IPR20600 - Roles and Responsibilities: Responsibilities of supervising offices

The supervising office is the office that will be responsible for monitoring compliance with terms and conditions of an IPR authorisation – IPR30500.

Some of the roles of the supervising office are specifically covered in the legislation. Others can be inferred from the operation of the procedures, the general context of assurance referred to IPR30000, or from the reports and recommendations of EU auditors. Where supervising offices are unable for any reason to comply with these requirements, they must ensure they contact CIFT for advice.

Supervising office responsibilities include:

• where requested by the authorising office, to consult and agree with audit teams to carry out pre-authorisation assurance in order to make a recommendation on authorisation;
• retaining records relating to the authorisation including a copy of the trader's valid authorisation ( IPR41700);
• considering and approving any amendments to authorisations already issued ( IPR61000 and IPR71100) and if accepted, forwarding to the authorising office for issue;
• direction of detection staff to undertake examinations of goods where required eg for equivalence checks, IPR20900;
• checking diversion entries and if acceptable forwarding them to the central unit at Salford for input to CHIEF (IPR21200and IPR40000);
• checking post clearance C285 amendments and if acceptable forwarding them to the National Duty Repayment Centre (NRDC) in Dover for processing ( IPR21000);
• checking IPR drawback claims and if acceptable forwarding them to the National Payment Centre (NPC) in Southend for processing ( IPR21100);
• monitoring receipt of IPR suspension returns and carrying out checks on the returns;
• monitoring and carrying out documentary checks based on risk and post importation assurance of entries, transfers and disposals made under the authorisation (to assure accuracy of declarations and to ensure goods are covered by the authorisation and processed within the agreed throughput period), IPR20800. IPR21200, IPR41800, IPR42700 and IPR100600;
• verifying the rates of yield for processing operations, IPR42200;
• verifying claims to equivalence where approved and scrutinising results of samples UKBA/Detection have been requested to be take, IPR11000;
• considering any requests to extend throughput periods and informing the authorisation holder accordingly, ( IPR42800);
• consulting and agreeing with audit teams assurance events to ensure the authorisation holder complies with the conditions of their authorisation ( IPR40000);
• monitoring the level of guarantees where this has been imposed as a condition of authorisation ( IPR31100 and IPR31200);
• checking form C81 applications (voluntary disclosures) for statistical amendment;
• consulting with audit teams to ensure calculation of any customs debts that may arise from assurance activity are submitted, together with an explanation of the debt for the trader, to Salford to issue a post clearance demand (C18) IPR21200;
• cancellation of authorisations where applicable and assurance that all goods imported properly disposed of; and
• dealing with any enquiries related to the authorisation from colleagues or trade.

The nominated supervising office must co-ordinate any roles that need to be carried out by other offices to ensure that there is a full audit trail of imports, exports and activities carried out. The supervising office will also be the central contact point for a trader with any queries about use or changes they wish to make to their authorisation.