Act No. 440 / 2003 Coll.
Law on the treatment of rough diamonds, the conditions of their import, export and transit and the amendment of certain laws
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Law
Effective from 03.01.2004
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440
THE LAW
of 3 December 2003
on the handling, conditions for their import, export and transit and amending certain laws
Parliament has decided on this law of the Czech Republic:
TRANSFER AND IMPORT, EXPORT AND TRANSIT CONDITIONS
INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS
Subject matter
This Law provides for the treatment, import, export and transit conditions of rough diamonds and lays down the conditions for carrying out certification, registration and control of rough diamonds (the Kimberley certification scheme) to the extent provided for in Council Regulation (EC) No 2368 / 2002 of 20 December 2002 implementing the Kimberley certification scheme for the international trade in rough diamonds (the Regulation).
Definition of terms
For the purposes of this Act:
(a) container (1) an infringement-resistant container, suitable for sealing against unauthorised opening;
(b) the treatment of rough diamonds by any treatment of rough diamonds not contained in an intact container with a closure;
(c) Secretariat body responsible for the participants (1a) by coordinating the Kimberley system for certification of rough diamonds;
(d) irrefutable evidence
1. a certificate or an authorised copy thereof, issued by the competent authority which, on importation, accompanied rough diamonds for which a certificate of European Union1b is required (hereinafter referred to as the certificate),
2. an invoice or other document showing that the particulars of the seller, donor or deceased and the acquirer of rough diamonds are available on the territory of the European Union in accordance with the principles of the Kimberley Process Certification (1b);
3. a document certifying the certification of stocks or, where appropriate, the confirmation referred to in Article 6 of Regulation (EEC) No 1b); or
4. the written declaration referred to in Article 13 of the Regulation,
(e) Directorate-General for Customs,
(f) the office designated by the Office of Customs in Prague,
(g) by a competent official of the Directorate, a customs official or a civil servant who works in the Directorate and carries out tasks in the system of certification of rough diamonds;
(h) the competent official of the Office, a customs official or a civil servant who works in the designated office and who carries out tasks in the system of certification of rough diamonds.
COMPETENT AUTHORITY OF THE CZECH REPUBLIC, ITS ORGANISATION AND TASKS
(1) The Directorate is the competent authority of the European Union2).
(2) The Directorate shall cooperate with the European Commission, the competent foreign authorities, the State authorities of other States responsible for carrying out the tasks under the system of certification of rough diamonds, the Secretariat and international organisations which carry out the tasks in relation to the system of certification of rough diamonds and provide them with the information to which the Czech Republic has undertaken.
(3) If the Directorate or the designated customs office ascertains the facts justifying the suspicion of the financing of organised crime or terrorism, it shall immediately communicate them to the Police of the Czech Republic ("Police ') and to the intelligence services of the Czech Republic (" Intelligence Services') 2a.
(4) The police and intelligence services provide the Directorate and the designated customs office with the necessary information in the exercise of their duties under this Act and the Regulation; This does not apply if the provision of information would jeopardise the important interest pursued by the police or the relevant intelligence service.
Directorate
(a) checks and confirms the authenticity of the certificate on importation; the certificate's authenticity is a public instrument;
(b) where exported, issue a certificate of the European Union which is a public instrument;
(c) compare the contents of the consignment with the data in the certificate by physical inspection, including the determination of the physical and chemical characteristics of rough diamonds necessary for their identification;
(d) establish whether the numerical value of the activity of rough diamonds does not exceed the value permitted by the specific legislaturem3),
(e) procure documentation of the consignment and its contents;
(f) keep records of the import, export and transit of rough diamonds, the registration of persons (Sections 28 and 29), the annual reports (Section 32), the checks carried out and the results thereof (Section 33), the persons subject to penalties for infringements of this law or regulation and the persons who have infringed the principles of the Kimberley system of certification of rough diamonds and this fact has been officially communicated to the Directorate by the competent authority; the processing of personal data for the purposes of registration without the consent of the relevant person (3a),
(g) evaluate the data relating to the treatment of rough diamonds.
Obligation to maintain confidentiality
(1) The competent director and the competent official of the Office shall be obliged to maintain confidentiality as to what they have learned in or in connection with their activities, in particular the proportion of persons handling rough diamonds, both personal and related to their business. The competent director and the competent official of the Office shall be obliged to maintain confidentiality under this law even after the performance of their duties.
(2) The competent director and the competent official of the Office shall, at the request of the administrative authority and the court, provide the information obtained in the course of their activities when the latter is hearing an appeal, if he is in the custody of an insolvency proceedings with a person handling rough diamonds, if the application by the tax administrator is in the process of seeking to determine the ineffectiveness of the legal proceedings of the person handling rough diamonds or the execution of the enforcement of a tax claim.
(3) The obligation to maintain confidentiality may be waived only in writing by the competent staff of the Directorate and the competent staff of the Office by the person handling rough diamonds, indicating the extent and purpose.
(4) The obligation to maintain confidentiality does not apply
(a) in respect of the Supreme Audit Office, where, within the scope of its authorisation, it carries out an inspection under an approved control plan, 4)
(b) where this is necessary in criminal proceedings to properly clarify the circumstances suggesting that an offence has been committed,
(c) in respect of the Financial Analytical Office, when data are required under a specific legislation on combating the legalisation of proceeds from crime or a specific legislation on the implementation of international sanctions for the purpose of maintaining international peace and security, protecting fundamental human rights and combating terrorism;
(d) against the Supreme Public Prosecutor, where he is conducting an inquiry into the conditions of the action against a decision of an administrative authority under a special law;
(e) in respect of the police and intelligence services under the conditions laid down in Article 4 (3).
(5) The use of information obtained in the performance of tasks under or in connection with the certification scheme of rough diamonds shall be considered to be a breach of the obligation to remain confidential for the benefit of a person bound by that obligation or by others or for acts which would cause harm to someone.
(6) The Director's responsible staff and the competent staff of the Office may use the information in an anonymous form in scientific, publishing and teaching activities.
(7) The obligation to maintain confidentiality regarding classified information under special legislation5 (a) is not affected by this law.
(8) The obligation to maintain confidentiality shall also not apply to bodies of the European Union which carry out tasks related to the implementation of the Kimberley certification scheme.
COLLECTION OF RAW DIAMANTS IN THE CUSTOMS SCHEME
The declaration for the release of rough diamonds for the customs procedure shall be lodged by the declarant at the designated customs office, unless otherwise provided for in this law or regulation. At the same time as the customs declaration, the declarant shall submit the consignment to the designated customs office. The declarant shall ensure the transport of the consignment to the designated customs office at his / her expense and risk.
Imports
(1) Customs procedures shall be carried out by the designated customs office, unless otherwise provided for in this law or regulation.
(2) The designated customs office shall verify the accuracy and completeness of the declarations accepted.
(3) From the time of submission of the consignment to the designated customs office until the date of issue of the customs procedure decision, that consignment shall be under direct customs control.
(1) Raw diamonds not having the status of European Union goods can be transported to the Czech Republic
(a) by air only to selected European Union international airports, which are Praha- Ruzyně airports, Brno-Turany airports and Ostrava-Mošnov airports; or
(b) by mail.
(2) The person who delivered the rough diamonds by mail or air to a selected international airport is obliged to submit them to the designated customs office without delay. This shall not apply where rough diamonds are transported to a place within the territorial jurisdiction of another customs office.
(3) Where rough diamonds are transported to a place within the territorial competence of another customs office, they shall be presented without delay to that office (hereinafter referred to as the "selected customs office ').
(4) The selected customs office shall, upon entry of rough diamonds into the territory of the Czech Republic, check that the consignment is accompanied by a certificate, check the integrity of the container and its conclusions, attach its customs conclusion to the container and release the consignment into the customs transit procedure. The customs office of destination shall be the designated customs office.
(5) If the consignment is not accompanied by a certificate or if the container or its seal is broken, the customs office selected shall not open the consignment, carry out the damage documentation and make an official record thereof. The customs office selected shall attach its seals and transport the consignment under direct customs control at the expense of the declarant to the designated customs office.
(6) The customs office selected shall immediately notify the entry and all details of the consignment to the customs office and the Directorate.
(7) Raw diamonds which do not have the status of European Union goods transported to the Czech Republic by means of transport other than those referred to in paragraph 1 must be presented to the designated customs office.
(1) The competent director and the competent official of the Office shall jointly check the status of the container and its conclusions when submitting the consignment and shall subsequently open the container and each package contained therein.
(2) The declarant has the right to be present when checking the state of the container and its conclusions and subsequently opening each package.
(1) The control of the conformity of imported rough diamonds with the certificate accompanying them shall be initiated by the Directorate by opening the container.
(2) During the procedure referred to in paragraph 1, the customs procedure shall be suspended.
(3) The competent head worker shall check the authenticity and validity of the certificate and compare the contents of the consignment with the information contained in the certificate.
Where the conditions laid down in this Law, Regulation and directly applicable European Union provisions laying down the Union Customs Code are met, the designated customs office shall issue a decision placing rough diamonds under the proposed customs procedure.
Export
(1) The designated customs office shall verify the accuracy and completeness of the customs export declarations accepted.
(2) After the opening of the customs procedure, the competent director and the competent official of the Office shall check the container presented, the rough diamonds, the irreversible proof referred to in Article 2 (d) and whether the declarant has provided all the information necessary to issue the European Union certificate.
(3) The declarant shall have the right to be present at the inspection referred to in paragraph 2.
(1) The Directorate is responsible for the procedure for issuing the EU certificate.
(2) The procedure referred to in paragraph 1 shall be initiated as soon as the Directorate takes over the container, rough diamonds, irrefutable evidence and the data required to issue the European Union certificate.
(3) During the procedure referred to in paragraph 1, the customs procedure shall be suspended.
(4) The competent director shall check whether the declarant has provided irreversible evidence pursuant to Article 2 (d) and the correct and complete data required to issue the European Union certificate, whether the container presented by the declarant corresponds to the transport of rough diamonds under this law and the Regulation, and shall compare the presented rough diamonds with the data provided by the declarant, including their approximate current price.
(1) The competent director and the competent official of the Office shall, together with an authorised copy of the European Union certificate, insert rough diamonds or packages containing them in the container and affix the container with a closure. The declarant shall receive a European Union certificate.
(2) The declarant has the right to be present when entering the contents into the container and its measures by closing them.
(1) Only the designated customs office shall be entitled to release rough diamonds under the customs export procedure, subject to compliance with the conditions laid down by this law, regulation and directly applicable European Union provisions laying down the Union Customs Code.
(2) A person who has been placed under the customs export procedure of rough diamonds must ensure at his own expense and risk of being transported to the customs office of exit of the European Union approved by the designated customs office. The designated customs office shall set a time limit for the submission of the consignment to the customs office of exit, route and mode of transport of the consignment. The consignment shall be under customs control during transport.
(3) If they have rough diamonds placed under the customs export procedure to leave the territory of the European Union from a place situated in the Czech Republic, they must leave it only at the designated customs office or at the customs office in whose territorial jurisdiction the selected international airports referred to in Article 9 (1) are located.
(4) The customs office referred to in paragraph 3 shall check the integrity of the container and its conclusions and check that the consignment is accompanied by a certificate in accordance with the Regulation. Where the container or its closure is infringed or the consignment is not accompanied by a certificate under the Regulation, the customs office selected shall not open the consignment, carry out the documentation of the condition of the consignment, including the documents accompanying it, and make an official record thereof, affix the consignment with its seals and send it to the designated customs office under direct customs control at the expense of the declarant. The designated customs office and the Directorate shall dispose of the consignment mutatis mutandis in accordance with the provisions of Sections 13 to 16 and paragraphs 1 to 3.
(5) The customs office referred to in paragraph 3 shall immediately notify the exit of the consignment and all details of the consignment to the customs office and the Directorate.
TRANSIT OF RAW DIAMANTS
(1) Raw diamonds may be placed under the external transit procedure only at the customs offices referred to in Section 16 (3).
(2) Where rough diamonds enter the territory of the Czech Republic at a customs office other than that referred to in paragraph 1, they shall be transported under the customs transit procedure to the customs office designated by them. In justified cases, in particular where there is a risk that rough diamonds might escape customs supervision or otherwise jeopardise the basic objectives of the Kimberley certification scheme, the customs office shall ensure the transport of the consignment to the designated customs office under direct customs control at the expense of the declarant.
(3) The customs office shall check the integrity of the container and its conclusions and check that the consignment is accompanied by a certificate under the Regulation. Where the container or its closure is infringed or the consignment is not accompanied by a certificate under the Regulation, the customs office shall not open the consignment, carry out documentation of the condition of the consignment, including the documents accompanying it, and make an official record thereof. The customs office shall affix the consignment to the designated customs office and shall carry it at the expense of the declarant. The designated customs office and the Directorate shall dispose of the consignment mutatis mutandis in accordance with Title III.
Customs transit procedure
(1) Only the customs offices referred to in Article 16 (3) are entitled to release rough diamonds under the transit procedure, subject to compliance with the conditions laid down by this law, regulation and directly applicable European Union provisions laying down the Union Customs Code. The transit customs offices in the Czech Republic for the transport of consignments of rough diamonds under the transit procedure are the customs offices referred to in Section 16 (3).
(2) The customs office of departure shall, when the rough diamonds are placed under the transit procedure, check the integrity of the container and its conclusions, attach its customs conclusion to the container, set a time limit for the shipment to the office of destination and, if the conditions laid down in the directly applicable European Union provisions laying down the Union Customs Code are met, release the consignment into the customs transit procedure. The customs office of exit shall be the customs office selected.
(3) If the container or its closure is infringed, the office of departure shall not release the consignment for the proposed transit procedure, the consignment shall not open and write a report, including documentation of the damage.
(4) The customs office referred to in Article 16 (3) shall immediately notify all details of the consignment and its release or entry into the customs transit procedure of the Directorate.
(5) The customs office referred to in Article 16 (3), for which a consignment of rough diamonds is withdrawn from the European Union in connection with the transfer of national borders, shall check the integrity of the container, its conclusions and, in so far as this is without prejudice to the provisions of the directly applicable European Union Regulation laying down the Union Customs Code, allow the goods to leave the European Union.
(6) If the container or its closure is broken, the exit customs office selected shall not open the consignment and shall write a report including documentation of the damage. The customs office referred to in Article 16 (3) shall seal the consignment and send it to the designated customs office at the expense of the declarant. This shall not apply if the customs office of exit is designated by the customs office of exit. Furthermore, the designated customs office and the Directorate shall treat the consignment appropriately in accordance with Title III.
(7) The customs office referred to in Article 16 (3) shall immediately notify all details of the consignment and its exit from the territory of the Czech Republic under the customs procedure of transit to the Directorate.
(8) The transit customs office for which the consignment of rough diamonds in connection with the transfer of national borders enters the territory of the Czech Republic under the customs procedure of transit, checks the integrity of the container, its conclusions and, if the conditions laid down in the directly applicable European Union regulation laying down the Union Customs Code are met, allows the consignment to enter the territory of the Czech Republic and the continuation of the transit procedure.
(9) Where the container or its closure is infringed, the transit office shall not open the consignment, carry out documentation of the condition of the consignment, including the documents accompanying it, and make an official record thereof. The transit office shall affix the consignment with its seals and send it to the designated customs office at the expense of the declarant. This shall not apply where the customs office of transit is designated by the customs office of departure. Furthermore, the designated customs office and the Directorate shall treat the consignment appropriately in accordance with Title III.
(10) The transit customs office shall immediately notify all details of the consignment and its entry into the territory of the Czech Republic under the customs transit procedure of the Directorate.
MARKETING AUTHORISATION NUMBER
General registration
(1) Persons handling rough diamonds are required to register.
(2) The application for a general registration of a natural person who is not an entrepreneur contains:
(a) name,
(b) the date of birth; and
(c) in the case of nationals of the Czech Republic, the place of permanent residence in the territory of the Czech Republic, the place of residence in the territory of the Czech Republic or, where applicable, the usual residence in or outside the territory of the European Union.
(3) The application of a natural person who is an entrepreneur for a general registration includes:
(a) the name and, where appropriate, the business name;
(b) the date of birth;
(c) for nationals of the Czech Republic, the place of permanent residence in the territory of the Czech Republic, the place of residence in the territory of the Czech Republic and, where appropriate, the usual residence in or outside the territory of the European Union;
(d) the person's identification number;
(e) the registered office, permanent establishment or branch or any other organisational part of the commercial establishment where it is established; and
(f) in the case of a foreign natural person, the location of a branch or other organisational component of a business establishment where it is established.
(4) The application by a legal person for a general registration contains:
(a) a trading firm or its name;
(b) the person's identification number; and
(c) the registered office, the head office, the permanent establishment or branch or any other organisational part of the commercial establishment, where it is established.
(5) In general registration proceedings, a natural person shall be required to prove his identity and nationality or country of residence by means of a valid document. The person requesting registration shall be responsible for the accuracy and veracity of the information provided in the application for registration and for the authenticity of the documents submitted.
(6) A person who is an employee shall not be subject to registration for the treatment of rough diamonds in the course of the performance of his or her duties and the employer shall be responsible for the treatment of rough diamonds.
(7) A general registration shall not give rise to authorisation to dispose of rough diamonds in the manner set out in Paragraph 28 (1).
Special authorisation
(1) In addition to the general registration provided for in Article 27, persons handling rough diamonds must have a special registration in a way that includes the import, export, trade or processing of rough diamonds for business purposes.
(2) The person applying for a special registration shall submit the registration document referred to in Article 27 and the extract from the Commercial Register not earlier than 1 month or an officially certified copy of the trade certificate or other document which authorises it to carry on business in the European Union in the activities referred to in paragraph 1, not earlier than 1 month. The person applying for a special registration shall be responsible for the accuracy and veracity of the particulars provided in the application for registration and for the authenticity of the documents submitted.
(3) A person applying for a specific registration may not be registered if, within the 3 years prior to the application for registration, he or she has been convicted of a intentional offence of property nature, if it is not considered to have been convicted, or has been sanctioned for serious or repeated infringements of customs or tax legislation, this law or regulation, or if he or she has infringed the principles of the Kimberley system of certification of rough diamonds and this fact has been officially communicated to the designated customs office or headquarters by another competent authority.
(4) In order to assess the integrity of the person for the purposes of the special registration, the designated customs office shall request an extract from the Register of Penalties under the special legislation 10c). An application for an extract from the Register of Penalties and an extract from the Register of Penalties shall be sent in electronic form in a way that allows remote access.
(5) A serious breach of customs or tax legislation, of this law or regulation pursuant to paragraph 3 shall be deemed to be such as to be the act for which a person has been definitively convicted for an offence or for which a fine of at least CZK 250,000 has been imposed in force.
(6) A repeated infringement of the customs or tax legislation, this law or regulation referred to in paragraph 3 shall be deemed to be a violation of one of those laws within three years of the legal authority of the decision by which a fine of at least CZK 50,000 has been imposed on the same person for violation of the customs or tax legislation or of this law.
(7) A special registration does not replace a trade licence issued under a special legislation. 11)
(1) The application for a general and specific registration shall be submitted in writing to the designated customs office.
(2) An application for a general and specific marketing authorisation may be made at the same time.
(3) If the applicant fulfils the conditions set out in Section 27 or Section 28, the designated customs office shall register, otherwise it shall reject the application.
(4) Any changes to the information contained in the registration shall be communicated in writing to the designated customs office within 15 days of their origin.
(5) If the designated customs office finds that a person registered under Paragraph 28 no longer fulfils the conditions laid down, it shall cancel the registration by decision.
(6) Where a person ceases to handle rough diamonds, the customs office designated may request the cancellation of the registration in writing.
EVIDENCE AND CONTROL
Any purchase and sale, as well as any transfer of rough diamonds, shall be accompanied by an accompanying document showing the seller, donor or deceased and the transferee of rough diamonds and the numbers of all certificates accompanying those rough diamonds on importation.
(1) A person handling rough diamonds is required to keep a record of them. This register shall contain data on the change of ownership of rough diamonds pursuant to Article 30 and data for the determination of rough diamonds, in particular:
(a) the name and address or business name or registered office of the seller, donor, deceased or transferee and the number of his registration, if registered;
(b) the name of the goods and tariff heading;
(c) quantity in carats (ct),
(d) the number of all certificates accompanying these rough diamonds on importation or the number of the document certifying the certification of stocks;
(e) the purpose of the use of the goods; and
(f) the date of transfer.
(2) The records kept by a person handling rough diamonds by working or processing them into a product, in addition to the information referred to in paragraph 1, shall also contain data on the quantities and qualitative characteristics of the rough diamonds processed, the name of the goods and items of the Customs Tariff, the quantity and quality of the diamonds worked and processed and the waste resulting from their processing.
(3) The person keeping the records referred to in paragraph 1 or paragraph 2, as the case may be, shall keep them for at least 10 years from the end of the calendar year in which the data were changed.
(4) At the request of the designated customs office or the Directorate, the person shall submit the records kept in accordance with paragraph 1 or, where appropriate, paragraph 2, including the documents from which the information requested is evident.
(5) The person who keeps the records referred to in paragraph 1 or 2 shall be responsible for the accuracy of the particulars kept therein.
(1) A person handling rough diamonds in such a way that his activity involves the import, export, trade or processing of rough diamonds shall be obliged to submit to the Directorate by 31 March of each year for the previous calendar year an annual report on the management of rough diamonds (hereinafter referred to as "the annual report") containing data from the records kept pursuant to Article 31.
(2) The annual report may only be made effectively on a form issued by the Directorate or on computer sets which have data, content and layout identical to that issued by the Directorate. The annual reports shall include the annexes indicated in the relevant form.
(3) The model of the annual report form is laid down by the Ministry of Finance by implementing legislation.
The inspection of the Kimberley certification scheme shall be carried out jointly by the competent head office staff and the competent staff of the Office.
TRANSFERS
Transfers of natural, legal and business natural persons
(1) A natural, legal or business natural person commits an offence by:
(a) imports, exports or transports rough diamonds under customs transit in breach of the Regulation;
(b) in contravention of Paragraph 27 (1), treat rough diamonds without a general registration;
(c) in contravention of Article 27 (5), he shall indicate incorrect or false information in the application for registration or, for registration purposes, he shall produce false or amended documents;
(d) in contravention of Article 31 (4), produce no record of rough diamonds or related documents or produce a record containing incorrect information or falsified or amended supporting documents;
(e) in contravention of Article 31, does not keep a record of rough diamonds or does not provide the statutory information in the register; or
(f) shall not submit the annual report referred to in Article 32 within the specified deadline.
(2) A natural person, legal or business, commits an offence by:
(a) in contravention of Paragraph 28 (1), treat rough diamonds without a special registration; or
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Regulation Information
| Citation | Act No. 440 / 2003 Coll., on the Treatment of Raw Diamonds, on the Conditions of Import, Export and Transit and on the Amendment of Certain Acts |
|---|---|
| Regulation Type | Law |
| Author | - |
| Collection | Code of Laws |
| Date of Promulgation | 19.12.2003 |
|---|---|
| Effective from | 03.01.2004 |
| Effective until | - |
| Status | Valid |
Legal Areas:
Customs law
Taxes
Precious metals and precious stones
Finance
Economic (State)
International law
International public law
Administration of state (national) property
Administrative offences
Administrative law
Administrative procedure
State (official) control
Criminal law
Criminal law substantive
Criminal law
Constitutional (state) law
Fundamental human rights
The regulation text is for informational purposes only.
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