Editing HM Customs and Excise (section)

==Corporate history==
The Board of Customs, responsible for collecting duties levied on imported goods, and the Board of Excise, responsible for raising revenue from inland taxes, were both established in the 17th century. The raising of excise duties also dates from this time, but the levying of customs duties has a far longer history, the first written reference being found in an eighth-century charter of King [[Aethelbald of Mercia|Aethelbald]].

Following the [[1707 Act of Union]] a separate Scottish Board of Customs and Scottish Excise Board were constituted; a century later separate boards were likewise established for Ireland. By an Act of Parliament dated 2 May 1823, these and the English Boards were consolidated to form a single Board of Excise and a single Board of Customs for the whole United Kingdom.<ref name="NARecords" />

These boards (and their successors) were made up of commissioners, appointed under the [[Great Seal of the Realm]].

===HM Customs===
{{main|HM Customs}}
[[File:British six pence customs revenue stamp.jpg|thumbnail|upright|right|A British Victorian six pence customs [[revenue stamp]].]]
Originally, the term ''[[customs]]'' meant any customary payments or dues of any kind (for example, to the king, or a bishop, or the church), but later became restricted to duties payable to the king on the import or export of goods.  A centralised English customs system can be traced to the [[Winchester Assize of Customs]] of 1203<!-- 4 June 1203 -->, in the reign of [[John of England|King John]],<ref>{{cite book|last1=Heckscher|first1=Eli F|title=Mercantilism|date=1935|publisher=Routledge|location=London|isbn=9781315003993|page=52|volume=1|edition=1994}}</ref> from which time customs were to be collected and paid to the State Treasury.  HM Customs was established on a more permanent basis with the passing of legislation in the reign of King [[Edward I of England|Edward I]]: the ''nova custuma'' of 1275. Alongside the ''nova custuma'' (which was levied on exported wool and leather) duty was levied on imported goods; from the 14th century this became known as [[tonnage and poundage]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Tonnage and Poundage|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/tonnage-and-poundage|website=Encyclopaedia Britannica|access-date=25 March 2018}}</ref>

====The Board of Customs====
A Board of Customs was effectively created by the [[Long Parliament]] on 21 January 1643 under the ''Ordinance concerning the Customs for the continuance of the ordinance of concerning the subsidy of Tonnage and Poundage from 1 March 1643, to 25 March 1644''. Under this act the regulation of the collection of customs was entrusted to a parliamentary committee; however in 1662 Parliament reverted to the farming system, until a permanent Board was finally established in 1671.

===HM Revenue of Excise===
{{main|HM Excise}}
His or Her Majesty's Excise duties are inland duties levied on articles at the time of their manufacture, such as alcoholic drinks and [[tobacco]]. Excise duties were first levied in England in 1643, during the [[Commonwealth of England|Commonwealth]] (initially on beer, cider, spirits and soap); later, duties were levied on such diverse commodities as [[salt]], [[paper]] and [[brick tax|bricks]].

For a time, the Excise Board was also responsible for collecting the duty levied on imports of beverages such as rum, brandy and other spirits, as well as tea, coffee, chocolate and cocoa beans.<ref name="Lavery1989">{{cite book|last1=Lavery|first1=Brian|title=Nelson's Navy: the Ships, Men and Organisation, 1793-1815|date=1989|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=London}}</ref> Prior to payment of duty, these items were often stored in a [[bonded warehouse]], where excise officers could assess and measure them.

====The Board of Excise====
A Board of Excise was likewise established by the [[Long Parliament]] under the "Excise Ordinance" of 1643 (''Ordinance for the speedy raising and levying of moneys by way of charge or impost upon several commodities''). After 1662 Excise revenue was [[Farm (revenue leasing)|farmed]] for the most part, until the Board was established on a permanent footing in 1683.<ref name="NARecords">{{cite web|title=Records of the Boards of Customs, Excise, and Customs and Excise, and HM Revenue and Customs|url=http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C67|website=The National Archives|access-date=27 November 2017}}</ref>

====The Board of Inland Revenue====
In 1849 the Board of Excise was merged with the [[Stamp duty in the United Kingdom|Board of Stamps and Taxes]] to create a new Board of [[Inland Revenue]].<ref name="NARecords" />

===HM Customs and Excise===
The combined '''Board of Customs and Excise''' was formed in 1909 by the transfer of responsibility for Excise from the Board of [[Inland Revenue]] to the Board of Customs.

===HM Revenue and Customs===
HM Customs and Excise was not responsible for collecting direct taxes: that was the job of the Inland Revenue.  In March 2004, the O'Donnell review called for the merger of Customs and Excise with Inland Revenue; in the 2004 [[Budget]], [[Gordon Brown]], the [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]], announced that the merger would go ahead, and the merged body ([[HM Revenue and Customs]]) was implemented by the [[Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005]].