Maritime Transport Act 1994

Financing plans and responses to protect the marine environment from marine oil spills - Oil pollution levies

339: Evidence of nature and change of use

You could also call this:

"Telling the Authority about changes to your ship or oil site's use"

If you own or are in charge of a ship or oil site that has to pay an oil pollution levy, you must tell the Authority in writing if you change how you use the ship or site. This is because the change might mean you have to pay the levy at a different rate. You have to do this as soon as the change happens.

If the Director thinks that you might have changed how you use your ship or oil site, they can ask you to confirm how you are using it. They will send you a written notice asking you to do this. You will have to send the Director a statutory declaration, which is a special kind of written statement, within 14 days of getting the notice.

The Director wants to know how you are using your ship or site so they can work out how much levy you have to pay. You have to be honest in your statutory declaration and tell the Director about the change in use, if there is one.

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This page was last updated on 25 May 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM337860.

338: Ships not entitled to certificate of clearance until levies paid, or

"Ships must pay a levy before they can get a certificate to leave New Zealand."

340: Offences against this Part, or

"Breaking the rules in this part of the law can get you in trouble and fined"

Part 24Financing plans and responses to protect the marine environment from marine oil spills
Oil pollution levies

339Evidence of nature and change of use

Every person, being the owner or master of a contributing ship, or the owner of a contributing oil site, in respect of which an oil pollution levy is payable, shall, forthwith on the occurrence of any change in the use of the ship or site that would render the person liable to the payment of a levy at a different rate, notify the Authority in writing of that change.
Where the Director has reasonable cause to suspect that a change specified in subsection (1) has occurred in respect of a contributing ship, or contributing oil site, for which a levy is payable under this Part, the Director may, by notice in writing to the owner or master of the ship or the owner of the contributing oil site, require that person to deliver to the Director within 14 days after service of the notice a statutory declaration by that person verifying the nature of the use of the ship or site, as the case may be.

Compare

1974 No 14 s 29H
1977 No 130 s 3