Financial Transaction Reports Act 1988

PART II - TRANSACTION REPORTS  

Division 1A - Reports about transfers of currency  

SECTION 15   REPORTS IN RELATION TO TRANSFER OF CURRENCY INTO OR OUT OF AUSTRALIA  

15(1)   [Transfer of currency]  

Where:

(a) a person:

(i) transfers Australian currency or foreign currency out of Australia; or

(ii) transfers Australian currency or foreign currency into Australia; and

(b) the amount of currency involved in the transfer is not less than $10,000 in value; and

(c) a report in respect of the transfer has not been given in accordance with this section;

the person, subject to subsections (2), (3) and (4), commits an offence against this subsection.

15(1A)   [Strict liability]  

Strict liability applies to paragraph (1)(c).

Note:

For strict liability , see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code .

15(1B)   [ Application]  

Subsection (1) does not apply if the transfer occurred after the commencement of Division 1 of Part 4 of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 .

Note:

A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matter in subsection (1B) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code ).

15(2)   [Commercial passenger carrier]  

A commercial passenger carrier need not make a report in respect of currency in the possession of the carrier ' s passengers.

15(3)   [Commercial goods carrier]  

A commercial goods carrier need not make a report in respect of currency carried on behalf of another person unless the other person has disclosed to the carrier that the goods include currency.

15(4)   [ADIs]  

An ADI need not make a report in respect of currency transferred, on behalf of the ADI, by a commercial goods carrier.

15(5)   [Receipt of currency from outside Australia]  

Where:

(a) a person (other than an ADI) receives Australian currency or foreign currency transferred to the person from outside Australia; and

(b) the amount of currency received is not less than $10,000 in value; and

(c) a report in respect of the transfer of the currency into Australia has not been made in accordance with subsection (1) before the transfer; and

(d) a report in respect of the receipt of currency is not given in accordance with this section before the end of the period of 30 days commencing on the day of the receipt of the currency;

the person commits an offence against this subsection.

15(5A)   [Strict liability]  

Strict liability applies to paragraphs (5)(c) and (d).

Note:

For strict liability , see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code .

15(5B)   [ Application ]  

Subsection (5) does not apply if the currency was transferred after the commencement of Division 1 of Part 4 of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 .

Note:

A defendant bears an evidential burden in relation to the matter in subsection (5B) (see subsection 13.3(3) of the Criminal Code ).

15(6)   [Penalty]  

A person who commits an offence against subsection (1) or (5) is punishable, upon conviction, by imprisonment for not more than 2 years.

Note:

Subsection 4B(2) of the Crimes Act 1914 allows a court to impose in respect of an offence an appropriate fine instead of, or in addition to, a term of imprisonment. The maximum fine that a court can impose on an individual is worked out by multiplying the maximum term of imprisonment (in months) by 5, and then multiplying the resulting number by the amount of a penalty unit. The amount of a penalty unit is stated in section 4AA of that Act. If a body corporate is convicted of an offence, subsection 4B(3) of that Act allows a court to impose a fine that is not greater than 5 times the maximum fine that could be imposed by the court on an individual convicted of the same offence.

15(7)   [Form and contents of report]  

A report under this section shall:

(a) be in the approved form;

(b) contain the reportable details in relation to the matter being reported;

(c) be signed by the person giving the report; and

(d) be given to:

(i) if the transfer is effected by a person taking the currency out of, or bringing it into, Australia with the person - a customs officer; and

(ii) in any other case - the AUSTRAC CEO or a customs officer.

15(7A)   [When report must be given]  

A report under this section, other than a report mentioned in paragraph (5)(c) or (d), must be given:

(a) if subparagraph (7)(d)(i) applies - at the time the currency concerned is brought into, or taken out of, Australia; and

(b) in any other case - at any time before the transfer takes place.

15(7AA)   [Consignment of currency]  

For the purposes of subsection (7A), if currency is taken out of Australia by a person by consignment of the currency:

(a) through the post to a place outside Australia; or

(b) to another person for carriage to a place outside Australia by that other person or by a third person;

the time when the currency is taken out of Australia is the time when it is irrevocably committed by the first-mentioned person to the Australian Postal Corporation or to the other person, as the case may be.

15(7B)   [When currency is brought into Australia]  

For the purposes of paragraph (7A)(a), the time at which currency is brought into Australia by a person is:

(a) if the person:

(i) transfers the currency into Australia when a passenger on an aircraft or ship; and

(ii) after disembarking, goes through an area set apart for customs officers to examine the passports and personal baggage of, and perform other duties in respect of, disembarking passengers and for such passengers to collect personal baggage;

as soon as the person reaches the place in that area at which customs officers examine personal baggage or, if the person does not go to that place, when the person leaves that area; or

(b) in any other case - the first opportunity after arrival in Australia that the person has to give the report under this section.

15(7C)   [When currency is taken out of Australia]  

For the purposes of paragraph (7A)(a), the time at which currency is taken out of Australia by a person is:

(a) if the person:

(i) transfers the currency out of Australia when a passenger on an aircraft or ship; and

(ii) before embarking, goes through an area set apart for customs officers to examine the passports of, and perform other duties in respect of, embarking passengers;

when the person is at the place in that area at which customs officers examine passports; or

(b) in any other case - as soon as the person reaches the customs officer who is to examine the person ' s passport in relation to the person leaving Australia or, if there is no such examination, the last opportunity before leaving Australia that the person has to give the report under this section.

15(8)   [Report to be forwarded to AUSTRAC CEO]  

Where a report under this section is given to a customs officer, the officer shall, as soon as practicable after receipt of the report, forward the report to the AUSTRAC CEO.

15(8A)   [Deemed transfer of currency out of Australia]  

For the purposes of this section, if a person:

(a) arranges to leave Australia as a passenger on an aircraft or ship; and

(b) for the purpose of leaving Australia, goes towards an aircraft or ship through an area described in paragraph (7C)(a); and

(c) either:

(i) takes currency into that area; or

(ii) has currency in his or her personal baggage; and

(d) does not give a report about the currency when at the place described in that paragraph;

the person is taken to have transferred the currency out of Australia.

15(8B)   [Currency spent before embarking]  

Subparagraph (8A)(c)(i) does not apply to an amount of currency if the person:

(a) informs a customs officer at the place described in paragraph (7C)(a) of an intention to spend that amount before embarking; and

(b) spends that amount before embarking.

15(9)   [Definitions]  

In this section:

"customs officer"
includes a police officer;

"reportable details"
, in relation to a matter being reported, means the details of the matter that are referred to in Schedule 3.