Revenue Fraud: Fraudulent Evasion of Duty (Section 170 Customs and Excise Management Act 1979)

Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, s.170

Either way
14 years' custody

Definition

Without prejudice to any other provision of the Customs and Excise Acts 1979, if any person (a) knowingly acquires possession of any of the following goods, that is to say (i) goods which have been unlawfully removed from a warehouse or Queen's warehouse; (ii) goods which are chargeable with a duty which has not been paid; (iii) goods with respect to the importation or exportation of which any prohibition or restriction is for the time being in force under or by virtue of any enactment; or (b) is in any way knowingly concerned in carrying, removing, depositing, harbouring, keeping or concealing or in any manner dealing with any such goods, and does so with intent to defraud Her Majesty of any duty payable on the goods or to evade any such prohibition or restriction with respect to the goods he shall be guilty of an offence under this section and may be detained. (Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, s.170(1)) Without prejudice to any other provision of the Customs and Excise Acts 1979, if any person is, in relation to any goods, in any way knowingly concerned in any fraudulent evasion or attempt at evasion (a) of any duty chargeable on the goods; (b) of any prohibition or restriction for the time being in force with respect to the goods under or by virtue of any enactment; or (c) of any provision of the Customs and Excise Acts 1979, or Part 1 or section 40A or 40B of the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018, applicable to the goods, he shall be guilty of an offence under this section and may be detained. (Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, s.170(2))

Points to prove

A person
in relation to any goods
is in any way knowingly concerned
in any fraudulent evasion or attempt at evasion
of any duty chargeable on the goods, of any prohibition or restriction in force with respect to the goods, or of any provision of the Customs and Excise Acts 1979 or Part 1 or s.40A or 40B of the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018 applicable to the goods (s.170(2))
or (s.170(1)) knowingly acquires possession of, or is knowingly concerned in carrying, removing, depositing, harbouring, keeping, concealing or dealing with, goods unlawfully removed from a warehouse, goods chargeable with unpaid duty or goods subject to an import or export prohibition or restriction
with intent to defraud of any duty payable on the goods or to evade the prohibition or restriction

Fraudulent evasion of duty is an offence under s.170 Customs and Excise Management Act 1979. A person commits the offence under s.170(2) if, in relation to any goods, he is in any way knowingly concerned in any fraudulent evasion or attempt at evasion of any duty chargeable on the goods, of any prohibition or restriction in force with respect to the goods, or of any provision of the Customs and Excise Acts 1979 or Part 1 or s.40A or 40B of the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018 applicable to the goods. Section 170(1) separately covers knowingly acquiring possession of, or being knowingly concerned in carrying, removing, depositing, harbouring, keeping, concealing or dealing with, goods unlawfully removed from a warehouse, goods chargeable with unpaid duty or goods subject to an import or export prohibition or restriction, with intent to defraud of the duty or to evade the prohibition or restriction. Maximum sentence: on conviction on indictment, a penalty of any amount or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 14 years, or both (the 14 year figure was substituted from 22 February 2024 by Finance Act 2024, s.32(1)); on summary conviction, a penalty of £20,000 or of three times the value of the goods, whichever is the greater, or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months, or both (s.170(3)). Where the offence concerns a prohibition or restriction on importing or exporting certain firearms the maximum on indictment is imprisonment for life (s.170(4A)), and for prohibitions under s.3 Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 s.170(3) applies subject to the modifications in Schedule 1 to the Act (s.170(4)). The goods are liable to forfeiture (s.170(6)).

In practice

This is an either-way offence: it may be tried at the magistrates' court or the Crown Court. Mode of trial depends on the seriousness and the defendant's election. The suspect must be cautioned in accordance with Code C PACE 1984 before any questions about the offence are put to them. Interviews must be audio-recorded (Code E) or, for indictable offences, may be visually recorded (Code F).

Last updated 20 October 2026. Reviewed 20 October 2026

Mode of trial: Either way
Maximum sentence: 14 years' custody
Act and section: Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, s.170
Power of arrest: A constable may arrest without a warrant anyone who is about to commit an offence, anyone who is in the act of committing an offence, anyone whom he has reasonable grounds for suspecting to be about to commit an offence and anyone whom he has reasonable grounds for suspecting to be committing an offence (s.24(1)); if he has reasonable grounds for suspecting that an offence has been committed, anyone whom he has reasonable grounds to suspect of being guilty of it (s.24(2)); and if an offence has been committed, anyone who is guilty of the offence or whom he has reasonable grounds for suspecting to be guilty of it (s.24(3)). The power of summary arrest is exercisable only if the constable has reasonable grounds for believing that for any of the reasons mentioned in s.24(5) it is necessary to arrest the person in question (s.24(4)) (Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, s.24). Section 170 itself provides that a person guilty of the offence may be detained (Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, s.170(1) and (2)).
Search on arrest: On arrest at a place other than a police station a constable may search the arrested person for anything which he might use to assist him to escape from lawful custody or which might be evidence relating to an offence and, the offence being an indictable offence, may enter and search any premises in which he was when arrested or immediately before he was arrested for evidence relating to the offence (Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, s.32(2)). A constable may enter and search any premises occupied or controlled by a person who is under arrest for an indictable offence if he has reasonable grounds for suspecting that there is on the premises evidence, other than items subject to legal privilege, that relates to that offence or to some other indictable offence which is connected with or similar to it, with the written authorisation of an officer of the rank of inspector or above (Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, s.18(1) and (4)).
Detention clock: A person shall not be kept in police detention for more than 24 hours without being charged, the period running from the relevant time (Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, s.41(1) and (2)). The offence is an indictable offence (an offence triable either way is an indictable offence: Interpretation Act 1978, Schedule 1), so a police officer of the rank of superintendent or above who is responsible for the police station may authorise detention for a period expiring at or before 36 hours after the relevant time where detention without charge is necessary to secure or preserve evidence relating to the offence or to obtain such evidence by questioning, the offence is an indictable offence and the investigation is being conducted diligently and expeditiously (s.42(1)); a magistrates' court may issue a warrant of further detention for a period not longer than 36 hours (s.43(1), (11) and (12)) and may extend it for periods of not longer than 36 hours each, ending not later than 96 hours after the relevant time (s.44(1) and (3)).
Source: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1979/2/section/170