States of Malaya Customs Duties Collection Act 1958

States of Malaya Customs Duties
Collection Act 1958

2020 REVISED EDITION

This revised edition incorporates all amendments up to and including 1 December 2021 and comes into operation on 31 December 2021

An Act to enable the government of Malaysia to collect Federal customs duties within Singapore.

[11 February 1959]

PART 1

PRELIMINARY

Short title

1.  This Act is the States of Malaya Customs Duties Collection Act 1958.

Interpretation

2.  In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“aircraft” includes any kind of craft which may be used for the conveyance of passengers or goods by air;

“collection station” means a station or other place established by the President under section 8;

“Collector” means any officer appointed by the President to be the Collector of Federal Customs Duties under section 3(1);

“customs duty” means any import duty, export duty, surtax or cess imposed by or under the Customs Act 1967 (M. 235 (1980)) of Malaysia or any other written law in force in Malaysia and includes any royalty payable in lieu of an export duty under any written law or a contract, lease or agreement to which the government of Malaysia or of any State within Malaysia is a party or to which such government has consented;

“dutiable goods” means all goods which are subject to the payment of customs duty on import into or export from Malaysia and on which such duty has not yet been paid;

“export”, with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, means to take or cause to be taken out of Malaysia by land or air, otherwise than by post;

“exporter” includes any owner or other person for the time being beneficially interested in any goods at the time at which such goods enter Singapore from Malaysia by land or air;

“Federal Customs Officer” means any officer whose appointment is approved under section 5;

“Federal officer of customs” means —

(a) any Collector;

(b) any Federal Superintendent of Customs and Excise; and

(c) any Federal Customs Officer;

“Federal Superintendent of Customs and Excise” means any officer appointed by the President under section 3(2);

“goods” includes animals, birds, fish, plants and all kinds of movable property;

“import”, with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, means to take or cause to be taken into Malaysia by land, air or post;

“importer” includes any person, company, firm, society or other body of persons in Malaysia to whom, or to which, goods are consigned by land, air or post;

“other charges” includes warehouse rent, weighing fees, handling charges and overtime fees, and any other moneys payable under the provisions of this Act or any regulations made thereunder, except customs duty;

“passenger” means a person travelling by railway or aircraft from Singapore to Malaysia or vice versa;

“prohibited goods” means goods the import of which into or the export of which from Malaysia is prohibited either absolutely or conditionally by any written law for the time being in force in Malaysia;

“railway” has the same meaning as in the Railways Act 1905;

“value”, in relation to goods declared for import, means the price which an importer would give at the time of declaration for import for the goods on a purchase in the open market if the goods were delivered to him at the place of payment of customs duty and if freight, insurance, commission and all other costs, charges and expenses (except any customs duty) incidental to the purchase and delivery at such place had been paid.

PART 2

APPOINTMENTS AND POWERS OF OFFICERS

Appointment of Collector and Federal Superintendents of Customs and Excise

3.—(1)  The President may, on the nomination of the Yang di‑Pertuan Agong, by notification in the Gazette, appoint an officer to be the Collector of Federal Customs Duties who shall be in charge of all collection stations and have the superintendence of all matters relating thereto.

(2)  The President may, on the nomination of the Yang di‑Pertuan Agong, by notification in the Gazette, appoint so many officers as he may consider necessary to be Federal Superintendents of Customs and Excise for the purpose of this Act.

Powers of Collector and Federal Superintendents

4.  The Collector and all Federal Superintendents of Customs and Excise shall have and exercise all the powers conferred by this Act on Federal Superintendents of Customs and Excise and Federal Customs Officers.

Appointment of Federal Customs Officers

5.  The President may approve the appointment by the Yang di‑Pertuan Agong of officers to be Federal Customs Officers and any such officer shall by virtue of such approval have and exercise all the powers conferred by this Act on Federal Customs Officers.

Officers to be public servants

6.  The Collector, all Federal Superintendents of Customs and Excise and all Federal Customs Officers appointed or approved under the provisions of this Act shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of the Penal Code 1871.

Authority cards to be produced

7.—(1)  Every Federal officer of customs when acting against any person under this Act shall, if not in uniform, on demand declare his office and produce to the person against whom he is acting such authority card as the Collector may direct to be carried by that officer.

(2)  It shall not be an offence for any person to refuse to comply with any request, demand or order made by any Federal officer of customs acting or purporting to act under this Act if that officer is not in uniform and refuses to declare his office and produce his authority card, on demand being made by that person.

PART 3

ESTABLISHMENT OF COLLECTION STATIONS

Establishment of collection stations

8.—(1)  The President may, in accordance with a request of the Yang di‑Pertuan Agong, establish collection stations in order to facilitate —

(a) the collection of customs duty and other charges on goods exported from or to be imported into Malaysia;

(b) the conduct of any other business and the exercise of any powers conferred by the provisions of this Act.

(2)  A Federal officer of customs may collect at any collection station the customs duty and other charges due to the government of Malaysia on the import or export of goods and all moneys so collected shall be paid into the general revenue of Malaysia.

Valuation of goods

9.—(1)  For the purpose of ascertaining the customs duty, if any, leviable thereon, any Federal officer of customs may value, weigh, measure, or otherwise examine, or cause to be valued, weighed, measured or otherwise examined any goods or passengers’ baggage delivered to a collection station.

(2)  When a valuation of any goods has been made by a Federal officer of customs, the valuation shall be presumed to be correct until the contrary is proved.

Return of customs duty or other charges overpaid

10.  It shall be lawful for the Collector, if it is proved to his satisfaction that any money has been overpaid as customs duty or other charges under this Act, to order the refund of the money so overpaid:

Provided that no such refund shall be allowed unless a claim in respect thereof is made within one year after the overpayment was made.

Payment of customs duty, etc., short paid or erroneously refunded

11.—(1)  Whenever —

(a) through inadvertence, error, collusion or misconstruction on the part of any Federal officer of customs, or through misstatement as to value, quantity or description by any person, or for any other reason, the whole or any part of any customs duty or other charges payable under this Act has not been paid; or

(b) the whole or any part of such customs duty or other charges, after having been paid, has been, owing to any cause, erroneously refunded,

the person liable to pay such customs duty or other charges or the person to whom such refund has erroneously been made, as the case may be, shall pay the deficiency or repay the amount paid to him in excess, on demand being made within 12 months from the date on which customs duty was payable or deficient customs duty was paid or the refund was made, as the case may be, and without prejudice to any other remedy for the recovery of the amount due, any dutiable goods belonging to that person which may be in any collection station may be detained until the customs duty or deficiency is paid or the refund is repaid, as the case may be.

(2)  When any goods have been detained in accordance with subsection (1), the Collector may after giving not less than 14 days’ notice in writing to the owner (if the name and address of the owner are known to him), or after giving not less than 14 days’ notice in the Gazette (if the name and address of the owner are not known to him) sell the goods.

(3)  The proceeds of the sale of any such goods shall be applied to the payment of the charges that have been occasioned by the sale and of the customs duty and other charges leviable in accordance with subsection (1), and the surplus, if any, shall be paid to the owner of such goods, and if the owner cannot be found within one month of the sale, the surplus shall be paid to the general revenue of Malaysia.

(4)  If at the sale of any such goods no sufficient bid is forthcoming to satisfy the customs duty and charges which are due in respect of the goods, the goods shall be forfeited to the government of Malaysia and shall be disposed of in such manner as the Collector may direct.

Abatement of customs duty

12.  After payment of customs duty, no abatement of such duty shall be allowed on any goods on account of damage, or on account of any claim —

(a) to pay duty at a preferential rate; or

(b) that the weight, measure, volume or value as determined by a Federal officer of customs for the purpose of ascertaining the duty on the goods or any other factor affecting the goods is incorrect,

unless notice in writing of the claim has been given at or before the time of the payment of the customs duty.

Calculation of customs duty

13.  The rate of customs duty and the valuation, if any, applicable to any dutiable goods shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of the Customs Act 1967 (M. 235 (1980)) of Malaysia or any other Act of Malaysia amending or replacing that Act.

PART 4

DECLARATION OF GOODS AND PAYMENT OF CUSTOMS DUTY

Declaration of goods imported and payment of duty

14.—(1)  Subject to this Act, goods to be imported into Malaysia through a collection station shall not be loaded for despatch at or through the collection station until the importer or the consignor has, personally or by his agent —

(a) made to a Federal officer of customs at the collection station a declaration in the prescribed form giving particulars of the goods to be imported; and

(b) paid any import duty and other charges leviable on such goods:

Provided that such declaration and payment of import duty shall not be required if the owner of any goods to be imported through a collection station consents, either personally or by his agent, to consign the goods in a manner satisfactory to a Federal officer of customs to a customs warehouse or a licensed warehouse in Malaysia established in accordance with the law of Malaysia.

(2)  Every passenger shall at a collection station or at any point between the Malayan Railway Station at Keppel Road, Singapore and the limits of Singapore declare to a Federal officer of customs all dutiable or prohibited goods in his possession, either on his person or in any baggage and shall pay any import duty leviable thereon.

Declaration of goods exported and payment of duty

15.—(1)  Whenever goods are exported through a collection station, the exporter or the consignee thereof shall make, personally or by his agent, to a Federal officer of customs at the collection station a declaration in the prescribed form, giving particulars of the goods exported, and shall pay to the Federal officer of customs any export duty and other charges leviable on the goods:

Provided that such declaration shall not be required in respect of any goods on which it is shown to the satisfaction of a Federal officer of customs that export duty has been paid at a customs station in Malaysia prior to the export of the goods.

(2)  A Federal officer of customs may refuse delivery of any goods exported through a collection station until the export duty and other charges leviable on the goods have been paid.

(3)  If the export duty payable in respect of such goods is not paid within 3 months from the time when possession of them was taken by a Federal officer of customs, the goods shall be sold by public auction, and the proceeds of the sale thereof shall be applied in payment of the charges that have been occasioned by the sale and of the export duty and other charges leviable in accordance with subsection (1), and the surplus thereof, if any, shall be paid to the owner of the goods, and if the owner cannot be found within one month of the sale, the surplus shall be paid to the general revenue of Malaysia.

(4)  Particulars of any intended sale shall be published in the Gazette not less than 14 days prior to the date of the sale.

(5)  If at the sale of any such goods no sufficient bid is forthcoming to defray the export duty and charges which are due in respect of the goods, the goods shall be forfeited to the government of Malaysia and shall be disposed of in such manner as the Collector may direct.

Control of agents

16.—(1)  No person shall act as agent for transacting business relating to the import or export through a collection station of any goods except with the permission of the Collector.

(2)  When any person applies to the Collector for permission to act as agent on behalf of another person, the Collector may require the applicant to produce a written authority from the person on whose behalf he is to act and in default of that authority the Collector may refuse such permission.

(3)  Before granting such permission, the Collector may require the agent to give such security as he may consider adequate for the faithful and incorrupt conduct of the agent and of his clerks acting for him both as regards the customs and his employers.

(4)  The Collector may suspend or cancel any permission granted under this section, if the agent commits any breach of this Act or of any regulations made thereunder or if he fails to comply with any direction given by a Federal officer of customs with regard to the business transacted by the agent.

(5)  Any person who acts as agent when permission has not been granted to him under this section or while such permission is cancelled or suspended, or who makes or causes to be made a declaration of any goods without being duly authorised for that purpose by the importer or exporter or consignor or consignee of the goods shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $500.

(6)  The clerk or employee of any person or firm may transact business generally at any collection station on behalf of that person or firm:

Provided that the Collector may refuse to transact business with such clerk or employee unless the person or a member of the firm identifies the clerk or employee to the Collector as empowered to transact the business and deposits with the Collector a signed authority authorising the clerk or employee to transact such business on behalf of that person or firm.

PART 5

DUTIABLE GOODS IMPORTED BY POST

Examination of postal articles

17.—(1)  All postal articles consigned to Malaysia, whether posted within Singapore or elsewhere, may by arrangement with a duly authorised officer of a public postal licensee, be examined while in the custody of the public postal licensee by any Federal officer of customs, and may be opened by an officer of that public postal licensee in the presence of a Federal officer of customs for the purpose of such examination.

(2)  In this section, “public postal licensee” has the meaning given by the Postal Services Act 1999.

[12/92]

Assessment of customs duty

18.  When any postal article consigned to Malaysia is found to contain any dutiable goods, a Federal officer of customs may assess the amount of customs duty leviable thereon.

Forfeiture of postal articles containing undeclared dutiable goods

19.—(1)  Any postal article consigned to Malaysia found upon examination to contain dutiable goods, that postal article not having affixed thereto a true declaration of such goods, shall be liable to forfeiture by order of the Collector.

(2)  A Federal Superintendent of Customs and Excise may compound the offence by accepting from the addressee or consignor of any postal article liable to forfeiture under subsection (1) a sum not exceeding $500 and shall thereupon release that article on payment of the customs duty due thereon.

Application

20.  The provisions of this Act relating to —

(a) levy of import duty;

(b) search and seizure;

(c) trials and proceedings; and

(d) offences and penalties,

shall apply so far as the same can be made applicable and are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Part to the importation of goods by post and to goods imported by post.

PART 6

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Documents in support of declaration to be produced

21.  On demand of a Federal officer of customs, the importer or exporter or consignor or consignee of any goods or his agent shall produce to such officer all invoices, certificates of origin or of analysis and any other document which that officer may require to test the accuracy of any declaration made by the importer or exporter or consignor or consignee or agent to any Federal officer of customs.

Taking of samples

22.—(1)  A Federal officer of customs may at any time, if his duty so requires, take samples of any goods in a collection station in order to ascertain whether they are goods of a description liable to customs duty, or to ascertain the customs duty payable on such goods or for such other purpose as a Federal Superintendent of Customs and Excise may think necessary for the purpose of this Act.

(2)  No payment shall be made for the cost of any sample taken, but the Federal officer of customs shall, on demand, give a receipt for any such sample.

(3)  Any sample taken in accordance with subsection (1) shall be disposed of in such manner as the Collector shall direct.

Weighing and handling charges

23.  All necessary operations relating to the loading, unloading, carrying, weighing, opening, unpacking, repacking, bulking, sorting and marking of goods or passengers’ baggage in a collection station shall be performed by or at the expense of the owner, importer, exporter, consignor, consignee or agent, as the case may be:

Provided that a Federal Superintendent of Customs and Excise may at his discretion direct that any such operation be performed by Federal Customs Officers or by any other person under his control, and in any such case the operation shall be performed at the expense of the owner, importer, exporter, consignor, consignee or agent, as the case may be.

Powers while in transit in relation to baggage

24.  Any Federal officer of customs may in any railway at any point between the Malayan Railway Station at Keppel Road, Singapore and the limits of Singapore exercise in respect of any passenger and the goods and baggage of any passenger in such railway all the powers and perform all the duties which he is authorised by this Act to exercise or perform at a collection station.

Protection of government of Malaysia and Federal officers of customs from liability

25.  Neither the government of Malaysia nor any Federal officer of customs nor any other person employed in connection with the Malaysia Customs shall be liable to make good any loss sustained in respect of any goods by fire, theft, damage or any other cause while the goods are in any collection station or in the lawful custody or control of any Federal officer of customs or of any person employed in connection with the Malaysia Customs unless the loss is caused by the wilful neglect or default of such officer or employee.

Lien over goods deposited

26.—(1)  When any goods have been deposited in a collection station for a period exceeding 4 days reckoned from the date of deposit, the Collector may remove them to such place as he may in his discretion think fit and the Collector shall have a lien on the goods for any expenses incurred.

(2)  If any goods are not cleared —

(a) from a collection station; or

(b) from any place to which the Collector has removed them in accordance with subsection (1),

within a period of one month reckoned from the date of deposit of the goods, the Collector may, after giving not less than 14 days’ notice in writing to the owner (if the name and address of the owner are known to him) or after giving not less than 14 days’ notice in the Gazette (if the name and address of the owner are not known to him), sell the goods.

(3)  The proceeds of the sale of any such goods shall be applied to the payment of the charges that have been occasioned by the sale and of any customs duty and other charges which may be due in respect of the goods or any other goods deposited in a collection station by or on behalf of the consignor of the goods, and the surplus, if any, shall be paid to the owner of the goods, and if the owner cannot be found within one month of the sale, the surplus shall be paid into the general revenue of Malaysia.

(4)  If at the sale of any such goods no sufficient bid is forthcoming to defray the customs duty and charges which are due in respect of the goods, the goods shall be forfeited to the government of Malaysia and shall be disposed of in such manner as the Collector may direct.