Import Duties (General) (No. 5) Order 1974

JurisdictionUK Non-devolved
CitationSI 2020/1974

1974 No. 2020

CUSTOMS AND EXCISE

The Import Duties (General) (No. 5) Order 1974

4thDecember 1974

6thDecember 1974

1stJanuary 1975

The Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury, by virtue of the powers conferred upon them by sections 1, 2 and 13 of the Import Duties Act 1958(a), as amended (b), and of all other powers enabling them in that behalf, on the recommendation of the Secretary of State(c), hereby make the following Order:—

Citation, operation, interpretation

1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the Import Duties (General) (No. 5) Order 1974 and shall come into operation on 1st January 1975.

(2) The Interpretation Act 1889(d) shall apply for the interpretation of this Order as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of Parliament and as if this Order and the Orders hereby revoked were Acts of Parliament.

(3) This Order does not increase duties of customs otherwise than in pursuance of a Community obligation.

Classification of goods for duty purposes

2.—(1) The form of customs tariff set out in columns 1 and 2 of Schedule 1 to this Order (being the form prescribed by the Import Duties (General) (No.8) Order 1973(e) as amended by subsequent Orders under the Import Duties Act 1958(f), and with other amendments required to give effect to Community obligations) may continue to be referred to as the Customs Tariff 1959 and to be used in classifying goods for customs purposes in cases where some other method is not required under or by virtue of any enactment.

(2) The form so set out shall be interpreted and applied in accordance with the Interpretative Rules preceding it in the said Schedule 1, but the "Index of General Definitions etc." appended to those rules shall not be taken as part of that form or affect its interpretation.

(a) 1958 c.6.

(b) See section 5(5) of, and paragraph 1 of Schedule 4 to, the European Communities Act 1972 (c. 68).

(c) See S.I. 1970/1537 (1970 III, p. 5293).

(d) 1889 c. 63.

(e) S.I. 1973/1845 (1973 III, p. 5609).

(f) See the Import Duties Orders revoked by Article 10 of this Order.

(3) Where goods are to be classified in accordance with that form and the classification depends on the rate of duty, then, unless the contrary intention appears, account shall be taken of all import duty and revenue duty for the time being chargeable, and the classification shall be made by reference to the total amount chargeable on the goods at the full rate of import duty (as defined in Article 3(1) below), if any, and the full rate of revenue duty, if any.

Rates of import duty:

(a) The full rate

3.—(1) Where in relation to any heading or subheading in Schedule 1 to this Order a rate of import duty is shown in column 3 not prefixed by a letter or prefixed by the letter "F", then, on the import into the United Kingdom of goods classified in that heading or subheading, there shall be charged an import duty at the rate so shown (herein referred to as the "full rate") unless the goods are exempt from or relieved from import duty or subject to duty at a lower rate by virtue of paragraph (2) of this Article or the provisions of Articles 4 to 8 (below):

Provided that, where a rate of import duty specified in Schedule 1 hereto in relation to any goods is equal to the rate of customs duty applicable to those goods under the Common Customs Tariff of the European Communities and that customs duty is charged in the United Kingdom by virtue of section 5(1) of the European Communities Act 1972, the import duty shall not be regarded as charged by virtue of this Order and the reference to it in the said Schedule 1 shall be treated as merely indicative of the rate of customs duty charged as aforesaid.

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding paragraph or any provision of Articles 4 to 8 below, in the case of goods which fall within a heading or subheading specified in column 1 of any Part of Schedule 2 hereto and are of a description specified in column 2 thereof (being goods temporarily exempt or goods relieved from import duty on 1st January 1972) import duty shall be charged at the rate, if any, shown in relation to the goods in column 3 of that Schedule.

(3) For the purposes of the preceding paragraph any description of goods in column 2 of Schedule 2 hereto (other than one covering a whole heading or subheading) shall be taken to include all goods which it would include if it were a subheading of the relevant heading and were accordingly subject to the Interpretative Rules in Schedule 1 hereto.

(b) Goods entitled to benefit from the eventual abolition of customs duties in trade between the United Kingdom and other member States of the European Communities.

4. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 5 below, in the case of goods which satisfy the requisite conditions to benefit from Regulation (EEC) 385/73(a) (relating to goods entitled to benefit from the eventual abolition of customs duties in trade between the United Kingdom and the other member States of the European Communities) import duty shall be charged at the rate, if any, shown in relation to the goods in column 4 of Schedule 1 hereto prefixed by the letter "M".

(c) Maintenance of pre-accession duty-free or preferential treatment for the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands and Denmark

5.—(1) No import duty shall be charged in the case of goods of the Republic of Ireland or in the case of goods of the Channel Islands.

(a) O.J. No. L42, 14.2.1973, p.1.

(2) No import duty shall be charged in the case of goods of Denmark unless a rate is shown in relation to the goods in column 4 of Schedule 1 hereto prefixed by the letter "D", in which case duty shall be charged at the rate so shown, or unless "D†" is shown in the said column.

(3) An entry in the form "D†" in column 4 of Schedule 1 hereto denotes a subheading in relation to goods which are of a description specified in column 2 of Part I of Schedule 3 hereto and for which a rate is shown in column 3 of the said Part I prefixed by "D" and duty shall be charged at the rate so shown.

(4) For the purposes of this Article, any description of goods in column 2 of Schedule 3 hereto (other than one covering a whole heading or subheading) shall be taken to include all goods which it would include if it were a heading or subheading and were accordingly subject to the Interpretative Rules in Schedule 1.

(d) E.F.T.A. Countries

6.—(1) In this Article—

"the EEC Agreements" means the Agreements, signed on 22nd July 1972, between the European Economic Community and respectively, Austria, Iceland, Portugal, Sweden and Switzerland, the Agreement, signed on 14th May 1973, between the Community and Norway and the Agreement, signed on 5th October 1973, between the Community and Finland(a);

"the ECSC Agreements" means the Agreements signed on the said days between the member States of the European Coal and Steel Community and the said Community of the one part and respectively, Austria, Portugal, Sweden, Norway and Finland of the other part and between the member States of the said Community and, respectively, Iceland and Switzerland(b);

references to "the Agreements" are references to the EEC Agreements and the ECSC Agreements; and

references to Article 25(1) of Protocol No. 3 (relating to origin of goods) to all or any of the EEC agreements are references to that Article as amended(c) and references to goods (other than in paragraph (5)) which satisfy the provisions of Article 25(1) include goods which satisfy the provisions relating to origin of goods in the relevant ECSC Agreement.

(2) In the case of goods which—

(i) satisfy the provisions of Article 25(1) of Protocol No. 3 to the Agreements or,

(ii) not being goods of a class to which the Agreements apply, are goods of one of the aforementioned countries

no import duty shall be charged unless a rate is shown in relation to the goods in column 4 of Schedule 1 hereto prefixed by the letter "E", in which case duty shall be charged at the rate so shown, or unless "E†" is shown in the said column.

(3) An entry in the form "E†" in column 4 of Schedule 1 hereto denotes a subheading in relation to goods which are of a description specified in column 2 of Part I of Schedule 3 hereto and for which a rate or rates are shown in column 3 of the said Part I and duty shall be charged at the rate so shown, if any:

Provided that where two rates are shown duty shall be charged at the rate not prefixed by "D".

(a) The Agreements with Austria, Iceland, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway and Finland are annexed respectively to Regulations (EEC) Nos. 2836/72 (O.J. No. L300, p. 1), 2842/72 (O. J. No. L301, p. 1), 2844/72 (O.J. No. L301, p. 166), 2838/72 (O.J. No. L300, p. 96), 2840/72 (O.J. No. L300, p. 188), 1691/73 (O.J. No. L171 p. 1) and 3177/73 (O.J. No. L328, p. 1).

(b) See O.J. No. L350, pp. 33, 53, 76, Cmnd. 5347, Cmnd. 5472, and O.J. No. L350, pp. 2 and 13.

(c) See Regulations (EEC) Nos. 3353/73 (O.J. No. L347, p. 12), 3354/73 (O.J. No. L347, p. 18), 3355/73 (O.J. No. L347, p. 24), 3356/73 (O.J. No. L347, p. 30), 3357/73 (O.J. No. L347, p. 36), 3358/73 (O.J. No. L347 p. 42) and 840/74 (O.J. No. L102, p. 1).

(4) In the case of goods of a class to which the Agreements apply which are to be regarded as originating products under the Agreements but do not satisfy the provisions of Article 25(1) of Protocol No. 3 to the Agreements, the following provisions shall apply—

(i) if such goods fall within a heading or subheading specified in column 1 of Part II of Schedule 3 hereto and, where a description is specified in column 2 thereof, are of that description, import duty shall be charged at the relevant rate specified in column 3 of the said Part II, and

(ii) if such goods fall within a heading or subheading specified in Part III of Schedule 3 hereto and, where a description is specified in column 2 thereof, are of that description, import duty shall be charged at the rate, if any, prefixed by the letter "M" in the heading or...

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