Title 26 — Internal Revenue CodeRelease 119-73
§5232 Imported distilled spirits
Title 26 › Subtitle Subtitle E— - Alcohol, Tobacco, and Certain Other Excise Taxes › Chapter CHAPTER 51— - DISTILLED SPIRITS, WINES, AND BEER › Subchapter Subchapter C— - Operation of Distilled Spirits Plants › Part PART II— - OPERATIONS ON BONDED PREMISES › Subpart Subpart C— - Storage › § 5232
Summary
Imported distilled spirits in bulk can be moved from customs straight to a bonded distilled spirits plant without paying the federal tax at that moment, under rules the Secretary sets. When customs releases the spirits, the plant operator becomes responsible for the tax and the importer is no longer liable. Spirits transferred this way can be redistilled or denatured only if they are 185 degrees or more of proof. They can be withdrawn later for any uses the tax code allows, the same as U.S.-made distilled spirits.
Full Legal Text
Title 26, §5232
Internal Revenue Code — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)Distilled spirits imported or brought into the United States in bulk containers may, under such regulations as the Secretary shall prescribe, be withdrawn from customs custody and transferred in such bulk containers or by pipeline to the bonded premises of a distilled spirits plant without payment of the internal revenue tax imposed on such distilled spirits. The person operating the bonded premises of the distilled spirits plant to which such spirits are transferred shall become liable for the tax on distilled spirits withdrawn from customs custody under this section upon release of the spirits from customs custody, and the importer, or the person bringing such distilled spirits into the United States, shall thereupon be relieved of his liability for such tax.
(b)Distilled spirits transferred pursuant to subsection (a)—
(1)may be redistilled or denatured only if of 185 degrees or more of proof, and
(2)may be withdrawn for any purpose authorized by this chapter, in the same manner as domestic distilled spirits.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Prior Provisions
A prior section 5232, acts Aug. 16, 1954, ch. 736, 68A Stat. 643; Sept. 2, 1958, Pub. L. 85–859, title II, § 206(b), 72 Stat. 1431, related to bond requirements of internal revenue bonded warehouses, prior to the general revision of this chapter by Pub. L. 85–859. See section 5005(c)(1), 5006(a)(2), 5173(a), (c)(1), 5174(a)(1), 5176(a), (b), and 5177(b)(1) of this title. Provisions similar to those comprising this section were contained in prior section 5311, act Aug. 16, 1954, ch. 736, 68A Stat. 658, prior to the general revision of this chapter by Pub. L. 85–859.
Amendments
1979—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 96–39 redesignated par. (2) and (3) as (1) and (2). Former par. (1), which prohibited distilled spirits transferred pursuant to subsection (a) from being bottled in bond under section 5233, was struck out. 1976—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 94–455 inserted “, or the person bringing such distilled spirits into the United States,” after “and the importer”. 1971—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 91–659, § 7(a), extended privilege of transfer of distilled spirits to the plant without payment of tax to distilled spirits imported, or brought into the United States, and struck out reference to section 5001. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 91–659, § 7(b), struck out “Imported” before “distilled spirits” and thus applied subsection to all distilled spirits. 1968—Pub. L. 90–630 permitted withdrawal in bulk containers or by pipeline from customs custody to internal revenue bond without payment of internal revenue taxes of all imported distilled spirits in bulk containers, regardless of proof, extended to all such imported distilled spirits the withdrawal privileges already available to imported distilled spirits of at least 185 proof, whether or not they have been redistilled or denatured, provided that transferor’s liability for the internal revenue tax ceases when the transferee’s liability attaches, and established that imported bulk spirits are not eligible for the bottled in bond privileges available to domestic spirits.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 1979 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 96–39 effective Jan. 1, 1980, see section 810 of Pub. L. 96–39, set out as a note under section 5001 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1976 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 94–455 effective on first day of first month which begins more than 90 days after Oct. 4, 1976, see section 1905(d) of Pub. L. 94–455, set out as a note under section 5005 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1971 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 91–659 effective on first day of first calendar month which begins more than 90 days after Jan. 8, 1971, see section 6 of Pub. L. 91–659, set out as an
Effective Date
note under section 5066 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1968 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 90–630 applicable only to withdrawals from customs custody on or after first day of first calendar month which begins more than 90 days after Oct. 22, 1968, see section 4 of Pub. L. 90–630, set out as a note under section 5008 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
26 U.S.C. § 5232
Title 26 — Internal Revenue Code
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73