Section 301
SEC. 301. The importation of dutiable merchandise by sea from any foreign country in a vessel of less than thirty tons burden shall subject both vessel and cargo to seizure and forfeiture.
Act No. 355 CHAPTER XXIV.
Compiled from an official source version. Later amendments or repeals may not be reflected; the official text prevails.・Read the official text ↗
Section 302
SEC. 302. The master of any vessel arriving at a port in the Philippine Islands having firearms, gunpowder, cartridges, dynamite, or any other class of explosives and munitions of war concealed on board his vessel, or not contained in the ship's manifest, shall be liable to a line of not exceeding two thousand dollars, and all of such articles, together with such vessel, shall be seized and forfeited.
Section 303
SEC. 303. Except as provided by the last preceding section, if any merchandise be found on board any vessel from a foreign port which is not included in her manifests, produced as required by this Act, the master shall forfeit an amount equal to double the duties fixed therefor: Provided always, That if it appears to the collector that such omissions occurred with intent to defraud the revenue, the master shall in addition forfeit an amount equal to the value of the merchandise not manifested, and all such merchandise belonging or consigned to the officers or crew of the vessel shall be seized and forfeited but if such merchandise belongs to any other person acting in good faith the same shall be released upon payment of the regular duties and charges thereon. If any package or article named on the manifest be missing on the arrival of the vessel, or if the merchandise on board does not otherwise agree with the manifest delivered by the master, except as above prescribed, the master shall be liable to a penalty of not less than two hundred and fifty dollars and not more than two thousand five hundred dollars, and in addition an amount equal to the value of the said missing merchandise as ascertained by the collector of customs, unless the collector shall be satisfied that such deficiency or disagreement occurred without fraudulent intent, in which case said penalty shall not be inflicted: Provided, nevertheless, That, if such disagreement or deficiency is found by the collector to be due to the carelessness, negligence, or incompetence of the master of the vessel, her owners, or agents, a penalty of not more than the value thereof may be imposed upon the master for each package missing or materially disagreeing in marks, character, or otherwise with the description thereof in the manifest. All penalties inflicted under the provisions of this section shall be forthwith reported to the Insular Collector with full particular of the offense committed and of the previous conduct of the master in like matters.
Section 304
SEC. 304. Whenever an entry of imported merchandise is permitted by the collector, which shall not he accompanied by the invoices as required by this Act, a penalty of twenty-five per centum of the amount of duties on such importation may be imposed upon the importer: Provided, That the value of the goods in such entry shall be more than one hundred dollars: And provided further, That the penalty shall not be less than live dollars in any one case.
Section 305
SEC. 305. For failure to pay the amount of liquidated duties of a liquidation within five working days after the notice of liquidation has been publicly posted in the custom-house, a penalty of five per centum of the amount found due the revenue on liquidation shall be added thereto and collected therewith.
Section 306
SEC. 306. If any seal placed upon any vessel, compartment, car, or other conveyance by a customs official is willfully broken or destroyed, a penalty of not exceeding one thousand dollars may be imposed upon the master, conductor, or other person in charge thereof for each seal so broken or destroyed.
Section 307
SEC. 307. A penalty of not more than one thousand dollars may be imposed upon the master of any vessel that shall discharge any cargo at any other than the designated time or place, but the imposition and collection of the penalty in this section prescribed shall not exempt the owner or consignee of the goods or the owner or master of the vessel from any payment of the duties on the goods so discharged, nor from any of the penalties imposed by the terms of this Act for smuggling or other frauds upon the revenue.
Section 308
SEC. 308. If the gross weight of any article or package described in the manifest of an importing vessel is found to exceed by more than ten per centum the gross weight as declared in the manifest or bills of lading thereof, a penalty not exceeding twenty-five dollars and an amount equal to ten per centum of the value thereof for each such package or article shall he imposed upon the master of the importing vessel, unless it shall he established to the satisfaction of the collector by the master or consignee that such excess of weight was the result of mistake and without fraud.
Section 309
SEC. 309. Whenever any article subject to duty is found in the baggage of any person arriving within the Philippine Islands, which was not at the time for making entry of such baggage mentioned to the collector or other proper customs official before whom such entry was made by the person making entry, such article shall be seized, and the person in whose baggage it is found shall be liable to a penalty of treble the value of such article, and to the other penalties prescribed for frauds upon the customs revenues, unless it shall be established to the satisfaction of the collector that the failure to mention or declare was without fraud.
Section 310
SEC. 310. Goods found to be fraudulently entered, either as to value, quantity, or character, and all goods which have been the subject-of an attempt to import into the Philippine Islands without going through the custom-house, or to export from the Philippine Islands without proper entry thereof and payment of lawful duties and charges thereon, and merchandise of prohibited importation, whether declared or not, shall be seized and disposed of as is in this Act provided for the disposition of seized property.
Section 311
SEC. 311. When imported merchandise shall he so declared and entered as to the value or classification thereof that the duties, if estimated on the face of the entry, would be less by ten per centum than by law should be collected, or when the dutiable weight, measurement, or quantity of imported merchandise is found upon examination to exceed by ten per centum or more the entered weight, measurement, or quantity, a penalty may be imposed upon the importer of not less than the additional amount required to pay the duty on such merchandise, and not more than five times such additional amount so required, and no delivery of any of the merchandise included in such entry shall be made until such penalty has been paid.
Section 312
SEC. 312. If, upon examination of goods sought to be exported, it is found that the actual gross weight of such goods exceeds by more of than ten per centum the gross weight declared in the bills of lading and export declaration, a penalty may be imposed upon the exporter of an amount not exceeding ten times the export duty on such goods.
Section 313
SEC. 313. For the purposes of this Act, whenever any fine, penalty, seizure, confiscation, or forfeiture is herein prescribed, in respect to any person, beast, merchandise, vehicle, vessel, or article of any description, the collector of customs shall impose, collect, execute, and enforce the same in his official capacity without further process of law, unless otherwise specifically stated in this Act: Provided, That nothing in this section contained shall be construed to prevent the arrest or seizure and temporary detention of any person, beast, merchandise, vehicle, vessel, or article, for the purpose of preventing the escape or removal thereof from customs surveillance or custody: And provided further, That any beast, merchandise, vehicle, vessel, or article, as to which any fine, penalty, seizure, confiscation, or forfeiture has been decreed as herein provided, either by the Collector of Customs or by the Court of Customs Appeals, shall be sold in the manner prescribed by this Act for the sale of seized or confiscated merchandise, and in cases of lines or penalties, or both, the amount of the fine, or, if so decreed, the equivalent of the penalty, or both, as the case may be, together with the expenses of sale and other proper charges, shall be deducted from the proceeds of the sale and the remainder shall be held subject to the claim of the owner, in the same way as in sales for customs dudes, and in cases of seizure, confiscation, or forfeiture the net proceeds of the sale shall be deposited in the Insular Treasury as in such case prescribed by this Act.
Section 314
SEC. 314. Any officer or employee of the customs service in the Philippine Islands who willfully makes or grants any false license, or any other false document of or for any vessel, or who falsely and corruptly describes the admeasurement of any vessel, shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine in any sum not exceeding five thousand dollars, or imprisonment not exceeding ten years, or both, in the discretion of the court.
Section 315
SEC. 315. Any person who shall give, or offer to give or promise, to give, any money or thing of value, directly or indirectly, to any officer or employee of the Government of the Philippine Islands in consideration of or for any act or omission contrary to law in connection with or pertaining to the importation, exportation, appraisement, entry, examination, or inspection of goods, wares, or merchandise, including herein any baggage, or of the liquidation of the entry thereof, or shall by threats or demands, or promises of any character, attempt to improperly influence or control any such officer or employee of the Government of the Philippine Islands as to the performance of his official duties, shall, on conviction thereof, be fined not exceeding two thousand dollars, or be imprisoned at hard labor not more than five years, or both, in the discretion of the court; and evidence of such giving, or offering, or promising to give, satisfactory to the court in which such trial is had, shall be regarded as prima facie evidence that such giving or offering or promising was contrary to law, and shall put upon the accused the burden of proving that such act was innocent, and not done with unlawful intention.
Section 316
SEC. 316. Any officer or employee in the customs service of the Government of the Philippine Islands who shall, excepting for lawful duties or fees, solicit, demand, exact, or receive from any person, directly or indirectly, any money or thing of value, in connection with or pertaining to the importation, exportation, appraisement, entry, examination, or inspection of goods, wares, or merchandise, including herein any baggage, or liquidation of the entry thereof, on conviction thereof shall be fined not exceeding five thousand dollars, or be imprisoned at hard labor not more than ten years, or both, in the discretion of the court. And evidence of such soliciting, demanding, exacting, or receiving, satisfactory to the court in which such trial is had. shall be regarded as prima facie evidence that such soliciting, demanding, exacting, or receiving was contrary to law, and shall put upon the accused the burden of proving that such act was innocent and not with unlawful intention.The reception of a gift by any officer or employee in the Philippine customs service from any importer or exporter, either directly or indirectly, shall prima facie be deemed to be a violation of the provisions of this section.
Section 317
SEC. 317. If any owner, importer, consignee, agent, or other person shall make or attempt to make any entry of imported or dutiable exported merchandise by means of any false or fraudulent invoice, affidavit, letter, paper, or by means of any false statement, written or verbal, or by means of any false or fraudulent practice or appliance whatsoever, or shall be guilty of any willful act or omission by means whereof the Government of the Philippine Islands shall be deprived of the lawful duties, or any portion thereof, embraced or referred to in such invoice, affidavit, letter, paper, or statement, or affected by such act or omission, such merchandise, or the value thereof, to be recovered from the person making the entry, shall be seized and forfeited, which forfeiture shall only apply to the whole of the merchandise or the value thereof, in the case or package containing the particular article or articles of merchandise to which such fraud or false paper or statement relates, and such person shall, upon conviction, be fined for each offense a sum not exceeding five thousand dollars, or be imprisoned for a time not exceeding two years, or both, in the discretion of the court.
Section 318
SEC. 318. All fines, pecuniary penalties, and forfeitures which may have been administratively imposed by the Collector of Customs, or the Insular Collector, or the Secretary of Finance and Justice, under the provisions of this Act, may likewise be enforced by action in court in the name of the Government of the Philippine Islands.
Section 319
SEC. 319. The moneys mentioned in this Act are in the currency of the United States. All fines, charges, or penalties prescribed by this Act shall be imposed and collected in money of the United States or such equivalents thereof as are by law permitted to be received.
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Provisions on this page are reproduced verbatim from official open data. See the attribution line.
Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines — Philippine laws are public documents (works of the government).