Explanatory note

This Order, which comes into force on 1st April 2000, modifies section 127(3)(a) of the Finance Act 1999 (“the Act”) by providing for interest payable by the Commissioners of Customs and Excise on repayments of customs duty or amounts paid by way of customs duty, to run for a period beginning with the thirty-first working day after the making of a claim for repayment.

The period beginning on this day ends, in accordance with section 127(3)(b), on the date on which the Commissioners issue the repayment of that amount and is to be determined in accordance with section 128 of the Act. Section 127(3) originally provided that the period should begin with the sixty-first day (not “working” day) after the making of a claim, but section 127(9) provided the Commissioners with a power to reduce the length of the period by statutory instrument. This is what this Order does, inserting a definition of “working day” for the purpose.