Chapter III

Miscellaneous

24. —In this Chapter—

“the Commissioners” means the Revenue Commissioners;

“excisable products” has the meaning assigned to it by section 104 of the Finance Act, 1992 ;

“the Regulations of 1992” means the European Communities (Customs and Excise) Regulations, 1992 (S.I. No. 394 of 1992); “small wine producer” and “wine” have the same meanings, respectively, as they have in Regulation 3 of the Regulations of 1992.

25. —(1) The Commissioners may make regulations for the purpose of giving effect to the provisions of Regulations 4, 5 and 23 (1) of the Regulations of 1992, and, in particular but without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, regulations made under this section may—

(a) as regards the said Regulations 4 and 5:

(i) govern the supply, sale or disposal to travellers (being travellers within the meaning assigned by the said Regulation 4) of excisable products and, where excise duty is chargeable, determine the person liable to pay it and, in that connection, prescribe the method of charging the duty, the time of payment and the method of payment; and

(ii) specify the obligations, requirements and procedures to be complied with by a person in the State receiving wine under a duty-suspension arrangement from a small wine producer;

and

(b) as regards the said Regulation 23 (1):

(i) govern the production, importation, sale, delivery, storage and use of a product to which the said Regulation 23 (1) applies;

(ii) provide for securing, paying, collecting, remitting and repaying the duty imposed by virtue of the said Regulation 23(1);

(iii) require a person who stores, sells or uses a product to which the said Regulation 23 (1) applies, to keep, in such manner as may be prescribed by the Commissioners, and to preserve for a specified period, any books, documents, accounts or other records (including records in a machine readable form) relating to the purchase, importation, receipt, use, sale or disposal by him of such a product and to allow any officer of the Commissioners to inspect and take copies of such books, documents, accounts and other records (including, in the case of records in a machine readable form, copies in a readable form);

(iv) require information relating to the supply or use of a product to which the said Regulation 23 (1) applies to be given by any person producing or dealing in such a product.

(2) Regulations made under this section which relate to Regulation 23 (1) of the Regulations of 1992 may make different provisions for persons, premises or products of different classes or descriptions to which the said Regulation 23 (1) applies, for different circumstances and for different cases.

(3) Regulations made under this section shall be laid before Dáil Éireann as soon as may be after they are made and, if a resolution annulling the said regulations is passed by Dáil Éireann within the next 21 days on which Dáil Éireann has sat after the said regulations have been laid before it, the said regulations shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

26. —(1) Any wine in respect of which an offence has been committed under Regulation 5 of the Regulations of 1992, or any goods which are packed with or used in concealing such wine, shall be liable to forfeiture and, where any such products are found in, on or in any manner attached to, any vehicle or other conveyance, the said vehicle or other conveyance shall be deemed to have been made use of in the conveyance of the said wine and shall also be liable to forfeiture.

(2) Any excisable products in respect of which an offence has been committed under Regulation 6 of the Regulations of 1992 or any goods which are packed with or used in concealing such products, shall be liable to forfeiture and, where any such products are found in, on or in any manner attached to, any vehicle or other conveyance, the said vehicle or other conveyance shall be deemed to have been made use of in the conveyance of the said products and shall also be liable to forfeiture.

(3) (a) Any alcoholic liquor in respect of which an offence has been committed under Regulation 20 of the Regulations of 1992, and any vessels, utensils and materials for the production or manufacture of such alcoholic liquor, shall be liable to forfeiture.

(b) In paragraph (a) “alcoholic liquor” includes beer, wine, made wine, cider, perry and spirits.

(4) Any product to which Regulation 23 of the Regulations of 1992 applies in respect of which an offence has been committed under paragraph (6) of that Regulation, and any materials or articles in respect of which the offence has been committed, shall be liable to forfeiture.

27. —(1) (a) Subject to paragraph (b), the provisions of the Customs Acts and of any instrument relating to duties of customs made under statute, and not otherwise applied by the Regulations of 1992, shall, with any necessary modifications, apply in relation to the provisions of those Regulations in respect of excisable products imported into the State as they apply in relation to duties of customs.

(b) Where a provision in the Regulations of 1992 or in Chapter II of Part II of the Finance Act, 1992 , corresponds to a provision of the Customs Acts or of any instrument relating to duties of customs made under statute, the latter provision shall not apply.

(2) (a) Subject to paragraph (b), the provisions of the statutes which relate to the duties of excise and the management thereof and of any instrument relating to duties of excise made under statute, and not otherwise applied by the Regulations of 1992, shall, with any necessary modifications, apply in relation to the provisions of those Regulations in respect of excisable products produced or manufactured in the State as they apply to duties of excise.

(b) Where a provision in the Regulations of 1992 or in Chapter II of Part II of the Finance Act, 1992 , corresponds to a provision of the statutes which relate to the duties of excise or of any instrument relating to the duties of excise made under statute, the latter provision shall not apply.