Revised Laws of Saint Lucia (2022)

8.   Verification of origin of exported goods

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   (1)   For the purposes of complying with any request made to the Comptroller or any other Government department, under arrangements made for the purposes of the Agreement or the Common Market Agreement or is otherwise incidental to the carrying out thereof, to verify or investigate any certificate or other evidence relevant to the question whether any goods exported from, or produced or manufactured (directly or indirectly) from goods exported from Saint Lucia are eligible in any other Community Territory or Common Market State for Caribbean Common Market rate of duty or, as the case may be, Common Market rate of duty, the Comptroller may carry out such investigations, and may make to the government or authority making the request such report, or provide them with such information, as appear to the Comptroller requisite; and the Comptroller may require—

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      (a)     the exporter;

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      (b)     any other person appearing to the Comptroller to have been concerned with the goods, or any goods from which, directly or indirectly, they have been produced or manufactured (whether he or she was concerned with them as respects growth, production, manufacture or handling or in any other way); or

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      (c)     any other person appearing to the Comptroller to have been concerned in the giving of the certificate or evidence,

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   to furnish such information in such form and within such time as the Comptroller may specify in the requirement.

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   (2)   Any reference in the foregoing subsection to the furnishing of information includes a reference to the production of invoices, bills of lading and other books or documents whatsoever, and to allowing the Comptroller to inspect them and to take copies or extracts.

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   (3)   Any person who without reasonable cause fails to comply with a requirement under this section commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of $500.

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   (4)   An averment in any process in proceedings under this section that any requirement to furnish information which has been made was made for the purpose specified in subsection (1) shall, until the contrary is proved, be sufficient evidence that the requirement was so made.