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Her Majesty's Customs
HM Customs and Excise (properly known as Her Majesty's Customs and Excise at the time of its dissolution) was a department of the British Government formed in 1909 by the merger of HM Customs and HM Excise; its primary responsibility was the collection of customs duties, excise duties, and other indirect taxes. The payment of customs dues has been recorded in Britain for over one thousand years and HMCE was formed from predecessor bodies with a long history. With effect from 18 April 2005, HMCE merged with the Inland Revenue (which was responsible for the administration and collection of direct taxes) to form a new department: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). Activities The three main functions of HMCE were revenue collection, assessment and preventive work, alongside which other duties were performed. Revenue collection On behalf of HM Treasury, officers of HM Customs and Excise levied customs duties, excise duties, and other indirect taxes (such as Air Passenger Duty, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Non-ministerial Government Department
Non-ministerial government departments (NMGDs) are a type of department of the United Kingdom government that deal with matters for which direct political oversight has been judged unnecessary or inappropriate. They are headed by senior civil servants. Some fulfil a regulatory or inspection function, and their status is therefore intended to protect them from political interference. Some are headed by a permanent office holder, such as a Permanent Secretary or Second Permanent Secretary.Government Departments and Agencies , Government, Citizens and Rights, DirectGov. Overview The status of an NMGD varies considerably from one to another. For example:[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Crime Prevention
Crime prevention is the attempt to reduce and deter crime and criminals. It is applied specifically to efforts made by governments to reduce crime, enforce the law, and maintain criminal justice. Studies Criminologists, commissions, and research bodies such as the World Health Organization, United Nations, the United States National Research Council, the UK Audit Commission have analyzed their and others' research on what lowers rates of interpersonal crime. They agree that governments must go beyond law enforcement and criminal justice to tackle the risk factors that cause crime, because it is more cost effective and leads to greater social benefits than the standard ways of responding to crime. Multiple opinion polls also confirm public support for investment in prevention. Waller uses these materials in '' Less Law, More Order'' to propose specific measures to reduce crime as well as a crime bill. The ''World Health Organization Guide'' (2004) complements the ''World Report on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Import License
An import license is a document issued by a national government authorizing the importation of certain goods into its territory. Import licenses are considered to be non-tariff barriers to trade when used as a way to discriminate against another country's goods in order to protect a domestic industry from foreign competition. Each license specifies the volume of imports allowed, and the total volume allowed should not exceed the Import quota, quota. Licenses can be sold to importing companies at a competitive price, or simply a set fee. However, it is argued that this allocation method provides incentives for political lobbying and bribery. Governments may put certain restrictions on what is imported as well as the amount of imported goods and services. For example, if a business wishes to import agricultural products such as vegetables, then the government may be concerned about the impact of such importations of the local market and thus impose a restriction. Système Intég ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Customs Officer
A customs officer is a law enforcement agent who enforces customs laws, on behalf of a government. Canada Canadian customs officers are members of the Canada Border Services Agency. It was created in 2003 and preceded by the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency (1999-2003). Customs officers has existed since 1868 under various departments: Customs Office, Customs and Inland Revenue from 1918 to 1923, Customs and Excise from 1923 to 1927 and Revenue Department from 1927 to 1999. They are most visible at 117 land border crossings and 13 international airports between Canada and US, but are also founded at 3 seaports, 3 mail centres within Canada. Hong Kong 4,931 posts, of which nine are directorate officers, 3,804 are members of the Customs and Excise Department, 504 are Trade Controls Officers and 614 are staff of the General and Common Grades. Hong Kong is one of the busiest container ports in the world. It handled 20.4 million TEUs (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units) in 2003. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Distilled Beverage
Liquor (or a spirit) is an alcoholic drink produced by distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar, that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit drink, distilled beverage or hard liquor. The distillation process concentrates the liquid to increase its alcohol by volume. As liquors contain significantly more alcohol (drug), alcohol (ethanol) than other alcoholic drinks, they are considered 'harder'; in North America, the term ''hard liquor'' is sometimes used to distinguish distilled alcoholic drinks from non-distilled ones, whereas the term ''spirits'' is more common in the UK. Some examples of liquors include vodka, rum, gin, and tequila. Liquors are often aged in barrels, such as for the production of brandy and whiskey, or are infused with flavorings to form a flavored liquor such as absinthe. While the word ''liquor'' ordinarily refers to distilled alcoholic spirits rather than beverages produced by fermentation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Smuggling
Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various motivations to smuggle. These include the participation in illegal trade, such as in the drug trade, illegal weapons trade, prostitution, human trafficking, kidnapping, exotic wildlife trade, art theft, heists, chop shops, illegal immigration or illegal emigration, tax evasion, import/export restrictions, providing contraband to prison inmates, or the theft of the items being smuggled. Smuggling is a common theme in literature, from Bizet's opera ''Carmen'' to the James Bond spy books (and later films) '' Diamonds Are Forever'' and '' Goldfinger''. Etymology The verb ''smuggle'', from Low German ''smuggeln'' or Dutch ''smokkelen'' (="to transport (goods) illegally"), apparently a frequentative formation of a word meaning "to sneak ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Export
An export in international trade is a good produced in one country that is sold into another country or a service provided in one country for a national or resident of another country. The seller of such goods or the service provider is an ''exporter''; the foreign buyer is an '' importer''. Services that figure in international trade include financial, accounting and other professional services, tourism, education as well as intellectual property rights. Exportation of goods often requires the involvement of customs authorities. Firms Many manufacturing firms begin their global expansion as exporters and only later switch to another mode for serving a foreign market. Barriers There are four main types of export barriers: motivational, informational, operational/resource-based, and knowledge. Trade barriers are laws, regulations, policy, or practices that protect domestically made products from foreign competition. While restrictive business practices sometimes hav ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Import
An import is the receiving country in an export from the sending country. Importation and exportation are the defining financial transactions of international trade. In international trade, the importation and exportation of goods are limited by import quotas and mandates from the customs authority. The importing and exporting jurisdictions may impose a tariff (tax) on the goods. In addition, the importation and exportation of goods are subject to trade agreements between the importing and exporting jurisdictions. History Definition Imports consist of transactions in goods and services to a resident of a jurisdiction (such as a nation) from non-residents. The exact definition of imports in national accounts includes and excludes specific "borderline" cases. Importation is the action of buying or acquiring products or services from another country or another market other than own. Imports are important for the economy because they allow a country to supply nonexistent, scarc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Specific Gravity
Relative density, or specific gravity, is the ratio of the density (mass of a unit volume) of a substance to the density of a given reference material. Specific gravity for liquids is nearly always measured with respect to water (molecule), water at its densest (at ); for gases, the reference is air at room temperature (). The term "relative density" (often abbreviated r.d. or RD) is often preferred in scientific usage, whereas the term "specific gravity" is deprecation, deprecated. If a substance's relative density is less than 1 then it is less dense than the reference; if greater than 1 then it is denser than the reference. If the relative density is exactly 1 then the densities are equal; that is, equal volumes of the two substances have the same mass. If the reference material is water, then a substance with a relative density (or specific gravity) less than 1 will float in water. For example, an ice cube, with a relative density of about 0.91, will float. A substance wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Value-added Tax (United Kingdom)
In the United Kingdom, the value added tax (VAT) was introduced in 1973, replacing Purchase Tax, and is the third-largest source of government revenue, after income tax and National Insurance. It is administered and collected by HM Revenue and Customs, primarily through the Value Added Tax Act 1994. VAT is levied on most goods and services provided by registered businesses in the UK and some goods and services imported from outside the UK. The default VAT rate is the standard rate, 20% since 4 January 2011. Some goods and services are subject to VAT at a reduced rate of 5% (such as domestic fuel) or 0% (such as most food and children's clothing). Others are exempt from VAT or outside the system altogether. VAT is an indirect tax because the tax is paid to the government by the seller (the business) rather than the person who ultimately bears the economic burden of the tax (the consumer). Opponents of VAT claim it is a regressive tax because the poorest people spend a higher pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Insurance Premium Tax (United Kingdom)
Insurance Premium Tax (IPT) is a type of indirect tax levied on general insurance premiums in the United Kingdom. Overview The UK government introduced the Insurance Premium Tax to raise revenue from the insurance sector, which was viewed as being under-taxed, and not subject to Value Added Tax. The main EU legislation regarding VAT (Council Directive 2006/112/EC) states that insurance and reinsurance transactions, including related services performed by insurance brokers and insurance agents, are exempt from VAT. The Insurance Premium Tax was announced by Kenneth Clarke in the November 1993 budget and introduced with the Finance Act 1994 which received Royal Assent on 3 May 1994. IPT is under the care and management of HM Revenue & Customs. IPT raised £2.3 billion in the fiscal year 2009/10. Law The main law relating to IPT includes: * the Finance Act 1994 (sections 48-74 and schedules 6A, 7 and 7A, as amended by the Finance Acts 1997, 1998,1999, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2009 a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
