What is an excise equivalent good
Excise equivalent goods (EEGs) are goods that have been imported, and include:
- alcohol or alcohol goods
- tobacco and tobacco goods
- fuel, lubricants and petroleum goods.
EEGs are subject to customs duty, which is a tax on goods imported into AustraliaOpens in a new window. To ensure consistent treatment with goods manufactured in Australia, the customs duty rate for EEGs is equivalent to excise duty.
As the customs duty is the same rate as excise duty, you may need to understand:
- excise on alcohol (and about products where wine equalisation tax applies)
- excise on tobacco
- excise on fuel and petroleum products.
The Department of Home Affairs website (which includes their operational arm, the Australian Border Force) provides information on:
EEGs that are used in the manufacture of excisable goods become goods that are subject to excise duty.
If you use duty paid EEGs in the manufacture of excisable fuel and petroleum products, you may be entitled to a refund of the customs duty. To claim this refund, contact the Australian Border ForceOpens in a new window.
Who administers EEGs
The Department of Home Affairs has given us (the ATO) responsibility to grant and administer licences for warehouses that deal with EEGs. You will need to work with both us and the Department of Home Affairs' operational arm, the Australian Border Force.
Contact us to check which agency you need to work with.
What are underbond goods
Underbond goods are EEGs that are subject to our control until the goods are delivered into the Australian domestic market for home consumption or exported.
Storing underbond customable goods
We (the ATO) administer customs warehouses that store underbond EEGs. If those customs warehouses keep underbond customable goods other than EEGs, we administer them as well as the EEGs.
You must get our permission to move any underbond customable goods kept at an ATO-licensed customs warehouse to another location. This includes to other licensed premises.
If you have been granted an entity-level excise-equivalent warehouse licence, you may receive a general movement permission. This allows you to move and receive underbond customable goods for which you are licenced for, to and from any other excise-equivalent warehouses.