Section 8: Importing or exporting a psychoactive substance
This section provides for two offences of importing or exporting a psychoactive substance. The conduct and mental elements are the same in each case, save that one relates to importation and the other to exportation.
	The conduct element of the offences is satisfied if the defendant imports or exports, as the case may be, a substance and the substance is a psychoactive substance. There are three mental elements of the offences. First, the importation or exportation of the substance must be intentional.  Second, the defendant must know or suspect, or ought to know or suspect, that the substance is a psychoactive substance. Third, the defendant must either intend to consume the substance him- or herself for its psychoactive effects, or must know, or be reckless as to whether, the substance is likely to be consumed by other individuals for its psychoactive effects. These offences therefore cover importation and exportation of psychoactive substances for personal use as well as for the purpose of supplying others.
	Given the requirement of the conduct element of these offences, they do not cover the situation where a person imports or exports a controlled drug wrongly believing it to be a psychoactive substance. Subsection (3) provides that, in such a case, a person can still be convicted of the relevant offence in subsection (1) or (2) provided that the other elements of the offence are established.
	Subsection (4) applies section 5 of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 for the purposes of this section. Section 5 of that Act defines how the point in time when goods are said to be imported or exported is to be determined, for example, in the case of items imported by sea, the time of importation is when the ship carrying the item comes within the limits of a port.
	These offences do not apply where the importation or exportation is covered by an exemption provided for in Schedule 2 or in regulations made under section 11(5).