PN 1840 - Temporary Admission from a country outside the European Union (EU) of Educational and Scientific Equipment for Research or Teaching

1. General

This Notice sets out the arrangements for the temporary admission from a country outside the EU without payment of import charges (Customs Duty and VAT) of:

Pedagogic material and scientific equipment;
Spare parts and accessories for such material or equipment;
Tools especially designed for the maintenance, checking, calibration or repair of such material or equipment.

"Pedagogic material" means any material intended for the sole purpose of teaching or vocational training, and in particular models, instruments, apparatus and machines.

"Scientific equipment" means equipment intended for the sole purpose of scientific research or teaching, and in particular models, instruments, apparatus and machines.

An illustrative list of goods qualifying for relief under the terms of this Notice is set out in the Annex.

In all cases the goods must not be used for purely commercial purposes and be imported in reasonable quantities, having regard to the purpose for which they are imported.

2. Conditions

The following conditions must be observed:

Prior approval of importer - The goods may only be imported by and used under the supervision and responsibility of establishments which in the case of teaching aids, are teaching or vocational training establishments and, in the case of scientific equipment, are scientific or teaching establishments and which in either case are essentially non-profit making. The establishments must have the prior approval of the Revenue Commissioners for the grant of relief. Application for such approval should be made to the Economic Procedures, Authorisations and Reliefs Unit, Government Offices, St. Conlon’s Road, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary, e-mail - customsreliefs@revenue.ie
Security – Security must be provided in the form of –
1. A cash deposit (refundable when the goods are re-exported), or
2. A bond (or, as a temporary measure, a Cover Note) either from an approved insurance company or a bank licensed by the Central Bank to carry out insurance business. Application for approval to use a bond or Cover Note should be made to Revenue at the proposed place of importation, from whom full information as to procedure and all the necessary forms may be obtained.
Ownership – The goods must remain the property of a person or body established outside the European Union (EU).
Period allowed – The goods must be re-exported within the time limit authorised by Revenue at importation. The prescribed maximum period of temporary importation permitted is 24 months.
Identification – The goods must be capable of being identified at re-exportation. For this purpose marks or seals may be applied to them at importation by Revenue.
Export control – The goods must be re-exported under Revenue control.
Prohibited or restricted goods – Goods subject to a national or Community prohibition or restriction may not be imported, except under licence or authorisation issued by the appropriate Authority and presented at importation.

3. Procedure at Importation

The goods should be presented to Revenue at importation.

In all cases, Form c&e No. 1047 (Rev 1) - Application for Authorisation to use the Temporary Importation Procedure (PDF, 31KB) should be completed in duplicate and the required security provided. For the purpose of completing Section 3 of Part 1 of Form c&e 1047 (Rev 1), the appropriate legal reference is:

Article 570 of Regulation (EEC) No. 993/2001

The Revenue Official will stamp and sign both copies of Form c&e No. 1047 (Rev 1) - Application for Authorisation to use the Temporary Importation Procedure (PDF, 31KB), fix the time limit during which the goods may remain under temporary admission arrangements, insert the final date for re-exportation on the form and return one copy to the importer.

In all cases the importer must present an additional declaration certifying that the imported goods will:

Be used under the supervision and responsibility of the importing establishment;
Be used for non-commercial purposes;
Remain throughout their stay in the EC the property of a person established outside the EC

A copy of the Form c&e No. 1047 (Rev 1) - Application for Authorisation to use the Temporary Importation Procedure (PDF, 31KB) must be produced with the goods when they are being re-exported.

4. Procedure at Re-exportation

The goods and documentation should be presented to Revenue at the Export Station in sufficient time to allow for Revenue examination before the period for temporary importation expires.

Where goods imported on Form Form c&e No. 1047 (Rev 1) - Application for Authorisation to use the Temporary Importation Procedure (PDF, 31KB) are re-exported, a copy of the form with Part III completed should be presented to Revenue. Where all the goods are correctly re-exported, the form will be retained by Revenue and arrangements will be made to refund the deposit or release the security as appropriate.

5. Transfer of Authorisation

Temporary admission facilities may be transferred to another person subject to certain conditions. Requests for such transfers should be made to Revenue at the place of importation.

6. Partial Relief from Customs Duty

Goods, which do not meet all the conditions set out in this Notice, may, in certain circumstances, qualify for temporary admission with partial relief from customs duty. This involves payment of a percentage of the full amount of Customs Duty in respect of each month the goods remain in the EU.

Note: Relief from VAT is not allowable in these cases.

Further Information

Enquiries regarding any issue contained in this Information Leaflet should be addressed to the Revenue District responsible for your tax affairs. Contact details for all Revenue Districts can be found on the Contact Details Page.

Notice No. 1840

October 2011 Edition

Annex

Illustrative list of goods eligible for temporary admission

A. Sound or image recorders or reproducers, such as:

Slide and filmstrip projectors,
Cinematographic projectors,
Back-projectors and episcopes,
Magnetophones, magnetoscopes and video equipment,
Closed circuit television equipment.

B. Sound and image media, such as:

Slides, filmstrips and microfilms,
Cinematographic films,
Sound recordings (magnetic tapes, discs)
Videotapes.

C. Specialised material, such as:

Bibliographic equipment and audiovisual material for libraries,
Mobile libraries,
Language laboratories,
Simultaneous interpretation equipment,
Programmed teaching machines, mechanical or electronic,
Material specially designed for the educational or vocational training of handicapped persons.

D. Other material, such as:

Wall charts, models, graphs, maps, plans, photographs and drawings,
Instruments, apparatus and models designed for demonstrational purposes,
Collections of items with visual or audio pedagogic information, prepared for the teaching of a subject (study kits),
Instruments, apparatus, tools and machine-tools for learning a trade or craft,
Equipment, including specially adapted or designed vehicles for use in relief operation, which is imported for the training of persons involved in relief operations.

E. Goods, such as:

Costumes and scenery items sent on loan free of charge to dramatic societies or theatres,
Music scores sent on loan free of charge to music theatres or orchestras.

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