Section 22 — Accredited civilian officers: powers of entry
This version in force from 2022-06-06
Snapshot: 2026-08-24
Reproduced from legislation.gov.uk (Crown Copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0). Amendments made after 2026-08-24 may not be reflected — always check the official text .
(1) An accredited civilian officer may on giving reasonable notice—
(a) enter premises that the accredited civilian officer reasonably thinks may be used in connection with dealing in ivory (including any item that is made of ivory or has ivory in it) for the purpose of assessing compliance with the provisions of this Act, or
(b) enter premises on which the officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that there is relevant evidence.
(2) In this Act “accredited civilian officer” means an officer of the Secretary of State who is authorised by the Secretary of State for the purposes of this Act.
(3) A notice under this section must—
(a) be in writing,
(b) be given to the occupier of the premises,
(c) set out the purpose of the proposed entry, and
(d) explain the effect of section 28 (offences of obstruction).
(4) The requirement in subsection (3)(b) may be complied with by delivering or leaving the notice at the premises or sending it there by post.
(5) This section—
(a) does not authorise the entry into premises used wholly or mainly as a dwelling;
(b) authorises entry only at a reasonable time.