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Copyright Act 1994

Border protection measures - Enforcement powers of Customs officers

144F: Issue of search warrants to Customs officers

You could also call this:

"Customs officers can get a special permit to search for hidden evidence"

Illustration for Copyright Act 1994

You can be a Customs officer who applies for a search warrant. This warrant lets you search a place or thing. A District Court Judge or other officer can give you this warrant. You need to show that you have good reasons to think something is hidden in the place or thing. This thing must be evidence of, or very important to, an investigation of an offence against section 131, 198, or 226C in respect of imported goods. Other laws, like sections 134G to 134S and sections 134T to 134W, also apply to this search warrant. When these laws are applied, "chief executive" means the chief executive of the New Zealand Customs Service.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM4127272.

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Part 7Border protection measures
Enforcement powers of Customs officers

144FIssue of search warrants to Customs officers

  1. A Customs officer may apply for a search warrant to search a place or thing.

  2. Any District Court Judge, Justice of the Peace, Community Magistrate, or Registrar of the District Court (the issuing officer) may, on an application by a Customs officer, issue a warrant if the issuing officer is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for believing that there is in, on, over, or under the place or thing any thing that is evidence of, or of significant relevance to the investigation of, an offence against section 131, 198, or 226C in respect of imported goods.

  3. Sections 134G to 134S apply with all necessary modifications in respect of every search warrant applied for and issued under this section.

  4. Sections 134T to 134W apply with all necessary modifications in respect of any thing seized under a search warrant issued under this section, and in applying those provisions every reference to the chief executive must be read as a reference to the chief executive of the New Zealand Customs Service.

Notes
  • Section 144F: inserted, on , by section 10 of the Copyright Amendment Act 2011 (2011 No 72).
  • Section 144F(2): amended, on , by section 261 of the District Court Act 2016 (2016 No 49).