245-62 Applicability
(a) This chapter shall not apply to:
(1) Cigarettes allowed to be imported or brought into the United States
for personal use free of federal tax or duty or voluntarily abandoned
to the United States Secretary of Treasury at the time of entry;
(2) Cigarettes sold or intended to be sold as duty-free merchandise
by a duty-free sales enterprise in accordance with the provisions of section
1555(b) of title 19, United States Code , and any implementing regulations;
provided that this chapter shall apply to any cigarettes that are brought
back into the customs territory for resale within the customs territory; or
(3) A delivery service when engaged in the business of transporting
or delivering packages or other containers of cigarettes, if the delivery
service is not a knowing accomplice in any act that circumvents the requirements
of this chapter. The department and the attorney general shall retain
inspection and investigation authority under this chapter. The delivery
service shall provide the department or the attorney general with access
to inspect any shipments of any cigarettes and shall provide any information,
including shipping and delivery documents, deemed necessary to verify
compliance with the requirements of this chapter.
(b) As used in this section:
“Delivery service” means an entity, including the United States
Postal Service (as defined in section 102 of title 39, United States Code
), that is engaged in the commercial transport or delivery by water, land,
or air of letters, packages, merchandise, or other containers whether
or not the entity actually operates the vessel, vehicle, or aircraft by
which the transportation is provided.
“Shipping documents” or “delivery documents” include
but are not limited to bills of lading, air bills, or any other documents,
records, or documentation in whatever format, including electronic format
used to evidence the undertaking by a delivery service to ship, transport,
or deliver letters, packages, merchandise, or other containers.