When posting a letter to HMRC or Border Force, you should get proof of posting and keep it for your own records. § 1607 and 19 C.F.R. If you believe something should not have been seized, you can challenge the legality of the seizure. If you have merchandise seized by customs and either lose your opportunity to get the merchandise back, abandon the merchandise, or ignore the notice of seizure, it may not be the end of trouble for the importer. This morning he comes into work with a letter of seizure from the dea. An FP&F paralegal reviews the case and issues a seizure notice to the alleged violator. Whatever you do DON'T try and pick up the package, if it's seized let them have it. If the goods were seized by Border Force, perhaps for example on arrival in the UK at a port or airport or at an import postal hub, you should write to: National Post Seizure Unit Now, in the seizure letter US Customs says “Alternatively, you may elect to abandon seized merchandise and it will be forfeited to the government. I'd try to find a local attorney for a consultation. PL4 9LT. This means that unless the legality of a seizure is challenged within the one month time limit, ownership will pass to HMRC or Border Force (depending on who seized the goods). Original Poster. Send a letter marked ‘personal property’ to the address on the notice or letter you got from customs. The legality of a seizure is decided by the magistrates’ court at condemnation proceedings. This letter will warn you that if you do not file a claim within the stated time allowed, the property will be forfeited to the US … If the receiver refuses to pay the customs duties, you have three options. If you do nothing, as you can see, they will eventually forfeit and confiscate the contraband anyway. PL4 9LT. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk. This puts anyone in jeopardy when trying to respond to the complex and contradictory instructions in a notice of seizure. This is accurate. The seizure notice will give information regarding the identity of the merchandise, the location of the seizure, and citations to legal authorities. This notice cancels and replaces Notice 12A (May 2016). However, they will consider all requests for the return of seized things and take all relevant facts into account. 1.2 What this Notice is about. The review officer can confirm, vary or cancel the original decision. A short time later, you will receive a letter from customs telling you how to claim your property or it will be automatically forfeited in 30 days. The letter giving you the restoration decision will tell you how to ask for a review. This may be an amount equal to the sum paid by you for the goods in question or an amount equal to the proceeds of sale (where HMRC or Border Force have sold the goods in question) or an amount equal to the market value of the goods at the time of seizure and not including any additional compensation (for costs, travel expenses, interest). You can: Choose to pay the duties yourself. You should therefore make sure that you contact the correct post seizure unit otherwise there may be a delay dealing with your query. In those cases they usually keep the goods until the challenge or restoration is decided. The latter basically means that you are choosing to go to court and prove that you have the right to take the package and the substance contained in it. The magistrate then decides whether HMRC or Border Force was right to make the seizure. Border Force Notice - We welcome your feedback, Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance and support, Transparency and freedom of information releases, The legal act that transfers ownership of a seized thing to, A seizure information notice is handed to you or your agent if one of you is present when, If neither you nor your agent is present when, A letter formally challenging the seizure of something by, The legal term for the court process, started by a notice of claim, which decides whether seized goods are liable to forfeiture and, therefore, if a seizure by, a seizure information notice handed to you or your agent if the thing was seized in your or their presence - the reason for the seizure should have been explained to the person present at the time of seizure, a notice of seizure sent to you if you or your agent were not present when the thing was seized, a vehicle running on duty-rebated fuel (such as red diesel) was allowed to use it, state which of the seized things their challenge refers to, use continuation sheets where necessary to include all relevant information, write to us in English - this will allow us to process your request more efficiently and reduce delays, use a service that gives you proof of postage - failure to do so may result in your notice of claim being received outside the legal deadline, which may mean that we will not be able to proceed with your challenge, evidence of ownership if your vehicle has been seized, continuation sheets where necessary to ensure you include all the relevant information, England or Wales are usually held in a magistrates’ court and you will receive a summons, Northern Ireland are held in a magistrates’ court and you will receive a notice of application, Scotland are usually held in a sheriff’s court and you will receive a writ, market value of the goods at the time of seizure, you have already challenged the seizure and you are waiting for a court hearing, the time limit for challenging the seizure has expired and ownership of the thing has passed automatically to, quote any reference number shown on the seizure information notice or notice of seizure, explain why you think the thing should be restored to you, giving the full circumstances and enclosing any available evidence to support your request, include proof of ownership of the thing (such as purchase receipts). of stuff, just ignore the letter and use a diff source for a while if u can. Discussion. SS99 1AA, or email: excise&customslawteam@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk. After receiving my first order I had my doubts at first so I opened up a set and compared it to one I order from the company itself. If you do not agree with HMRC’s or Border Force’s restoration decision, you can ask for it to be reviewed by an officer not previously involved in the matter (see paragraph 4.9). If they did not do that or you were not present at the time of seizure, you can apply for copies by writing to the address on the seizure information notice or on the notice of seizure. If your cash or goods have been seized under either of these Acts, your receipt or notice of seizure for that will include details about what you can do if you do not agree with the seizure. You can send a notice of claim challenging the legality of the seizure to HMRC or Border Force (see section 3) and still ask for restoration of seized things. If you want goods returned because you believe they should not have been seized in the first place, perhaps because you claim excise goods are for your ‘own use’, the only avenue open to you is to challenge the legality of the seizure by sending a notice of claim (see section 3). This notice gives important advice and information about what to do if you have had something seized by HMRC or Border Force. This notice gives important advice and information about what to do if you have had something seized by HMRC or Border Force. The legality of a seizure is a matter that is dealt with before a court by way of condemnation proceedings, usually by a magistrate’s courts, or in Scotland the Sheriff’s court. He should refuse to accept any unknown or sketchy packages that arrive at his residence. Southend on sea It will probably be a photo copy of the customs regulation violated 2. In late 2016, U.S. Customs issued an unusual letter to a select group of 1000 U.S. importers containing numerous compliance publications and detailing facts … We use some essential cookies to make this website work. If you do not send it to the correct address, there could be a delay in HMRC or Border Force dealing with your challenge against a seizure. If you receive a seizure letter or notice your best course of action will be to ignore it; you can respond back denying the package but silence will always prove to be a more viable option. i wouldnt worry about it unless u ordered a ton! You do not have to be legally represented at condemnation proceedings unless you live outside the UK (see paragraph 3.6 of this notice). If I were you, I would just ignore the slips they leave, ... hes like fuck you im going to send you hard shit in the post-he already had my address- boom 4 seizure letters for weapons over the next 3 months!!! They cannot be combined because magistrates’ courts and tribunals have different areas of authority. West point § 1607 and 19 C.F.R. G1 1GY. You must collect or make arrangements for collection of your personal property within a reasonable period (2 months from the date of seizure). So, he got 30 vials of steroids shipped to his house in his name from China. You may file a claim and cost bond of 10% of the APV or appraised property value with the fines, penalties, and forfeitures department and get your claim sent to the District Court immediately. An example of a restoration request letter is at paragraph 4.14 of this notice. NOTICE OF SEIZURE AND INTENT TO FORFEIT (NON-CAFRA) U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY, U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION - Notice is hereby given as required by 19 U.S.C. Information about your device and internet connection, including your IP address, Browsing and search activity while using Verizon Media websites and apps. You cannot use the restoration process for this. Don’t ignore it, you may need legal help to get it back by petition or claim or the Government, usually, US Customs and Border Protection will keep it. All customs did was send me a "love letter" saying that they had seized my pills and that I'd have to go to court if I wanted them back. You should ask for restoration of a seized thing in writing. See Request for restoration of seized things - example letter. He has two other packages already on their way. You can also consult your local Citizens’ Advice Bureau (CA). They will re-ship. Failure to provide a signed authority may cause delay in Border Force giving you a decision. If appropriate, you should include proof of postage. Talked to a customs liason person that works for a customs lawyer, she said it wouldn’t hurt either way to ignore it or to respond with the option to abandon the items but also attaching a current prescription so that they can see that it is actually prescribed for the person while not claiming it back. See paragraph 4.6 below about when HMRC and Border Force dispose of seized things. So if your review request is outside the time limit, you should explain why it is late when making your request. It is important to understand that challenging the legality of the seizure (option (a) above) and asking for restoration (option (b) above) are 2 completely separate processes. Condemnation proceedings for things seized in: You’ll be asked to confirm on oath that you owned the thing at the time it was seized. Glasgow I got a letter asking me if I wanted to claim them and I just ignored the letter. Those proceedings only decide what should happen to seized things. Ebrington Street I was going to take them to an IM conference and share them about with all the BHW fellows but they were confiscated. ), (c) do both of the above at the same time by challenging the legality of the seizure and asking for the seized thing to be returned in the meantime. Charges may be different for mobile phones. Excise and Customs Law Team If you do not agree with HMRC’s or Border Force’s restoration decision you must first ask them to review their original decision. HM Revenue and Customs I purchased a Goyard rep as well, never heard anything from them. If you live outside the United Kingdom (UK) or the Isle of Man you must provide additional information as well as sending a notice of claim. To help HMRC or Border Force deal with your request quickly, your letter should: HMRC or Border Force will normally acknowledge your letter within 10 working days of receiving it. In other words, you are essentially saying, "Yes. Same address, same name, same shady super taped up packages. They seized sleepinG pills valued at $726. This is usually at your own expense. So, you can see from the above advice that people have varied opinions/experiences related to customs seizures. There is no way for them to red flag your address, logistically it is impossible, they don't enter every address on every shipment that comes through customs. While you may be unsure as to whether or not you will see your merchandise (or money) … hairykrishna. If the decision to be reviewed involves a restoration fee, the review officer may increase or decrease the fee or vary the decision to non-restoration or cancel the original decision. Seizures valued over $100,000 are sent to Customs headquarters in Washington for decision. Your letter asking for a review must be received by HMRC or Border Force within 45 days of the date of the restoration decision letter, whether it is a request for a review of the decision to refuse restoration or of the restoration conditions, such as the decision to charge a fee. If you have hearing difficulties, a textphone service is available. On the 8th day I received a letter from the U.S. customs saying that my package was seized because of violating a trademark. You may believe that HMRC or Border Force had no legal right to seize something because, for example: Any person can challenge the legality of the seizure but the person who does that (or their solicitor) must swear an oath at court that they owned the thing at the time of seizure. Now if I take no action they will just seize the package after 30 days and destroy it. If HMRC or Border Force has already disposed of the seized thing, the owner has the right to ask for compensation of an amount equal to the: The market value of the goods at the time of a seizure may, for example, be the price you paid for them abroad. Put it down to experience. The seizure history record will then show a notation documenting the alleged violation and associate that alleged violation with the person listed on the receipt or the notice of seizure. Find out more about how we use your information in our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy. HMRC and Border Force will dispose of perishable goods (including tobacco, beer and all food products) as quickly as possible. Try to stay away from those phony watches. This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. Do not trust the purported requirements in the notice of seizure like explaining why you “broke the law” (admitting a crime = bad idea) or … We will normally dispose of vehicles if storage costs are likely to exceed the value of the vehicle and where a restoration request has been considered and refused, whether or not you have asked for a review (see paragraph 4.8). These proceedings decide whether something was liable to forfeiture and seized lawfully by HMRC or Border Force. You also may receive a receive a "CAFRA election of proceedings" form from Customs. This notice gives important advice and information about what to do if you have had something seized by HMRC or Border Force. They usually begin disposing of non-perishable things (such as vehicles and spirits) 45 days after the date of seizure unless the legality of the seizure is challenged or they receive a restoration request. If they are unable to sort things out, ask for your feedback to be referred to the appropriate complaints team. Do both at the same time. For the return of personal property see paragraph 2.3. If you have any comments or suggestions to make about this notice, write to: HM Revenue and Customs Letter “Notice of Seizure and Information to Claimants Non-Cafra Form” What? As the owner you may ask someone else to send a notice of claim for you but it must include your signed authority for them to act on your behalf. If they offer to restore a seized thing, it will normally be on payment of a fee, which will vary depending on the specific circumstances. If HMRC or Border Force and the owner of seized items cannot agree on the market value of seized goods, an independent referee appointed by the Lord Chancellor may decide the value. For both HMRC and Border Force claims please send as much information as you can so your notice of claim is referred to the correct person to deal with your case. Both processes are explained in more detail in sections 3 and 4 of this notice. HM Revenue and Customs It is important that you send your notice of claim to the correct address. If you ask for a review, you should clearly set out the reasons why you disagree with the decision and include any supporting evidence. If you decide to withdraw your challenge, it is important that you write to HMRC or Border Force as soon as possible. My letter just said that you should not order things that require a prescription and that was all. (See section 4 below. You must make that appeal within 30 days of the date of the refusal letter. PL4 9LT. Wednesday 29th February 2012. Seizures of cash under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and seizures made under section 19 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) are not covered by information in this notice. The time limit is set by the law and there is no provision for late challenges. We also use cookies set by other sites to help us deliver content from their services. If you have had several things seized and you accept the seizure of some items was lawful, do not include those on your notice of claim. This includes cases where you claim excise goods were for your own use. The seizure letter is a simple warning that they've found and kept your products. If you are unhappy with the way HMRC or Border Force has handled your case (because of delays or mistakes, for example) tell the person or office you have been dealing with. When HMRC or Border Force receives a request for restoration, they consider all the facts and decide either to offer or refuse restoration. Let the gear go. An impartial review officer, who was not involved in the decision on the restoration of the seized thing, will consider your case and go over all documents relating to it. In addition to the information in this notice, you may wish to get legal advice. 2 Next Reply Author.