Value-Added Tax Act, 1972

Interpretation.

1.—(1) In this Act, save where the context otherwise requires—

“accountable person” means a person who is an accountable person in accordance with section 8.

“Appeal Commissioners” means persons appointed in accordance with section 156 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , to be Appeal Commissioners for the purposes of the Income Tax Acts;

“body of persons” means any body politic, corporate, or collegiate, and any company, partnership, fraternity, fellowship and society of persons, whether corporate or not corporate;

“business” includes farming, the promotion of dances and any trade, commerce, manufacture, or any venture or concern in the nature of trade, commerce or manufacture, and any profession or vocation, whether for profit or otherwise;

“Collector-General” means the Collector-General appointed under section 162 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 ;

“the customs-free airport” means the land which under the Customs-free Airport Act, 1947 , for the time being constitutes the Customs-free airport;

“development”, in relation to any land, means—

(a) the construction, demolition, extension, alteration or reconstruction of any building on the land, or

(b) the carrying out of any engineering or other operation in, on, over or under the land to adapt it for materially altered use,

and “developed” shall be construed correspondingly;

“established” means having a permanent establishment;

“exempted activity” means—

(a) a delivery of immovable goods in respect of which pursuant to section 4 (6) tax is not chargeable, and

(b) a delivery of any goods or a rendering of any service of a kind specified in the First Schedule or declared by the Minister by order for the time being in force under section 6 to be an exempted activity;

“goods” means all movable and immovable objects, but does not include things in action or money and references to goods include references to both new and second-hand goods;

“harbour authority” has the meaning assigned to it by section 2 of the Harbours Act, 1946 ;

“hire”, in relation to movable goods, includes a letting on any terms including a leasing;

“hotel” includes any guest house, holiday hostel, holiday camp, motor hotel, motel, coach hotel, motor inn, motor court, tourist court, caravan park or camping site;

“immovable goods” means land;

“inspector of taxes” means an inspector of taxes appointed under section 161 of the Income Tax Act, 1967 ;

“livestock” means live cattle, sheep, pigs and horses;

“local authority” has the meaning assigned to it by section 2 (2) of the Local Government Act, 1941 , and includes a health board established under the Health Act, 1970 ;

“manufacturer” means a person who carries on in the State a business of making or assembling goods;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Finance;

“movable goods” means goods other than immovable goods;

“permanent establishment” means any fixed place of business, but does not include a place of business of an agent of a person unless the agent has and habitually exercises general authority to negotiate the terms of and make agreements on behalf of the person or has a stock of goods with which he regularly fulfils on behalf of the person agreements for the supply of goods;

“registered person” means a person who is registered in the register maintained under section 9;

“regulations” means regulations under section 32;

“rendering”, in relation to a service, has the meaning assigned to it by section 5;

“residing”, in relation to an individual, means resident for the purposes of the Income Tax Acts;

“second-hand”, in relation to goods, means goods which have been used and are not new;

“secretary” includes such persons as are mentioned in section 207 (2) of the Income Tax Act, 1967 , and section 55 (1) of the Finance Act, 1920 ;

“the specified day” means the day appointed by the Minister by order to be the specified day for the purposes of this Act;

“tax” means value-added tax chargeable by virtue of this Act;

“taxable goods”, in relation to any delivery or importation, means goods the delivery of which is not an exempted activity;

“taxable period” means a period of two months beginning on the first day of January, March, May, July, September or November;

“taxable services” means services the rendering of which is not an exempted activity.

(2) In this Act references to moneys received by a person include references to—

(a) money lodged or credited to the account of the person in any bank, savings bank, building society, hire purchase finance concern or similar financial concern, and

(b) money, other than money referred to in paragraph (a), which, under an agreement, other than an agreement providing for discount or a price adjustment made in the ordinary course of business or an arrangement with creditors, has ceased to be due to the person,

and money lodged or credited to the account of a person as aforesaid shall be deemed to have been received by the person on the date of the making of the lodgment or credit and money which has ceased to be due to a person as aforesaid shall be deemed to have been received by the person on the date of the cesser.

(3) Any reference in this Act to any other enactment shall, except so far as the context otherwise requires, be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended or extended by any subsequent enactment.

(4) In this Act—

(a) a reference to a section or Schedule is to a section or Schedule of this Act, unless it is indicated that reference to some other enactment is intended, and

(b) a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph is to the subsection, paragraph or subparagraph of the provision (including a Schedule) in which the reference occurs, unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended.