty and/or import VAT has already been accounted for, an excise assessment (EX601) should be raised for the excise duty. In this scenario, the goods have been imported correctly for customs purposes and therefore the person who is liable to pay the excise duty is shown in HMDP regulation 12(1) as the person who declares the excise goods or on whose behalf they are declared upon importation. The person considered responsible for causing the breach of the excise provisions will need to be identified (for example, this could be the importer or the import agent). In effect, this is the person who should have started the excise duty suspended movement as a Registered Consignor.

(This content has been withheld because of exemptions in the Freedom of Information Act 2000)