OIA 23 151 Scheirlinck Response Letter 1.pdf

WELLINGTON
The Customhouse, 1 Hinemoa Street, Wellington
PO Box 2218, Wellington 6140
Phone: 04 901 4500 All general enquiries phone: 0800 428 786
Email: [email address]  Website: www.customs.govt.nz
16 May 2023
Ref: OIA 23-151
Mr Dominic Scheirlinck
By email: [FYI request #22504 email]
Dear Mr Scheirlinck
Request for information under the Official Information Act
Thank  you  for  your  email  dated  19  April  2023,  to  the  New  Zealand  Customs  Service
(Customs)  via  the  FYI  website,  in  which  you  request  the  following  information  under  the
Official Information Act 1982 (the OIA):
“Your  website says  in 2018/19,  Customs  conducted  671  initial  searches  and 47 full
searches of electronic devices, which were carried by 364 travellers – so 99.99% of
the  14.5  million  passengers  travelling  to  and  from  New  Zealand  each  year  do  not
have their electronic devices searched.
Could you please tell me which days within the 2018/19 year this statistic pertains to?
(The text "2018/19" implies a start/end date within the year. e.g. July 1 2018 to July 1
2019)
Then,  I  would  like  similar  statistics  for  the  3  (or  possibly  4)  subsequent,  complete,
yearly periods, up until the present day. So, for each subsequent period ("2019/20",
"2020/21",  "2021/22" and "2022/23" (if complete)), I would like:
The number of initial searches of electronic devices
The number of full searches of electronic devices
The number of passengers who were carrying such searched devices
The total number of passengers travelling to and from NZ
In addition to these statistics, for each period, could you please tell me:
The  number  of  prosecutions  made  under  section  228  subsection  (8)  of  the
Customs  and  Excise  Act  2018  -  i.e.  failing  to  comply  with  duty  to  assist
access to device
The number of devices treated as forfeited by a Customs officer who retains a
device  under  section  228  subsection  (10)  of  that  same  act  (i.e.  prior  to  a
person being convicted under subsection (8))
The  number  of  devices  condemned  to  the  Crown,  destroyed,  and  returned,
under  section  228  subsection  (11)  of  that  same  act  (i.e.  after  a  person  is
convicted under subsection (8)”

Part 1
Could you please tell me which days within the 2018/19 year this statistic pertains to?
(The text "2018/19" implies a start/end date within the year. e.g. July 1 2018 to July 1
2019)
In  response  to  the  first  part  of  your  request,  I  can  advise  that  the  2018/19  time  period
referred to in your request is from 1 October 2018 (when the Customs and Excise Act 2018
came into effect) to 30 June 2019.
Part 2
Then, I would like similar statistics for the 3 (or possibly 4) subsequent, complete,
yearly periods, up until the present day. So, for each subsequent period ("2019/20",
"2020/21",  "2021/22" and "2022/23" (if complete)), I would like:
•  The number of initial searches of electronic devices
•  The number of full searches of electronic devices
•  The number of passengers who were carrying such searched devices
•  The total number of passengers travelling to and from NZ
In response to the second part of your request, please find attached a document titled ‘OIA
23-151  –  E-devices  2018-2022’’  which  contains  information  on  the  number  of  e-devices
searched  by  Customs,  and  the  passengers  carrying  those  e-devices  each  year  from
1 October 2018 to 30 June 2022. Data after this time period is currently unavailable as it has
yet to be confirmed and finalised.
While  the  information  contained  in  the  attached  document  is  accurate  at  the  date  of
extraction from Customs’ database, the information in Customs’ database can be updated or
amended at any time.
Part 3
In addition to these statistics, for each period, could you please tell me:
•  The number of prosecutions made under section 228 subsection (8) of the Customs
and Excise Act 2018 - i.e. failing to comply with duty to assist access to device
•  The number of devices treated as forfeited by a Customs officer who retains a device
under section 228 subsection (10) of that same act (i.e. prior to a person being
convicted under subsection (8))
•  The number of devices condemned to the Crown, destroyed, and returned, under
section 228 subsection (11) of that same act (i.e. after a person is convicted under
subsection (8)”
In  regard  to the  third  part  of  your request  regarding  Customs’  actions  pursuant  to  sections
228(8),  228(10)  and  228(11)  of the  Act,  I  have  been  advised  that  Customs  is  not  aware  of
any  individuals  having  been  charged  under  sections  228(8),  or  goods  condemned  to  the
Crown  under  228(11)  of  the  Act  however,  Customs  is  aware  of  three  devices  belonging  to
the same individual, being forfeit to the Crown under section 228(10) of the Act in 2020, prior
to the individual being convicted.
As  further  background  to  the  third  part  of  your  request,  section  228  of  the  Act  authorises
Customs  to  examine  e-devices  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  that  the  e-device  contains
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evidential material relating to relevant offending. When evidence of offending is identified on
an e-device, the offender is charged with the more serious charge relevant to the offending,
rather than under section 228 of the Act, which is only finable.
If  you  have  any  queries  in  regard  to  this  response,  please  contact  the  Correspondence,
Reviews and Ministerial Servicing Team: [email address].
Please note that Customs proactively releases responses to Official Information Act requests
on our website. As such, we may publish this response on our website after we have sent it
to you. Your name and contact details will be removed.

Yours sincerely

Terry Brown
Group Manager, Intelligence, Investigations and Enforcement

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