Attorney-General’s

Asian Development Bank — customs duty concession

Revenue ($m)

	2005-06	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09
Australian Customs Service	..	..	..	..

The Government will allow Asian Development Bank (ADB) officers to import personal effects (including furniture) free of duty when first taking up a post in Australia. The measure will take effect when necessary changes to the ADB regulations come into operation.

The measure will implement an arrangement reached between the ADB and Australia for the establishment of ADB’s Australian office.

The Government is also providing an income tax concession to officers of the ADB — see related item Asian Development Bank — income tax exemption for Australian staff in Budget Paper No. 2 under the Treasury portfolio. A GST concession is also proposed, but this is subject to the approval of the state and territory governments — see related item Asian Development Bank — GST concession in Appendix A of Budget Paper No. 3.

Customs accredited client programme

Revenue ($m)

	2005-06	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09
Australian Customs Service	-	-	-	-

The Government will implement arrangements under the Accredited Client Programme for eligible importers to pay estimated customs duty liability for a month in the middle of that month, with a settlement process in the following month based on a periodic declaration. This measure simplifies the arrangements for reporting of imports and exports by accredited clients through the introduction of periodic declarations, as opposed to entries that have to be lodged for each and every consignment of goods. The measure does not involve any net deferral of customs duty.

Import Processing Charges — restructure

Revenue ($m)

	2005-06	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09
Australian Customs Service	5.0	5.1	5.2	5.3

The Government will restructure and increase the Import Processing Charge (IPC) to better align charges with the costs of processing imports so as to ensure the full recovery of the Australian Customs Service’s import processing costs. The new charges will result in additional revenue of $50.6 million over four years, including $30 million over four years included in the forward estimates at the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook 2004-05.

Under the new arrangements, the Government will continue to set the IPC based on the mode of entry and will not proceed with the previously announced intention to move to a fee structure based on the value of the imported goods. Importers will now pay $49.50 per declaration for sea imports, $30.10 per declaration for air imports and $20.00 per declaration for pipeline imports. The Self-Assessed Clearance charge will be removed.

The $30 million included in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook 2004-05 provided full recovery for costs that had previously been partly offset by Customs, including the costs associated with the Cargo Examination Facilities programme and the Increased Quarantine Intervention programme. The additional $20.6 million since Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook 2004-05 provides for full cost recovery of additional compliance activities undertaken by Customs, including those associated with the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement (see the related expense measures Imports — additional revenue compliance activities and Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement in the Attorney-General’s portfolio in Budget Paper No.2).

Tariff concessions — abolishing the three per cent tariff on business inputs

Revenue ($m)

	2005-06	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09
Australian Customs Service	-290.0	-300.0	-320.0	-340.0

Note: This measure has a cost to revenue of $36 million in 2004-05.

The Government will remove the three per cent tariff applying to business inputs imported under a Tariff Concession Order. This measure will take effect from 11 May 2005.

Business inputs that do not have domestically produced substitutes attract a three per cent concessional tariff rate. The Government will remove the tariff, providing these business inputs with duty free entry. This will further reduce business input costs and increase the competitiveness of Australian industry.

This measure delivers on the Government’s election commitment From Strength to Strength: The Coalition’s Policy for Australian Industry to remove the three per cent tariff on business inputs used in the manufacture of wind turbines.

Insolvency and Trustee Service Australia — implementation of cost recovery review

Revenue ($m)

	2005-06	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09
Insolvency and Trustee Service Australia	-	6.9	6.9	6.9
Related capital ($m)
Insolvency and Trustee Service Australia	1.7	-	-	-
Related expense ($m)
Insolvency and Trustee Service Australia	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5

The Government will apply cost recovery arrangements from 1 July 2006 for a range of services provided by the Insolvency and Trustee Service Australia (ITSA). This will involve changes to ITSA’s existing fees and charges, and introduction of a levy on amounts recovered in debt agreements. These new arrangements will ensure that ITSA’s fees and charges better reflect the cost of the particular services.

The Government will provide $3.7 million over four years (including $1.7 million in capital funding in 2005-06) to implement the new arrangements.

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