STRATEGIC TRADE ACT 2010

LAWS OF MALAYSIA ONLINE VERSION OF UPDATED TEXT OF REPRINT Act 708 STRATEGIC TRADE ACT 2010 As at 4 July 2023 This text is ONLY AN UPDATED TEXT of the Strategic Trade Act 2010 by the Attorney General’s Chambers. Unless and until reprinted pursuant to the powers of the Commissioner of Law Revision under subsection 14(1) of the Revision of Laws Act 1968 [Act 1], this text is NOT AN AUTHENTIC TEXT. 2 STRATEGIC TRADE ACT 2010 … … … … 2 June 2010 Date of publication in the Gazette … … 10 June 2010 English text to be authoritative … … … P.U. (B) 297 of 2010 Latest amendment made by Act 846 which came into operation on … … 4 July 2023 Date of Royal Assent … … PREVIOUS REPRINTS First Reprint … … … … … … 2019 Second Reprint … … … … … 2023 3 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 708 STRATEGIC TRADE ACT 2010 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS PART I PRELIMINARY Section 1. Short title and commencement 2. Interpretation 3. Prevailing law 4. Extra-territorial application PART II APPOINTMENT AND POWERS OF STRATEGIC TRADE CONTROLLER 5. Appointment of Controller, etc. 6. Functions and powers of Controller PART III CONTROL OF STRATEGIC ITEMS, UNLISTED ITEMS AND RESTRICTED ACTIVITIES 7. Strategic items 8. Restricted and prohibited end-users 9. Export, transhipment and transit of strategic items and unlisted items 10. Provision of technical assistance 11. Brokering of strategic items 4 Laws of Malaysia Section 12. Transactions involving unlisted items and restricted activities 12A. Presumption as to export PART IV PERMIT AND REGISTRATION 13. Application of Act to permits and registration 14. Application for permit 15. Additional documents or information 16. Grant or refusal of permit 17. Suspension and revocation of permit 18. Unauthorized use of permit 19. Registration of brokers 20. Disqualification for offences 21. Suspension of permit or registration upon disqualification 22. Application to remove disqualification 23. Endorsement on permit 24. Maintenance of documents and register 25. Registers 25A. Authorized officer PART V ENFORCEMENT 26. Application of Act for enforcement 27. Production of authority card 28. Powers of authorized officers 29. Powers of investigation 30. Search and seizure without warrant 31. Access to places or premises 32. Access to computerized data 33. Power to search conveyances 34. Use of force ACT 708 Strategic Trade 5 Section 35. List of items seized 36. Power of arrest 37. Interception of communications 38. Power to require attendance of person acquainted with case 39. Examination of person acquainted with case 40. Offences with respect to information 41. Disposal of seized strategic items and unlisted items 42. Admissibility of evidence 43. Forfeiture of strategic items and unlisted items when there is no prosecution 44. Cost of holding strategic items and unlisted items seized 45. No costs or damages arising from seizure to be recoverable 46. Obstruction of authorized officer PART VI GENERAL 47. Exemption 48. Institution of prosecution 49. Offences by body corporate 50. Offences by employee or agent 50A. Compounding of offences 51. Notice for disclosure of information 52. Information is privileged and confidential 53. Protection of officers 54. Protection of Government, etc. from liability 55. Regulations 56. Amendment of Schedule 57. Saving and transitional SCHEDULE 7 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 708 STRATEGIC TRADE ACT 2010 An Act to provide for control over the export, transhipment, transit and brokering of strategic items, including arms and related material, and other activities that will or may facilitate the design, development and production of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems and to provide for other matters connected therewith, consistent with Malaysia’s national security and international obligations. [1 January 2011, P.U. (B) 559/2010] ENACTED by the Parliament of Malaysia as follows: PART I PRELIMINARY Short title and commencement 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Strategic Trade Act 2010. (2) This Act comes into operation on a date to be appointed by the Minister by notification in the Gazette, and the Minister may appoint different dates for different provisions of this Act. Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires — “authorized officer” means any of the officers specified in section 25 A; 8 Laws of Malaysia ACT 708 “biological agent” means any microbial, micro-organism, virus or infectious substance derived from them naturally or artificially, as well as their components and whatever their origin or method of production; “biological weapon” means any microbial or other biological agents or toxins whatever their origin or method of production, of types and in quantities that have no justification for prophylactic, protective or other peaceful purpose, and weapons, equipment or means of delivery designed to use biological agents or toxins for hostile purposes or in armed conflict; “bring in transit” means to bring items from any country into Malaysia by land, sea or air, where the items are to be taken out from Malaysia on the same conveyance on which they are brought into Malaysia or any other conveyance and whether or not such items are landed or transhipped in Malaysia, but does not include the passage through Malaysia in accordance with international law of a foreign conveyance carrying any items; “brokering” means the activity of a person who, either on his own behalf or acting as an agent on behalf of another person— (a) negotiates or arranges for the purchase, sale or supply of items from one foreign country to another foreign country; or (b) purchases, sells or supplies such items from one foreign country to another foreign country; “chemical weapon” has the same meaning as assigned to it under the Chemical Weapons Convention Act 2005 [Act 641]; “Controller” means the Strategic Trade Controller appointed under section 5, and includes the Deputy Strategic Trade Controller; “conveyance” includes any vessel, train, vehicle, aircraft and any other means of transport by which persons or items can be carried; “device” means any medium in which information, visual images, sounds or other data is or are recorded, stored or embodied in any form Strategic Trade 9 so as to be capable (with or without the aid of other equipment) of being retrieved or produced therefrom; “export” means— (a) to take or cause to be taken out of Malaysia any items by land, sea or air, or to place any items in a conveyance for the purpose of such items being taken out of Malaysia by land, sea or air; or (b) to transmit technology by any means to a destination outside Malaysia, and includes any oral or visual transmission of technology by a communications device where the technology is contained in a document the relevant part of which is read out, described or otherwise displayed over the communications device in such a way as to achieve a similar result; “items” includes goods and technology; “Minister” means the Minister charged with the responsibility for international trade and industry; “nuclear weapons” means any device which is capable of releasing nuclear energy in an uncontrolled manner and which has a group of characteristics that are appropriate for use for warlike purposes, but does not include the delivery system if it is separable from the device; “owner”, in relation to— (a) strategic items or unlisted items, includes any person being or holding himself out to be the owner, importer, exporter, consignee, agent or person in possession of, or beneficially interested in, or having any control of, or power of disposition over, the strategic items or unlisted items; and (b) a conveyance, includes every person acting as agent for the owner or who receives freight or other charges payable in respect of the conveyance; 10 Laws of Malaysia ACT 708 “permit” means a permit issued under this Act, and includes a special permit; “related laws” means the written laws specified in the Schedule; “relevant Authority” means the Authority designated under the related laws for the regulation of the strategic items, unlisted items and restricted activities, and includes the Controller; “restricted activity” means— (a) any activity that supports the development, production, handling, usage, maintenance, storage, inventory or proliferation of any weapon of mass destruction and its delivery systems; or (b) participation in transactions with persons engaged in such activities; “software” means a collection of one or more programmes or microprogrammes recorded, stored or embodied in any device; “strategic items” means any items prescribed as strategic items under section 7; “strategic technology” means technology prescribed as a strategic item under section 7; “technical assistance” includes instructions, skills, training, the provision of working knowledge and consulting services and may involve the transfer of technical data; “technical data” includes blueprints, plans, diagrams, models, formulae, tables, engineering designs and specifications, manuals and instructions in print or electronic format; “technology” means information and data in any form for the design, development, production or use of another item and includes technical data, technical assistance and software; Strategic Trade 11 “toxin” means any poisonous substance, whatever its origin or method of production, produced by a living organism or artificially synthesised which can cause illness, injury or death; “tranship” means to remove items from the conveyance on which they are brought into Malaysia and to place the items on the same or another conveyance for the purpose of taking them out of Malaysia where these acts are carried out on a through bill of lading, through airway bill or through manifest; “transmit”, in relation to strategic technology, means— (a) to transmit the technology in Malaysia by electronic means; or (b) to make the technology available in Malaysia on a device, so that the strategic technology becomes accessible to any person, whether within or outside Malaysia; “unlisted items” means items that may be used in a restricted activity but are not prescribed as strategic items under section 7; “weapons of mass destruction” means any weapon designed to kill, harm or infect people, animals or plants through the effect of nuclear explosion or dispersion or the toxic properties of a chemical weapon or the infectious or toxic properties of a biological weapon, and includes a delivery system designed, adapted or intended for the deployment of such weapons. Prevailing law 3. (1) The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to, and not in derogation of, the provisions of any other written law, including the related laws, relating to the prevention of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems. 12 Laws of Malaysia ACT 708 (2) In the event of any conflict or inconsistency between the provisions of this Act and those of any other written laws, including the related laws, the provisions of this Act shall prevail and the conflicting or inconsistent provisions of the other written laws shall, to the extent of the conflict or inconsistency, be deemed to be superseded. Extra-territorial application 4. (1) This Act shall, in relation to any person, whatever his nationality or citizenship, have effect outside as well as within Malaysia, and where an offence under this Act is committed by any person in any place outside Malaysia, he may be dealt with in respect of such offence as if the offence was committed at any place within Malaysia. (2) For the purposes of subsection (1) and in relation to the transmission of strategic technology, this Act shall apply if, for the offence in question, the transmission of the strategic technology utilized any equipment or device located in