Australian Government

Federal Register of Legislation

Excise Act 1901

In force

Administered by

Department of the Treasury

Latest version

C2024C00486 (C66)

14 October 2024

Table of contents

Part I—Introductory
- 1 Short title
- 2 Commencement
- 4 Definitions
- 4AAA Act not to apply so as to exceed Commonwealth power
- 4A Certain installations to be part of Australia
- 5 Penalty at foot of sections
- 6 Application of Act
- 6A How this Act applies to partnerships
- 6B Application of the Criminal Code
Part II—Administration
- 7 General administration of Act
- 8 Delegation by Minister
- 15 Time for compliance with this Act
- 16 Right to require security
- 17 Form of security
- 18 General security may be given
- 19 Cancellation of bonds
- 20 New sureties
- 21 Form of security
- 22 Effect of security
- 24 Excisable goods and goods liable to duties of Customs may be used in manufacturing excisable goods
Part III—Manufacturers, producers and dealers
- Division 1—Manufacturers
- Division 2—Producers
- 28 Only licensed producers to produce tobacco leaf etc.
- 29 Licensed producers to produce in accordance with Act and licence
- 30 Licensed producers to store tobacco leaf etc. at licensed premises
- 31 Licensed producers to produce tobacco leaf etc. at licensed premises
- Division 3—Dealers
- 33 Only licensed dealers to deal in tobacco leaf etc.
- 34 Licensed dealers to deal in accordance with Act and licence
- 35 Licensed dealers to store tobacco leaf etc. at licensed premises
- 36 Licensed dealers to deal in tobacco leaf etc. at licensed premises
Part IV—Manufacturer, storage, producer and dealer licences
- Division 1AA—Kinds of licences
  - 38 Kinds of licences
  - 38A Premises that licences may cover
- Division 1—Applications for licences
  - 39 Applications for licences
- Division 2—The granting of licences
- Division 3—Conditions and duration of licences
- Division 3A—Variation of licences to include additional premises
  - 39FA Application for variation
  - 39FB Variation of licence
- Division 4—Suspension and cancellation of licences
- Division 5—Dealing with goods after cancellation etc.
  - 39M Removal of goods if licence ceases to be in force or is varied
  - 39N Removal of goods by Collector if licence ceases to be in force or is varied
- Division 6—Miscellaneous
Part IVA—Control of tobacco seed, plant and leaf
- 44 Permission to move tobacco seed, tobacco plant and tobacco leaf
Part V—Excise supervision, manufacturers’ books, and regulation of factories generally
- 46 Supervision by officers
- 49 Facilities to officers
- 50 Record keeping
- 51 Collector may give directions
- 52 Weights and scales
- 53 Responsibility of manufacturers
Part VI—Payment of duty, removal of excisable goods from factories, and excise control
- 54 Liability to pay duty
- 54A Liability of Commonwealth authorities to pay Excise duty
- 55 Transfer of partly made goods
- 58 Entry for home consumption etc.
- 59 Payment of duty
- 59A Declared period quotas—effect on rates of Excise duty
- 59AA Payment of duty by relevant travellers
- 59B Revocation and variation of quota orders
- 59C Service of quota orders etc.
- 60 Persons to keep excisable goods safely etc.
- 61 Control of excisable goods
- 61AA Delivery for exportation
- 61A Permission to remove goods that are subject to CEO’s control
- 61B Removal of goods to a warehouse by a Collector
- 61C Permission to deliver certain goods for home consumption without entry
- 61D Outwards duty free shops
- 61E Inwards duty free shops
- 62 Deficiency in duty
- 63 Power to prescribe scales for calculating quantities of excisable goods produced
- 64 Delivery of samples free of duty
- 65 Rules for working out the volume or weight etc. of excisable goods
Part VII—Special provisions relating to tobacco
- 66 Payment of duty relating to tobacco goods
- 67 General interest charge on unpaid duty
- 68 Tobacco not manufactured in certain circumstances
- 75 Destruction of waste tobacco
- 76 Limitation of amount of moisture in tobacco
- 77 How moisture determined
- 77AA Tobacco leaf stock may be checked
Part VIIA—Special provisions relating to alcoholic beverages
- 77A Definitions
- 77D Spoilt beer
- 77E Removal of beer if licence ceases to be in force or is varied to no longer cover a particular brewery
- 77F Disposal of beer by Collector if licence ceases to be in force or is varied
- 77FA Excise duty to be paid according to labelled alcoholic strength of certain beverages
- 77FC Repackaged beer
Part VIIAA—Special provisions relating to spirits
- 77FD Spirit for fortifying Australian wine or Australian grape must
- 77FE Spirit for an industrial, manufacturing, scientific, medical, veterinary or educational purpose—class determinations
- 77FF Spirit for an industrial, manufacturing, scientific, medical, veterinary or educational purpose—specific approvals
- 77FG Denatured spirits
- 77FH When an amount is payable on spirit covered by section 77FD, 77FE or 77FF
- 77FI Delivery from CEO’s control of brandy, whisky or rum
- 77FJ Person must not abstract denaturing substances in spirit classified to subitem 3.8
- 77FK Offence in relation to stills
- 77FL Offence in relation to describing spirits as “old” or “very old”
- 77FM Spirit blending is to be treated as manufacture
Part VIIB—Special provisions relating to fuel
- 77G Fuel blending is to be treated as manufacture
- 77H Blending exemptions
- 77HA Compressed natural gas that is exempt from excise duty
- 77HB Liquefied petroleum gas and liquefied natural gas that is exempt from excise duty
- 77J Goods that are not covered by subitem 10.25, 10.26, 10.27, 10.28 or 10.30
- 77K Crude oil and condensate may attract more than one excise duty
- 77L Notice requirements for sales or supplies of LPG to which an LPG remission applies
- 77M Penalty for using LPG for excisable LPG use
Part VIII—Remissions, refunds, rebates and drawbacks
- 78 Remissions, rebates and refunds
- 79 Drawbacks
- 80 Recovery of overpayments of refunds, rebates and drawbacks
- 81 Certain interest not payable
Part IX—Officers
- Division 1—Powers of officers
- Division 1A—Search and seizure
- Subdivision A—Preliminary
- Subdivision B—Search warrants in respect of things believed to be evidential material
- Subdivision C—Seizure of goods believed to be forfeited goods
  - 107CA When seizure warrants can be issued
  - 107CB The things that are authorised by seizure warrants
- Subdivision D—Provisions applicable both to search and seizure warrants
- Subdivision E—Dealing with things seized as evidential material under a search warrant or section 9 of the Crimes Act 1914
  - 107EA Retention of things seized under a search warrant etc.
  - 107EB Magistrate may permit a thing seized under a search warrant etc. to be retained
- Subdivision F—Dealing with forfeited goods seized under a seizure warrant or section 9 of the Crimes Act 1914
- Subdivision G—Miscellaneous
- Division 2—Protection to officers
- 108 Reasonable cause for seizure a bar to action
- 109 Notice of action to be given
- 110 Defect in notice not to invalidate
- 111 No evidence to be produced but that contained in notice
- 112 Officer may tender amends
- 113 Commencement of proceedings against officers
- 114 Time for commencing action
- 115 Security may be required
Part X—Penal provisions
- 116 Forfeiture
- 117 Unlawful possession of excisable goods
- 117A Unlawfully moving excisable goods
- 117B Unlawfully selling excisable goods
- 117BA Unlawfully selling LPG that is used for an excisable LPG use
- 117D Unlawfully moving tobacco leaf
- 117I Counterfeit tobacco labels
- 118 Illegal prevention of seizures
- 120 Offences
- 124 Collusive seizures penalty
- 127A Alternative penalties
- 128 Penalties in addition to forfeitures
Part XA—Penalty instead of prosecution
- 129A Purpose and effect of this Part
- 129B When an infringement notice may be issued
- 129C Matters to be included in an infringement notice
- 129D Due date for penalty
- 129E Effect of payment of penalty
- 129F Withdrawal of infringement notice
Part XI—Excise prosecutions
- 133 Meaning of Excise prosecution
- 134 Institution of prosecutions
- 136 Prosecution in accordance with practice rules
- 137 State Court practice
- 138 Commencement of prosecutions
- 139 Information etc. to be valid etc. if in words of Act
- 140 No objections for informality
- 141 Conviction not to be quashed
- 142 Protection to witnesses
- 143 Defendant a competent witness
- 144 Averment of prosecution sufficient
- 145 Proof of proclamations etc.
- 145A Conduct by directors, employees or agents
- 146 Minimum penalties
- 148 Collector may levy on goods in his or her possession
- 150 Imprisonment not to release penalty
- 151 Conviction to operate as a condemnation
- 152 Parties may recover costs
- 153 Application of penalties
Part XII—Disputes as to duty
- 154 Deposit of duty
- 155 Limited dispute rights because of objection against private ruling
Part XIV—Miscellaneous
- 159A Jurisdiction of courts
- 160 Alteration of agreements where duty altered
- 160A Ship’s stores and aircraft’s stores
- 160B Notification of proposals when House of Representatives not sitting
- 162 Rebate
- 162B Sale by Collector
- 162C Review of decisions
Part XV—Regulations and by laws
- 163A Interpretation
- 164 Regulations
- 164A Effect of regulations relating to condensate
- 165 CEO may make by laws
- 165A By laws prescribing onshore fields or exempt offshore fields may be revoked within 3 years
- 166 By laws specifying goods
- 167 By laws for purposes of repealed items
- 168 Publication of by laws
- 169 Retrospective by laws not to increase duty
- 170 By laws for purposes of proposals
Schedules
Schedule I—Australia
- Endnotes