HMAG30110 - Registration and approval: commissioner's directions

Commissioner’s Directions are made under the powers contained in Regulation 17(3) Excise Warehousing (etc.) Regulations 1999 as follows: In such cases as the Commissioners may direct the proper officer may impose conditions and restrictions on the removal of goods from an excise warehouse in addition to those imposed elsewhere in these regulations.  

To enable officers to add Commissioner’s Direction (CD) conditions to approvals the following Commissioner’s direction was provided on the 30th October 1997 by David Howard, Commissioner of Customs and Excise:
“The Commissioners, in pursuance of their powers under Regulation 17(3) of the Excise Warehousing (Etc.) Regulations 1988, DIRECT THAT the proper officer may impose additional conditions and restriction on the removal of any goods from an excise warehouse in the case of any warehouse in which goods that are not owned by the occupier are warehoused. 

It is a temporary condition placed on the warehouse-keeper for when the removal of third-party goods from an excise warehouse would create a significant risk, but there is insufficient time to add a permanent condition to the warehouse-keeper’s approval. The CD can only apply where: 

  • removal of the goods would create a significant revenue risk. 
  • there is insufficient time to amend the warehouse-keepers’ approval conditions, and  
  • the goods concerned are not owned by the warehouse-keeper.    

It must be given in writing and carefully worded to address the specific risk identified - if given verbally it must still immediately be confirmed in writing. A CD should only be applied for an initial 30 days, after which time it should be reviewed and either lifted or extended for a further 30 days if still required. Normally a CD should only be applied for a maximum of 90 days. Where a CD is needed for a period longer than 90 days it should normally be replaced by a condition on the warehouse-keeper’s approval. Exceptionally a CD may run briefly beyond 90 days if the activity being controlled is likely to cease in that period and there are cost and resource benefits in not setting the requirement as an actual condition of approval. Where a condition replaces a CD, the CD must be lifted when the actual approval condition takes effect to prevent a double jeopardy situation occurring (this is where two identical conditions could be broken for the same offence). 

When a Commissioners’ Direction can and cannot be applied 

 A Commissioner’s Direction can only be applied to control the removal of third-party goods from a UK warehouse, for example to control removal of third-party goods:  

  • during a notice of revocation period 
  • requiring payment of duty before allowing goods to be removed 
  • to prevent a particular third-party suspect load from leaving the warehouse until we are satisfied that: 
    • the movement is legitimate, or  
    • the duty on the goods has been paid or fully guaranteed 
  • to place tighter control on a high-risk 3rd party owner of warehoused goods by: 
    • requiring that the warehouse-keeper notify us/ or seek approval prior to the removal of any of that owner’s goods 
    • preventing removal to proven high-risk addresses or supply chains 
  • to restrict the removal for all goods owned by a specific business, by requiring that they can only be removed on payment of duty 
  • A CD cannot be applied: 
    • for goods owned by the warehouse-keeper, 
    • to prevent sales within the warehouse,  
    • to require prior notification of receipts into warehouse, 
    • to control receipts into a warehouse, or 
    • require prior notification of all removals for anything other than a specified period