Section 31

A customs officer may, for the purpose of facilitating the exercise by an enforcement authority or officer of such an authority of any functions conferred on the authority or officer by or under Part II of this Act, or by section 29(4) of this Act or Schedule 5 to the Consumer Rights Act 2015 in its application for the purposes of the safety provisions, seize any imported goods and detain them for not more than two working days. Anything seized and detained under this section shall be dealt with during the period of its detention in such manner as the Commissioners of Customs and Excise may direct. In subsection (1) above the reference to two working days is a reference to a period of forty-eight hours calculated from the time when the goods in question are seized but disregarding so much of any period as falls on a Saturday or Sunday or on Christmas Day, Good Friday or a day which is a bank holiday under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 in the part of the United Kingdom where the goods are seized. In this section and section 32 below “customs officer” means any officer within the meaning of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979.

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Source: legislation.gov.uk · retrieved 2026-07-30