Finance Act, 1960

Relief from certain duties.

39.—(1) (a) Where a person was of or over the age of twenty-one years on the 1st day of January, 1953, and it is proved by him or on his behalf to the satisfaction of the Revenue Commissioners that as from the age of seven years or earlier, he was, during the appropriate period, under the care of and maintained at their own expense by a married couple (not being his parents in a case in which he was born to his parents in lawful wedlock) as a member of their family and household, then, for the purposes of—

(i) succession duty and legacy duty,

(ii) the stamp duties chargeable on conveyances or transfers of land, and

(iii) exemption from customs duty under paragraph (b) of section 18 of the Finance Act, 1936 ,

he shall be considered as the child of that married couple born to them in lawful wedlock and not to be the child of any other person.

(b) In paragraph (a) of this subsection “the appropriate period” means—

(i) in case, during the period of seven years from the time when the person in question began to be under the care of and maintained by the married couple as a member of their family and household, one (but not both) of the married couple died—the period from the said time until the death,

(ii) in case, during the period of seven years from the said time, both of the married couple died—the period from the said time until the death of that one of the married couple who died first, and

(iii) in any other case—seven years.

(2) Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to acquisitions of property which occurred before the 1st day of January, 1953, but, subject to that exception, it applies to acquisitions of property which occurred either before or after the passing of this Act.

(3) Where—

(a) there has been, before the passing of this Act and not earlier than the 1st day of January, 1953, an acquisition of property,

(b) duty was paid before the passing of this Act in relation to the acquisition, and

(c) the duty either—

(i) would not have been payable, or

(ii) exceeded the duty which would have been payable,

if this section had been passed before the acquisition took place,

the duty or the excess (as the case may be) shall be repaid provided that application for repayment is made to the Revenue Commissioners within one year from the passing of this Act.