Planning and Development, and Residential Tenancies, Act 2020

Disapplication of Part

11. (1) This Part shall not apply in relation to a tenant—

(a) who makes a declaration referred to in subsection (1) of section 10 but does not comply with subsection (2) of that section, or

(b) if any rent owed by the tenant in respect of the tenancy of the dwelling concerned is, on 10 January 2021, in arrears for—

(i) a period of 5 months or more, or

(ii) periods the aggregate of which is 5 months or more.

(2) This Part shall cease to apply in relation to a tenant—

(a) who fails or refuses to provide to the Board or any other person such information or documentation as the Board or that person may reasonably require for the purposes of the giving of advice of the type referred to in subsection (4) of section 10 to the tenant, within such period as the Board or that other person, as the case may be, shall specify,

(b) who fails or refuses to comply with the terms of an arrangement referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (d) of the said subsection (4), or

(c) if, in relation to the tenancy of the dwelling concerned, the landlord serves a declaration in writing (in such form as may be specified by the Board) made by him or her on the Board, and a true copy thereof on the tenant, stating that—

(i) any rent owed by the tenant in respect of the tenancy of the dwelling concerned is, on the date of the making of the declaration, in arrears for—

(I) a period of 5 months or more, or

(II) periods the aggregate of which is 5 months or more,

(ii) the tenant has failed or refused to provide the Board or other person with such information or documentation as the Board or that other person may reasonably require for the purposes of the giving of advice of the type referred to in subsection (4) of section 10 to the tenant, within such period as the Board or that other person, as the case may be, shall specify,

(iii) the tenant has failed or refused to comply with the terms of an arrangement referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (d) of the said subsection (4), or

(iv) the application of this Part to the tenant would cause undue financial hardship to the landlord.

(3) (a) A person who makes a declaration referred to in subsection (2) that is false or misleading in any material respect shall be guilty of an offence.

(b) For the purposes of this subsection, the making of a declaration that is false or misleading in a material respect includes—

(i) in the case of a declaration to which subparagraph (i) of paragraph (c) of subsection (2) applies, a failure to disclose in that declaration information that a reasonable person would consider to be material to the question with regard to whether or not any rent owed by the tenant in respect of the tenancy of the dwelling concerned is, on the date of the making of the declaration, in arrears for—

(I) a period of 5 months or more, or

(II) periods the aggregate of which is 5 months or more,

(ii) in the case of a declaration to which subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (c) of subsection (2) applies, a failure to disclose in that declaration information that a reasonable person would consider to be material to the question with regard to whether or not the tenant has failed or refused to provide the Board or other person with such information or documentation referred to in the said subparagraph (ii),

(iii) in the case of a declaration to which subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (c) of subsection (2) applies, a failure to disclose in that declaration information that a reasonable person would consider to be material to the question with regard to whether or not the tenant has failed or refused to comply with the terms of an arrangement referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (d) of the said subsection (4) of section 10 , and

(iv) in the case of a declaration to which subparagraph (iv) of paragraph (c) of subsection (2) applies, a failure to disclose in that declaration information that a reasonable person would consider to be material to the question with regard to whether or not the application of this Part in relation to the tenant would cause undue financial hardship to the landlord.

(4) For the purposes of this section, the application of this Part in relation to a tenant would cause undue financial hardship to a landlord where—

(a) the landlord is a relevant person,

(b) the rent in respect of the tenancy of the dwelling concerned is the landlord’s sole or main income, or

(c) the dwelling concerned is subject to a mortgage and the landlord is unlikely to be able to comply with his or her obligations in relation to the mortgage if the rent in respect of the tenancy of the dwelling remains unpaid for the duration of the emergency period.

(5) For the purposes of this section, a document is a true copy of a declaration referred to in subsection (2) if it is certified in writing by the person who made the declaration to be a true copy of that declaration.

(6) In this section “relevant person” means—

(a) a person—

(i) to whom subsection (7) (inserted by section 5 of the Act of 2020) of section 40 of the Act of 2005 applies, or

(ii) belonging to a category prescribed under subsection (8) of the said section 40,

(b) a person who has, at any time during the period commencing on 1 August 2020 and ending on 12 April 2021, been a person—

(i) to whom the said subsection (7) applied, or

(ii) belonging to such category,

or

(c) a person who, in respect of the period referred to in paragraph (b) or any part of that period, is, or has been, in receipt of or entitled to receive—

(i) the temporary wage subsidy (within the meaning of section 28 of the Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Covid-19) Act 2020 ),

(ii) supplementary welfare allowance (within the meaning of Chapter 9 of Part 3 of the Act of 2005) or a supplement under subsection (3) of section 198 of the Act of 2005, paid for the purpose of alleviating financial hardship resulting from the loss of employment occasioned by—

(I) the spread, or risk of spread of, Covid-19, or

(II) measures adopted by the State to prevent the spread of that disease,

or

(iii) any other payment out of public moneys provided for by or under statute, paid for the purpose of alleviating financial hardship resulting from the loss of employment occasioned by—

(I) the spread, or risk of spread of, Covid-19, or

(II) measures adopted by the State to prevent the spread of that disease.