ATO Interpretative Decision

ATO ID 2004/198 (Withdrawn)

Excise

• This ATO ID is withdrawn from 1 April 2015 because the Excise Regulations 1925 were repealed with effect from 1 April 2015. Despite its withdrawal this ATO ID continues to be a precedential ATO view in respect of paragraph 50(1)(k) of the Excise Regulations 1925 prior to the repeal of the Regulations.
  This document incorporates revisions made since original publication. View its history and amending notices, if applicable.

Issue

Does the term 'the brewery at which the beer was made' in paragraph 50(1)(k) of the Excise Regulations 1925 refer to the physical place where particular beer was made rather than any brewing premises owned by the entity that made the beer?

Decision

Yes. The term 'the brewery at which the beer was made' in paragraph 50(1)(k) of the Excise Regulations refers to the physical place where the particular beer was made. It does not refer to any brewing premises owned by the entity that made the beer.

Facts

A brewer manufactures a quantity of beer at a particular brewery site.

The brewer enters the beer for home consumption and pays the requisite duty.

The brewer returns the beer to a different brewery site from the site where the beer was made. Both sites are operated by the same brewer.

The brewer seeks a refund of duty under section 78 of the Excise Act 1901.

Reasons for Decision

Section 78 of the Excise Act allows for refunds of excise duty in such circumstances and such conditions as are prescribed. The regulations governing refunds are contained in Part III of the Excise Regulations.

Paragraph 50(1)(k) of the Excise Regulations specifies that a refund of duty is payable where:

(k)

beer on which Excise duty has been paid (being beer contained in a bulk container):

(i)

is returned to the brewery at which it was made in the bulk container in which it was contained when it was removed from the brewery;

Regulation 56 of the Excise Regulations imposes further conditions that must be satisfied in order for a refund to be available, and also uses the words '... returned to the brewery at which it was made ...'

The words 'the brewery at which it was made' suggest a physical requirement. If the intention was to accept any brewing premises owned by a particular brewer as being 'the brewery', then it would have been more appropriate to use the words 'the brewer who made the beer' or 'brewing premises owned by the brewer' rather than the existing words 'the brewery at which it was made'.

Therefore, the words 'the brewery at which it was made' refer to the actual physical premises at which the beer was made.

Amendment History

Legislative References:
Excise Act 1901
   section 78

Related ATO Interpretative Decisions
ATO ID 2004/199

Keywords
Alcohol excise
Beer excise
Excise
Excise collections

Business Line:  Indirect Tax

Date of publication:  5 March 2004

ISSN: 1445-2782