Lychees levy and charge

IMPORTANT—You can lodge your lychees return online.

The lychees levy and charge was first introduced 1 February 2004. Lychees that are produced in Australia and sold by a producer or exported will attract a levy or charge. Horticulture Innovation Australia Limited is responsible for the expenditure of the lychees levy and charge.

Lychees levy and charge rates

Lychees means a fruit of the tree Litchi chinensis.

Fresh lychees means unprocessed lychees.

A process in relation to lychees does not include cleaning, sorting, grading and packing.

Retail sale means any sale of lychees by a producer except a sale to a first purchaser or through a selling agent, buying agent, exporting agent or at a wholesale produce market.

The lychees levy and charge rate comprises marketing and research and development (R&D), as shown in the table below:

Lychees Marketing R&D TOTAL
Fresh 2.5 cents per kilogram 5.5 cents per kilogram 8 cents per kilogram
Processing - 1 cent per kilogram 1 cent per kilogram

The lychees levy and charge rate is calculated per kilogram. The charge on fresh lychees is not payable if the levy has already been applied to the fresh lychees prior to export. GST is not applied to Australian Government levies and charges.

Do I need to lodge a return and make a payment?

A producer of lychees, the person who owns the lychees immediately after harvest is liable to pay the levy.

If you produce lychees and sell your lychees by retail sale and the total quantity that you have sold amounts to $100 or more of levy in a financial year you must lodge a return and make a payment to the department.

If you produce and sell your lychees through an intermediary, including a first purchaser, buying agent, selling agent, exporting agent or a processor, the amount of levy they pay to the department on your behalf can be recovered from you by offset or otherwise.

If you are an intermediary, including a first purchaser, buying agent, selling agent, exporting agent or a processor who processed lychees, you must lodge a return and make a payment to the department. You can recover from the producer the amount of levy paid to the department, by offset or otherwise.

If you export fresh lychees—that is, you are the person who owns the fresh lychees at the time of export, you must lodge a return and make a payment to the department.

Exemptions from paying the lychees levy

A producer is not liable to pay the lychees levy if the total quantity of lychees sold by retail sale in a financial year amounts to less than $100 of levy.

How do I lodge a lychees return?

You must register with the department to receive a unique LRS number before you can lodge your first return.

To lodge your return online, access Levies Online. Alternatively, you can complete a manual horticulture return form.

Return and payment dates

IMPORTANT: If you pay your levy or charge late you will incur a penalty that is calculated daily at a compounding rate of 2 per cent of the unpaid amount each month, including any penalties you have already accrued until you have paid the outstanding amount in full.

The lychees levy and charge is based on a financial year.

Quarterly returns and payments

Quarterly returns and payments must be lodged with the department within 28 days of the end of March, June, September and December.

Example: for the quarter ending 30 June – if you bought, sold or exported lychees in the months of April, May and June – your quarterly return is due on or before 28 July.

Annual return and payment

A producer who sold leviable lychees by retail sale in a financial year must lodge a return and make a payment to the department once a year, that is on or before 28 August in the next financial year.

Example: the 2016-17 annual return and payment must be made on or before 28 August 2017.

What must be included in my return?

As a producer of lychees, your return for a quarter or levy year must set out for that quarter or levy year:

  1. Your personal details, including:
    1. Full name
    2. Business or residential address, not the address of a post office box or post office bag
    3. Post office box or post office bag, and
    4. Australian Business Number (ABN), or if you are a company the Australian Company Number (ACN)
  2. Period to which the return relates
  3. Quantity of leviable lychees sold by retail sale
  4. Amount of levy payable
  5. Total amount of levy payable, and
  6. Total amount of levy paid.

As an intermediary of lychees, including as a first purchaser, buying agent, selling agent or exporting agent, your return for a quarter must set out for that quarter:

  1. Your personal details, including:
    1. Full name
    2. Business or residential address, not the address of a post office box or post office bag
    3. Post office box or post office bag, and
    4. ABN, or if you are a company the ACN
  2. Period to which the return relates
  3. Quantity of lychees bought, sold or exported
  4. Amount of levy and charge payable for each of those quantities
  5. Total amount of levy and charge payable, and
  6. Total amount of levy and charge paid by the producer of lychees.

As a processor of lychees, your return for a quarter must set out for that quarter:

  1. Your personal details, including:
    1. Full name
    2. Business or residential address, not the address of a post office box or post office bag
    3. Post office box or post office bag, and
    4. ABN, or if you are a company the ACN
  2. Period to which the return relates
  3. Quantity of lychees bought and processed
  4. Amount of levy payable for those quantities
  5. Total amount of levy payable, and
  6. Total amount of levy paid.

As an exporter of lychees, your return for a quarter or levy year must set out for that quarter or levy year:

  1. Your personal details, including:
    1. Full name
    2. Business or residential address, not the address of a post office box or post office bag
    3. Post office box or post office bag, and
    4. ABN, or if you are a company the ACN
  2. Period to which the return relates
  3. Quantity of lychees exported
  4. Amount of charge payable for each of those quantities
  5. Total amount of charge payable, and
  6. Total amount of charge paid.

What records do I need to keep?

As a producer of lychees, you must keep records for five (5) years showing for each quarter or levy year, the:

  1. Quantity of lychees sold by retail sale
  2. Amount of levy payable for the lychees, and
  3. Amount of levy paid for the lychees.

As an intermediary of lychees, including as a first purchaser, buying agent or selling agent, you must keep records for five (5) years showing for each quarter, the:

  1. Quantity of lychees bought, sold or exported
  2. Date the lychees were received, bought, sold or exported
  3. Amount of levy and charge payable for the lychees
  4. Amount of levy and charge paid for the lychees, and
  5. Details for each person on whose behalf the lychees was dealt with, the persons:
    1. Full name, business or residential address (not the address of a post office box or post office bag) and ABN, if any, or if the person is a company and does not have an ABN, its ACN.

As an exporter or exporting agent of lychees, you must keep records for five (5) years showing for each quarter, the:

  1. Date the lychees were received by the exporter or exporting agent
  2. Quantity of lychees exported
  3. Amount of charge payable
  4. Amount of charge paid, and
  5. Details for each producer on whose behalf the lychees was dealt with, the producer’s:
    1. Full name, business or residential address (not the address of a post office box or post office bag) and ABN, if any, or if the person is a company and does not have an ABN, its ACN.

Primary Industries Legislation

The lychees levy and charge is provided for under the:

Primary Industries (Excise) Levies Act 1999

Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Act 1999, and

Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 1991.

This information is a guide only. If you are required to lodge a return and make a payment to the department it is your responsibility to remain aware of your obligations under legislation.

Contact us

If you have any questions about levies and charges, your levies account or how to lodge your return, please contact the Levies Helpdesk via email: levies.management@awe.gov.au or call us on 1800 020 619