Finance Act 2011
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Amendment of Chapter 3 (offences, penalties and proceedings) of Part 2 of Finance Act 2001. |
46.— (1) Chapter 3 of Part 2 of the Finance Act 2001 is amended— | |
(a) by deleting section 118, | ||
(b) by substituting the following for section 127: | ||
“Notice of claim. | ||
127.— (1) Where anything has, under any provision of excise law, been seized as liable to forfeiture, a person (referred to in this section as ‘the claimant’) may— | ||
(a) within one month of the date of the notice of seizure under section 142(1), or | ||
(b) where no such notice has been given, within one month of the date of the seizure, | ||
give notice in writing to the Commissioners of a claim (referred to in this section as a ‘notice of claim’) that the thing seized is not so liable. | ||
(2) A notice of claim shall specify the full name and address of the claimant and the basis on which the claim is grounded and, where that address is outside the State, any documents relating to condemnation proceedings under section 128(1) may be served at that address by post. | ||
(3) If, on the expiration of a period referred to in subsection (1), no notice of claim has been given, the thing seized shall be deemed to have been duly condemned as forfeited, and the forfeiture shall apply from the date when the liability to forfeiture arose. | ||
(4) Where a notice of claim has been given, the Commissioners shall, subject to subsections (2) and (3) of section 144, take court proceedings under section 128 for the condemnation of the thing concerned.”, | ||
(c) by substituting the following for section 128: | ||
“Proceedings for condemnation by court. | ||
128.— (1) Proceedings for condemnation by the court in accordance with section 127(4) (in this section referred to as ‘condemnation proceedings’) are civil proceedings, and such proceedings shall be commenced in the name of the Commissioners. | ||
(2) Where in any condemnation proceedings the court finds that the thing seized was, at the time of seizure, liable to forfeiture, the court shall condemn it as forfeited, and in any other case the court shall order its release. | ||
(3) Condemnation proceedings may be instituted in the High Court or, if in the opinion of the Commissioners the value of the thing seized (that is to be the subject of such proceedings) does not exceed— | ||
(a) €38,092, the Circuit Court, or | ||
(b) €6,350, the District Court. | ||
(4) In any condemnation proceedings, the claimant or any solicitor acting on behalf of such claimant, shall state on oath that the thing seized was, or was to the best of their knowledge and belief, the property of the claimant at the time of the seizure. | ||
(5) The Commissioners may in their discretion stay or compound any condemnation proceedings, and may restore anything seized which is the subject of such proceedings, and the Minister for Finance may order any such restoration. | ||
(6) Where in any condemnation proceedings judgment is given for the claimant, no officer or other person who made or assisted in making the seizure is liable to any civil or criminal proceedings on account of the seizure or detention of the thing seized, where the court or judge certifies that there was probable cause for making such seizure or detention. | ||
(7) Where, in any condemnation proceedings, anything is condemned as forfeited, the forfeiture shall apply from the date when the liability to forfeiture arose.”, | ||
and | ||
(d) in section 132 by substituting “section 126 or 128” for “section 126 or 127”. | ||
(2) Section 21 of the Inland Revenue Regulation Act 1890 (as amended by section 53 of the Finance Act 1987 ) is amended in subsection (1) by deleting “or for the condemnation of any goods seized as forfeited under any such Act,”. |