SB rule 1
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Summary of rule
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Seller to sight travel documents.
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Details of rule
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The seller of the goods must sight:
(a) the purchaser's ticket for travel from Australia to a foreign country, or
(b) if appropriate, a document relating to the purchaser that is an approved document.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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Approve documents: The following documents will provide evidence that a purchaser is about to travel from Australia to a foreign country:
(a) A tour group list. Such a list will be an approved document if it is printed on the tour organiser's letterhead (or is signed by the tour organiser, a tour employee or agent) and if contains:
(i) full name, residential address of the traveller (address is not necessary if it is recorded elsewhere - for example on the invoice)
(ii) passport details (that is, passport number and date of issue) of the traveller
(iii) tour number (if any) and name of tour organiser or operator
(iv) (A) departure details (including ticket number, name of airline or shipping line, flight or voyage number, date and port of departure), or
(B) a copy of a ticket of one of the tour group members (or, if group members are not all taking identical journeys, a copy of a ticket for each type of journey).
(b) Australian Defence Force personnel: Personal identity documents and authorised travel or movement orders issued by the relevant service.
(c) Aircraft and ship's crew: Flight or ship's crew identification, and a departure flight or voyage timetable (if available).
(d) Private flights or voyages: A letter signed by the pilot or captain, setting out the name, address and passport details of the passengers to be carried, as well as the details of the flight or voyage concerned; and a copy of an authorised government transport clearance document or permit for the pilot or captain to depart on that journey to a foreign country.
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Time when the requirements of the rule must be satisfied
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Before the purchaser takes possession of the goods.
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SB rule 2
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Summary of rule
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Purchaser to sign as SB declaration.
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Details of rule
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The purchaser must sign and retain a copy of a declaration (SB declaration) setting out, in the approved form:
(a) details of the purchaser, and the goods purchased, and the proposed journey, and
(b) if the following matters are true, a statement that the purchaser:
(i) intends departing Australia with the goods within 30 days of taking possession
(ii) will not interfere with the goods, the sealed package containing the goods or the copies of the invoice relating to the goods before submitting the sealed package to the seller in accordance with SB rule 7 or 8
(iii) will, in accordance with SB rule 7 or 8, submit the sealed package to the seller for removal of the barrier copy of the invoice
(iv) is aware of the penalty for making a false or misleading statement, and
(c) any other information or statement required by the approved form.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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SB declaration:
A proforma of the SB declaration is attached to and forms part of this determination. The proforma sets out the information and statements required by the Commissioner to be included in each such declaration.
Collection of goods at a date later than purchase:
In some cases, a traveller will purchase goods at a store, but leave the goods there and not collect them until a later date closer to their departure date. For example, a purchase may be made 60 or 90 days before departure, but the traveller is not allowed to collect the goods more than 30 days before departure (see SB rule 5). In these cases, the date of collection of the goods (which will be different from the invoice date) will either:
(i) be recorded on the original declaration retained in the store, or
(ii) on a date collection docket or receipt to be stored with the original declaration.
Use of existing stationary:
Declaration proformas and stationary existing at 30 June 2000 can continue to be used until replaced by updated stationary.
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Time when the requirements for the rule must be satisfied
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Before the purchaser takes possession of the goods.
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SB rule 3
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Summary of rule
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Seller to make an invoice.
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Details of rule
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The seller must make an invoice:
(a) at the time of the sale, and
(b) in an approved form, and
(c) in triplicate, and
(d) containing a full description of the goods.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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Forms of invoice that render obvious an alteration to, or deletion from, the contents of the invoice:
Each invoice must be prepared so as to prevent the addition of further items to the invoice (or copies) after the transaction has been completed. For example, the invoice may be ruled off manually or electronically immediately below the last sale item.
Information to be included in an invoice:
The invoice must contain the following information:
(a) a description sufficient to identify the goods (including brand name and model number, if any)
(b) quantity (in figures) of each item
(c) sale value (in figures) of each item, or quantity of items
(d) the total number of items in the package (to be expressed in words)
(e) the total sales value (in figures) of the invoice
(f) the date
(g) name of seller
(h) address of recipient
(i) ABN of seller.
Special invoice requirements: Each invoice must have a unique number that is one of a series of sequentially numbered invoices. If possible, all invoices in the series relate only to sealed bag sales from that seller.
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Time when the requirements of the rule must be satisfied
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Before the purchaser takes possession of the goods.
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SB rule 4
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Summary of rule
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Seller to retain copies of certain documents.
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Detail of rule
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The seller must retain:
(a) the signed SB declaration, and
(b) a copy of the invoice.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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It also would be prudent to retain a copy of the documents sighted under SB Rule 1 - for example, ticket, passport.
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Time when the requirements of the rule must be satisfied
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Before the purchaser takes possession of the goods.
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SB rule 5
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Summary of rule
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Time is limited within which the purchaser may take possession of the goods.
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Details of rule
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The seller must not pass possession of the goods to the purchaser earlier than the commencement of the 30th calendar day before the specified departure date.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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Advance purchases:
Goods can be purchased more than 30 days before departure, provided that the goods are left at the store and the purchaser does not collect the goods any earlier than the commencement of the 30th calendar day before departure. (See SB Rule 2 - 'Collection of goods at a later date than purchase').
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SB rule 6
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Summary of rule
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Purchaser may only take possession of goods in a sealed package.
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Details of rule
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The seller must not pass possession of the goods to the purchaser unless:
(a) the goods are enclosed in a package that is:
(i) of an approved kind, and
(ii) sealed by an approved method so that the goods cannot be removed from the package without the seal being broken, and
(b) the barrier copy of the invoice is attached to the exterior of the package by an approved method, and
(c) the customer copy of the invoice is placed inside the package by a method that, if possible, enables the invoice to be read without need to break the seal of the package.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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Approved packages:
(a) If the package is small enough to be carried in the cabin of an aircraft, if possible it should enable the customer copy of the invoice to be read without the need to break the seal of the package. Transparent packages are preferred. Some non-transparent printing - for example the store's name and logo, may be printed on the package.
(b) These packages must have a printed warning attached. An example of the warning is set out in the attachment to this determination. Warnings may be on self-adhesive labels that can be attached to packages.
(c) All packages must be sealed using plastic adhesive tape, staples, a heat sealing machine or other appropriate sealing apparatus, plus tamper proof seals.
(d) Tamper proof seals (or sealing tape) must bear the words:
(i) 'GST free goods - to be exported - do not break this seal before export'
(ii) 'Goods under Customs control', or
(iii) similar words to any of the above.
(e)The seals, sealing tape or staples must be placed across each sealed join so as to render access to the contents of the package impossible without the seals being broken.
Sealing packages (Cont'd):
(f) If the package is not small enough to be carried in the cabin of an aircraft, or is to be carried on a ship, a large sticker notice must be placed on the outside of the package, bearing the words: 'Goods to be carried in the hold of an aircraft or on board a ship' (or similar words).
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SB rule 7
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Summary of rule
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Invoice to be retrieved at the point of surrender of goods before the Customs barrier.
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Details of the rule
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If, before the purchaser presents himself or herself to Customs as departing Australia, the purchaser surrenders the sealed package to the carrier with whom the purchaser is to travel, the seller must retrieve the barrier copy of the invoice at the point of surrender of the package.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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While it is not something the Commissioner has power to approve, it is desirable that purchasers present the packages in full view of:
(a) hold luggage check-in staff of the airline, or
(b) the purser or his representative on a ship.
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SB rule 8
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Summary of rule
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Invoice to be retrieved when beyond the Customs barrier.
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Details of rule
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If the purchaser in his or her own possession carries the sealed package beyond the Customs barrier, the purchaser must then surrender the sealed package to the seller and the seller must retrieve the barrier copy of the invoice.
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Time when the requirements of the rule must be satisfied
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After the purchaser presents himself or herself to Customs as departing Australia and before departing on the flight or voyage.
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SB rule 9
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Summary of rule
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Sealed package to be examined.
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Details of the rule
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The seller must examine the sealed package when dealing with it under SB rule 7 or 8 to ascertain whether it:
(a) remains sealed, or
(b) has been tampered with.
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Time when the requirements of the rule must be satisfied
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Immediately before the barrier copy of the invoice is retrieved under SB rule 7 or 8.
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SB rule 10
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Summary of rule
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Tampering or other discrepancy in respect of sealed package is to be notified.
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Details of rule
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The seller must notify the Commissioner as soon as is practicable, in the approved form, if the seller becomes aware that:
(a) a package is no longer sealed, or has otherwise been tampered with, or
(b) the goods enclosed in the package are not the goods described in the customer copy of the invoice or the barrier copy of the invoice, as the case may be.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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Approved procedure for notifying the Commissioner:
(a) The docket collection agency (the agency) detects any tampering or discrepancies, the agency must request the traveller to sign a statement, addressed to the Commissioner, confirming:
(i) the full name, residential address and telephone number of the traveller, and either
(ii) that the package was no longer sealed or tampered with by the traveller, or
(iii) that the goods in the package were not the goods described in the customer copy of the invoice as the case may be.
(b) The agency must ensure that a copy of the SB declaration (showing the same signature of the traveller as the signature on the tampering declaration) must be forwarded to the local branch of the Australian Taxation Office as soon as practicable (that is, within five working days of the date on which the discrepancy was detected.)
(c) As the agency is agent for the seller, it is desirable that the agency also informs the seller of any tampering or discrepancies.
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SB rule 11
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Summary of rule
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Retrieved invoices must be validated.
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Details of rule
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The seller must validate a retrieved barrier copy of an invoice:
(a) as soon as is practicable, and
(b) by the approved method.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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Approved method of validating invoices:
When a barrier copy of an invoice is collected by the docket collection agency (the agency), it will be validated when the following requirements are satisfied:
(a) The agency makes an electronic record of the identifying numbers of the retrieved barrier copies of the invoices within 10 working days of the actual day of departure of the traveller on a flight or voyage that departed from Australia. It is important to note that barrier copies of invoices from packages that have been tampered with (see SB rule 10) are not to be included in the electronic record.
(b) The agency produces (by the 15th day of the following month) a computer-generated document listing the invoice numbers of dockets collected in the previous month. This listing (referred to as the 'collection list') is either:
(i) a simple list of all invoice numbers from each seller, or
(ii) a reconciliation of invoices from those sellers that provide advance notification of sales prior to departure of the travellers concerned.
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SB rule 12
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Summary of rule
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Invoices must be matched.
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Details of rule
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The seller must reconcile the retrieved barrier copy of an invoice against the seller's copy of the invoice, by an approved method.
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What the Commissioner has approved
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Approved methods of reconciling invoices:
Barrier copies of invoices will be treated as having been reconciled against the seller's copies of invoices when all of the following requirements are satisfied:
(a) The seller has received a collection list from the docket collection agency (the agency).
(b) The collection list is on the authorised letterhead of the agency, or is stamped or perforated by a unique stamping or perforating device that is approved by the Commissioner, and that is permanently held at the offices of the agency.
(c) The seller is able to match the seller's copies of invoices against the invoice number of the collection list. Subject to (d) below, invoices with numbers matching those on the collection list are considered to be reconciled.
(d) No alterations have been made to the seller's copy of the invoice since the time of the original transaction.
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Last Modified: Thursday, 7 July 2011