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Biosecurity Act 1993

Administrative provisions - Recovery of costs

140A: Trust accounts for levy money payable to Director-General

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“Money collected from a levy must be kept in a special bank account for the Director-General.”

When you collect a levy, you must keep the money in a special bank account. This account is called a trust account and it must be at a registered bank as defined in the Banking (Prudential Supervision) Act 1989. You must name the account so it is clear it is a trust account for the levy.

You can only use this account to hold the levy money. The money in the account must be enough to cover what you owe to the Director-General. You calculate what you owe by subtracting what you have already paid from what you need to pay.

When you collect a levy, you must put the money into the trust account on the day or days specified in the order under section 137 or 140AA. The money in the trust account is held on trust for the Director-General. This means you cannot use it to pay other debts.

If you stop collecting the levy, you must still keep the trust account until all the levy money has been paid. This does not change any other obligations you may have under the Biosecurity Act. The money in the trust account is not available to pay other debts you may have.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM316379.

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Part 6 Administrative provisions
Recovery of costs

140ATrust accounts for levy money payable to Director-General

  1. Where an order under section 137 or 140AA provides that funds from which payments of levy are made are to be held on trust in separate accounts, the persons responsible for collecting the levy must each keep a bank account (in this section referred to as a trust account) at a registered bank within the meaning of the Banking (Prudential Supervision) Act 1989; and—

  2. ensure that the account is so named as to identify that it is a trust account kept by the person responsible for collecting the levy for the purposes of the order; and
    1. take all practicable steps to ensure that—
      1. the account is used only for holding amounts required to be deposited by subsection (3); and
        1. the balance in the account on any day is not less than the amount outstanding to the Director-General on that day by the person responsible for collecting the levy.

        2. For the purpose of this section, the amount outstanding to the Director-General by a person responsible for collecting the levy on any day is the remainder obtained by subtracting—

        3. the total of all amounts of levy paid by that person to the Director-General before that day calculated on the basis specified in the order under section 137 or 140AA; from
          1. the total of all amounts required by subsection (3) to be deposited in the trust account by the person responsible for collecting the levy not later than a day before that day.

            1. Where a person is responsible for collecting a levy, that person must deposit an amount equal to the levy calculated on the basis provided for in the order under section 137 or 140AA in the trust account on the day or days specified in that order or on a day or days calculated in accordance with that order.

            2. There is deemed to be held on trust for the Director-General as levy money—

            3. the amount outstanding to the Director-General by the person responsible for collecting the levy held in the trust account specified in the order under section 137 or 140AA; or
              1. where the amount held in the account is less than the amount outstanding, all the money in the account.

                1. Money deemed by subsection (4) to be held on trust—

                2. is not available for the payment of; and
                  1. is not liable to be attached or taken in execution at the instance of—
                      1. any creditor of the person responsible for collecting the levy (other than the Director-General).

                    1. A person who ceases to be a person responsible for collecting a levy must continue to maintain the trust account referred to in this section until all the levy money payable to the Director-General in respect of the period during which that person was responsible for collecting the levy has been paid.

                    2. Nothing in subsection (6) limits or affects any obligation or liability under this Act of any person who has become responsible for collecting the levy.

                    Notes
                    • Section 140A: inserted, on , by section 94 of the Biosecurity Amendment Act 1997 (1997 No 89).
                    • Section 140A(1): amended, on , by section 300(1) of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Act 2021 (2021 No 31).
                    • Section 140A(1): amended, on , by section 6 of the Biosecurity Amendment Act (No 2) 2015 (2015 No 56).
                    • Section 140A(2)(a): amended, on , by section 6 of the Biosecurity Amendment Act (No 2) 2015 (2015 No 56).
                    • Section 140A(3): amended, on , by section 6 of the Biosecurity Amendment Act (No 2) 2015 (2015 No 56).
                    • Section 140A(4)(a): amended, on , by section 6 of the Biosecurity Amendment Act (No 2) 2015 (2015 No 56).