Excise duty remissions

1. Log in to Business Connect using either:
   • your RealMe account
   • a RealMe account created for your organisation (you can create an unverified RealMe account using a generic office email address as the username).
2. Complete and submit the Business Connect remission request form.
3. A Customs officer will review your request and contact you to advise the next steps.

1. Download and complete NZCS 277 – Request an excise duty remission (PDF, 443 KB)
2. Email your completed request form and supporting evidence to Excise-Licensing-National@Customs.govt.nz
3. A Customs officer will review your request and contact you to advise the next steps.

Due to damage or deterioration, the goods are no longer the same as when they were manufactured and are unable to be used for their intended purpose. You may be eligible for a remission under section 145(1)(a) of the CEA 2018 and Regulation 60 Customs and Excise Regulations 1996

Examples:

• Alcohol stored in a tank has oxidised.
• Damage occurs to cans containing alcohol.

Eligibility

• The condition of the product is altered, resulting in either:
  • value of the goods is reduced.
  • goods cannot be used as intended.
• Goods have not been removed from Customs-control.
• The damage or deterioration was not caused by:
  • a deliberate act
  • negligence by the licensee or anyone working for them.
• Goods must be destroyed under Customs direction for a full remission/refund to be possible.

Evidence required

You will need to provide evidence showing:

• the nature, cause and extent of the damage or deterioration
• any other details to support your claim.

Evidence could include, but is not limited to:

• technical/laboratory analysis (required for all deteriorated goods)
• photos showing the deterioration or damage
• any documentation that verifies the damage/deterioration or incident details (for example, insurance reports)
• a sample of the damaged or deteriorated goods.

If an incident has destroyed your goods, leaving them unusable for their intended purpose with no residual value, you may be eligible for a remission under section 145(1)(a) of the Customs and Excise Act 2018 and regulation 61 Customs and Excise Regulations 1996.

Examples:

• A tank splits, spilling alcohol on the ground.
• A pallet containing bottled product falls, breaking the bottles.

Eligibility

• The goods have been destroyed with no residual value.
• The destruction was not caused by:
  • a deliberate act
  • negligence by the licensee or anyone working for them.
• Reasonable care was taken to handle the product securely.
• Goods have not been removed from Customs-control

Evidence required

You will need to provide evidence showing:

• goods are destroyed
• reasonable care was taken to prevent the destruction of the goods
• documents or images that verify what happened and why it happened
• any other details to support your claim

Evidence could include, but is not limited to:

• photos of the destroyed product
• CCTV images of the destruction
• photos of equipment or documents showing the precautions in place to prevent goods from being destroyed
• reports such as an Internal incident report or insurance report.

If goods were lost, are no longer in your CCA and cannot be recovered, you may be eligible for a remission under section 145(1)(a) of the Customs and Excise Act 2018 and regulation 61 Customs and Excise Regulations 1996.

Examples:

• A tank splits, spilling alcohol down a drain.

Eligibility

• The goods:
  • are no longer in the CCA
  • were not intentionally removed from the CCA
  • had not been removed from Customs-control prior to the loss.
• The loss was not caused by:
  • a deliberate act
  • negligence by the licensee or anyone working for them.
• Reasonable care was taken to prevent loss.

Evidence required

You will need to provide evidence verifying:

• goods are lost
• how the goods were lost
• reasonable steps were taken to prevent the loss
• any other details to support your claim.

Evidence could include, but is not limited to:

• photos
• reports such as an Internal incident report or insurance report
• CCTV images of the product leaving the premises.

If goods were stolen from your CCA and cannot be recovered, you may be eligible for a remission under section 145(1)(a) of the Customs and Excise Act 2018 and regulation 61 Customs and Excise Regulations 1996.

Eligibility 

• The goods:
  • were taken from the CCA
  • had not been removed from Customs-control prior to the theft.
• The loss was not caused by:
  • a deliberate act
  • negligence by the licensee or anyone working for them.
• Duty cannot be remitted on goods stolen by the licensee’s employees.
• Reasonable security measures were in place to secure the goods and prevent theft.

Evidence required

You will need to provide evidence showing:

• goods are stolen
• where in the CCA the goods were stolen from
• how the goods were stolen
• reasonable security is in place to prevent theft
• an attempt has been made to claim duty from your insurance provider
• if goods have previously been stolen, reasonable security improvements were made following the previous theft
• any other details to support your claim.

Evidence could include, but is not limited to:

• CCTV images
• photos
• site map showing where the goods were located when they were stolen and relevant security controls in place (for example, fences and locks)
• police report
• insurance report

If the value of goods decreased while stored in an export warehouse, the export warehouse can apply for a remission under section 145(1)(a) of the Customs and Excise Act 2018 and regulation 62 of the Customs and Excise Regulations 1996.

An export warehouse is a CCA licensed for the purpose of the deposit, keeping, or securing of imported goods, or of Part A goods, without payment of duty, pending their export.

Eligibility

• the monetary value of the goods has decreased while stored at an export warehouse
• the goods were stored pending export.
• the reduction in value occurred prior to removal from Customs-control.
• if the goods have not been removed from Customs-control, they may be eligible for a remission
• if the goods have been removed from Customs-control, they may be eligible for a refund.

Duty will only be remitted or refunded in full if the goods are destroyed under direction from Customs.

Evidence required

You must provide evidence that shows the monetary value of the goods is now less than it was at the point the goods entered the export warehouse.

You will need to provide evidence showing:

• the value of the goods when the product entered the export warehouse
• the lower valuation of the goods
• when the goods were received in and left from the export warehouse (as applicable).

Evidence could include, but is not limited to:

• sales receipts
• invoices
• purchase agreements

If something went wrong in the manufacturing process resulting in the product not being what was intended, unfit for consumption or unsellable, you may be eligible for a remission or refund under section 145(1)(a) of the Customs and Excise Act 2018 and Regulation 63 Customs and Excise Regulations 1996.

Examples: 

• a mistake with recipe ingredients results in product not being what was intended
• faulty machinery resulted in the product being processed incorrectly
• product contaminated in the manufacturing process
• damage to cans or bottles during the canning or bottling process.

Evidence required

You will need to provide evidence showing the manufacturing fault.

Evidence could include, but is not limited to:

• technical or laboratory testing or reports
• photos showing the fault or equipment failure
• notification of the fault
• product sample