S.L. 382.4 Art. 4Source of taxation.

(1) Excise goods shall be subject to excise duty at the time of their production, or where applicable of their extraction, or of (COUNCIL DIRECTIVE (EU) 2020/262)

their arrival, including irregular entry into Malta:

Provided that where excise goods are placed under a customs procedure on arrival into Malta, entry shall be deemed to take place when they leave the customs procedure.

(2) Excise duty shall become chargeable at the time of release for consumption or when shortages are recorded.

(3) The chargeable conditions and rate of excise duty to be adopted, shall be those in force on the date on which release for consumption takes place or shortages are recorded.

(4) The time of departure from a duty suspension arrangement as referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition "release for consumption", found in regulation 3 shall be deemed to be:

(a) the time of receipt of the excise goods by the registered consignee in the situations referred to in sub-paragraph (a)(ii) of regulation 5(1);

(b) the time of receipt of the excise goods by the consignee in the situations referred to in sub-paragraph (a)(iv) of regulation 5(1);

(c) the time of receipt of the excise goods at the place of direct delivery in the situations referred to in regulation 5(2).

(5) The total destruction or irretrievable loss, total or partial, of excise goods under a duty suspension arrangement, as a result of unforeseeable circumstances or or as a consequence of force majeure, an authorisation to destroy the goods by the Commissioner, shall not be considered a release for consumption:

Provided that losses occurring under a duty suspension arrangement that is attributable to theft shall not be regarded as an unforeseeable circumstance or as a force majeure.

(6) Goods shall be considered totally destroyed or irretrievably lost when they are rendered unusable as excise goods.

(7) Partial loss due to the nature of the goods that occurs during a movement under a duty suspension arrangement between Malta and another Member State, shall not be considered as a release for consumption, in so far as the amount of loss falls below the common partial loss threshold for those excise goods, unless the Commissioner has reasonable cause to suspect fraud or irregularity. In such case, that part of a partial loss which exceeds the common partial loss threshold for those excise goods shall be treated as a release for consumption.

(8) The treatment of partial losses under a duty suspension arrangement not covered by the previous sub-regulation may be established by regulations made under article 13 of the Act.

(9) The total destruction or irretrievable loss, total or partial, of the excise goods under a duty suspension arrangement as referred to in sub-regulation (5) shall be proven to the satisfaction of the Commissioner where the total destruction or irretrievable loss, total or partial, occurred, or, when it is not possible to determine where the loss occurred, where it was detected:

Provided that where total destruction or irretrievable loss, total or partial, of the excise goods is established, the guarantee lodged shall be released, fully or partially, as appropriate, upon the production of satisfactory proof.

(10) The Commissioner shall determine the partial loss threshold and this after taking into consideration the common partial loss thresholds established by the Commission in accordance with Council Directive 2020/262.

(11) When excise goods are imported into Malta and the Commissioner allows such goods to be moved under a duty suspension arrangement according to the conditions laid down by him to be delivered to a place which has been designated by an authorised warehouse keeper or registered consignee, the time of release for consumption shall be the time of receipt of the excise goods at the place which has been approved by the Commissioner:

Provided that this shall not apply when a registered consignee receives goods on an occasional basis.

(12) The chargeable conditions and rate of excise duty to be adopted shall be those in force on the date on which release for consumption takes place.