- Adverse Judicial Comment
A comment made by a Judge of a District or higher Court which criticises Customs, or an officer in its employ, in relation to the investigation or presentation of a case made under the Customs and Excise Act 1996.
- Agreed Time-frames for Processing Import and Export Transactions
The agreed time-frames for processing Import and Export transactions are:
i. electronically lodged entries processed within 30 minutes; and
ii. manually lodged entries processed within 24 hours.
- Alerts
Targeted intervention of persons, goods and craft considered to pose a risk to border or revenue related issues.
- Anti-Dumping Duty
Imposed to offset the amount or margin of dumping.
- ANZCERTA (CER)
Australia New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Trade Agreement. A bilateral reciprocal free trade agreement (also known as CER)
- ANZSCEP
The Agreement between New Zealand and Singapore on a Closer Economic Partnership (the Closer Economic Partnership Agreement between New Zealand and Singapore)
- APEC
Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation. A trade grouping of countries on the Pacific Rim. Includes USA and Japan.
- API
Advance Passenger Information
- Best Practice Credit Management
The following best practice credit management procedures have been established and are followed by Customs:
i. advising potential deferred payment clients of the terms and conditions of the Service's deferred payment scheme;
ii. undertaking regular credit assessments of all deferred payment account holders;
iii. follow-up policy and procedures for those clients who have overdue payments; and
iv. follow-up policy and procedures for the collection of bad debts.
- Bilateral
An agreement/arrangement between two parties/countries (e.g., Cooperative Arrangement with the Australian Customs Service, ANZCERTA with Australia, ANZSCEP with Singapore).
- Biometric Identification
Systems that use a series of complicated algorithmic equations to identify people by searching through a database and instantly analysing a person's facial features, including eyes and face shape.
- CIF
Cost Insurance Freight. The valuation method used for the calculation of duty and GST.
- CITES
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
- Client Code
A unique number which identifies an importer, exporter or manufacturer.
- Compliance Checks
The number of entries generated from compliance alerts, where the entry status is cleared, i.e., the goods have been released from Customs control. Also included is the number of entries generated from compliance alerts, where the entry status is held, i.e., the goods are not released from Customs control.
- Comptroller
Customs-specific title for the Chief Executive Officer.
- Contraband
Forbidden by law to be imported or exported.
- Counterfeit
Copied without authority.
- Countervailing Duty
Levied to offset subsidised goods.
- CusMod
Customs Modernisation. A multi-million dollar modernisation programme of Customs processes and technology - rolled out in July 1997.
- Customs Controlled Area
An area that is required for one or more of the purposes described below:
i. The deposit, keeping or securing of imported or excisable goods, without payment of duty on the goods, pending the export of those goods; or
ii. The temporary holding of importing goods for the purposes of the examination of those goods under section 151 of the Customs and Excise Act 1996 (including the holding of the goods while they are awaiting examination); or
iii. The disembarkation, embarkation, or processing of persons arriving in or departing from New Zealand; or
iv. The processing of craft arriving in or departing from New Zealand or the loading or unloading of goods onto or from such craft.
- Denatured
Rendered unfit for human consumption (for example, denatured alcohol).
- DOC
Department of Conservation.
- Dumped Goods
Goods sold to importers in New Zealand, at prices lower than their selling price in the exporter’s domestic market, or at prices lower than their full cost.
- EDI
Electronic Data Interchange.
- EEO
Equal Employment Opportunities
- Excise Duty
A tax on goods which are locally manufactured.
- Export Entry
A declaration used by government to collect trade data and to ensure compliance with legislation.
- Excise Licensee
A person or company licensed by the New Zealand Customs Service for the purpose of manufacturing excisable goods as per the third schedule of the Customs and Excise
Act 1996.
- Frontline
A business partnership programme, aimed at linking the New Zealand Customs Service and business in partnerships in trade, community development, and enforcement.
- GST
Goods and Services Tax – a central government tax of 12.5% on goods and services.
- Harmonised International Standards
International (multi-lateral), best-practice models, such as the WCO's Kyoto Convention (on the Harmonisation & Simplifications of Customs Procedures), HS Convention (Tariff structure) & Istanbul Convention (Temporary entry procedures).
- Import Transaction Fee
A fee charged by Customs on every commercial import entry and import declaration for goods with a duty and/or GST liability of $50 or more, and on every private import declaration for goods with a value of $1,000 or more and with a duty and/or GST liability of $50 or more. The fee is intended to cover the cost of ongoing improvements to Customs' clearance service.
- Intelligence Product
Intelligence products are developed with a focus on Tactical, Operational and Strategic Intelligence and are completed for the purpose of providing knowledge to decision making. It includes the resulting work of Intelligence and may include Case Analyses or Assessments, Risk Assessments, Briefings, Tactical Information Reports, Situation Reports, Intelligence Collection Plans, Enquiry Requests and Reports, the Intelligence Bulletin, the OCO Bulletin and Craft Risk Assessments.
- Intervention Logic
Intervention logic is an evidence-based, systematic and reasoned description of the causal links between outcomes and outputs.
- Investigation
The inquiry process conducted into an offence that has been committed, or where information suggests an offence has been or may be committed, against the Customs and Excise Act 1996 or the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975. An inquiry results in an investigation file being initiated.
- Investigation Case Completed
An investigation case is completed when all reasonable and practicable avenues of enquiry have been exhausted.
- Investigation Case Written off
An investigation case is written off prior to the investigation being completed when all reasonable and practicable avenues of enquiry cannot be exhausted due to influencing factors (e.g., work volumes, clashing priorities, resource/finance constraints).
- LTNZ
- Land Transport New Zealand
- MAF
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
- Manufacture
Production, assembly, packaging, or other operation or process involved in the production of goods.
- MSA
Maritime Safety Authority
- Multilateral
An agreement/arrangement among a large number of parties/countries, usually global (e.g., WTO with 145 Contracting Parties, WCO with 161 Member Countries).
- NMCC
National Maritime Coordination Centre
- Non-Concessionary Entry
When Customs charges are owing on goods coming into the country.
- NZCS
New Zealand Customs Service.
- NZIS
New Zealand Immigration Service.
- Operational Response
This relates to the initiation of an activity, which requires the mobilisation or deployment of resources against a perceived risk or threat. Operations can involve targeted surveillance, search or containment of risk craft, together with searching of persons associated with that craft.
- Operational Risk Assessment
An Operational Risk Assessment focuses on the organisation's policies, practices and procedures and reviews previous operational activity (whether the subject of Tactical, Operational or Strategic Intelligence or not). The purpose is to identify from the previous operational activity risk exposures and to recommend risk treatment.
- Outcome
Outcomes are the results experienced by the community from a combination of government interventions and external factors.
- Output
Outputs are the goods or services that are produced by a government department.
- Personal Concession
Exemption from Customs charges.
- Personal Concessionary Entry
When no Customs charges are payable on certain goods coming into the country.
- Personal Effects
New or used articles which travellers may reasonably require for their personal use during a journey, or which returning New Zealand residents have acquired in the course of an overseas trip (such as personal clothing and footwear).
- Precursor
A substance containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine used in the manufacture of methamphetamine.
- Preference
Under New Zealand’s external trade agreements, New Zealand extends preferential tariff access to goods which are the ‘produce’ or ‘manufacture’ of specified countries and country groups.
- Routine Patrol and Surveillance
All activities that are considered to be routine and pre-planned as part of the annual business plan. That is, they are a part of normal day-to-day activities. Routine patrol and surveillance does not include activities that have been requested as a result of intelligence or an operation. These fall under targeted operational activity. Patrol and surveillance at airports may be conducted on the tarmac, runway, in the passenger terminal and surrounding security areas.
- SARS
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
- SPARTECA
South Pacific Regional Trade and Economic Co-operation Agreement. A preferential trade agreement with the Pacific Island member countries.
- STAR
Secure Trade in the APEC Region
- Supply Chain
The continuous linking of activities that take place for the systematic movement of goods from the place of origin to the place of final destination.
- Supplier Code
A unique number which identifies a supplier of goods.
- Tainted Property
"Tainted property" is any property (other than real Property) as defined in section 2 (1) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 1991 that has been obtained or acquired as a result of a serious crime involving an offence punishable by imprisonment of 5 years or more.
- Targeted Operational Response
A targeted operational response is carried out as a result of intelligence, and is supported by an operational response plan.
- Tariff Classification
The New Zealand Customs Service Working Tariff document is a commodity coding system used to identify and describe goods. The structure of the tariff is based on the World Customs Organisation International Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding system (commonly referred to as the Harmonized System).
- Transaction Value
The price actually paid or payable.
- Transnational Crime
An offence committed by the importation or export of goods/material across the border under any regulatory framework. Transnational crime is considered "serious" where the offending seriously affects the legitimate interests of New Zealand, and includes: goods that may have a military application; chemical, nuclear or biological weapons, or goods that may be used in the manufacture of such weapons; import/export that breaches UN sanctions; trafficking of class A or B drugs for supply; objectionable material, including child pornography and material promoting acts of terrorism; trafficking in wildlife; and revenue evasion.
- US Container Security Initiative
The United States Container Security Initiative (CSI) was launched in January 2002 to prevent global containerised cargo from being exploited by terrorists. The Initiative is designed to enhance security of the sea cargo container-a vital link in global trade.
The Container Security Initiative consists of four core elements. These are:
1. using automated information to identify and target high-risk containers;
2. pre-screening those containers identified as high-risk before they arrive at US ports;
3. using detection technology to quickly pre-screen high-risk containers; and
4. using smarter, tamper proof containers.
The initial objective is to implement CSI at the ports that send large volumes of cargo containers into the United States in a way that will facilitate detection of potential security concerns at the earliest possible opportunity.
- WCO
World Customs Organisation.
- WEG
WILDLIFE ENFORCEMENT GROUP