E N C OU R A G E M E NT O F NE W I N DU S T R I E S
[CAP. 53.
1
CHAPTER 53
ENCOURAGEMENT OF NEW INDUSTRIES ACT
To repeal and re-enact with amendments the law relating to the
encouragement of new industries.
(17th July, 1925)*
Enacted by Act X of 1925, as amended by Acts: VI of 1947, VIII of 1950;
Emergency Ordinances: XV of 1958, XXI of 1959; Ordinance XXV of 1962;
Legal Notice 4 of 1963; Acts: X of 1963, XXVII of 1967; Legal Notice 148
of 1975; and Acts: XI of 1977, XIII of 1983, XXIV of 1995 and Legal Notice
408 of 2007.
l.
This Act may be cited as the Encouragement of New
Industries Act.
2. †
In this Act -
"the Corporation" means the Malta Development Corporation
established by article 3 of the Malta Development Corporation Act;
"new industry" means any enterprise or process of producing,
manufacturing or improving any article, commodity or service,
initiated for the first time in Malta.
3. (1) It shall be lawful for the Minister responsible for
development, after consultation with the Corporation, to grant an
exclusive right to start and carry on any new industry in Malta for a
specified period of years and under such conditions as he may deem
it expedient to impose.
(2) Before making any such grant as provided in subarticle (1),
the Minister responsible for development, after consultation with
the Corporation, may require the applicant to give good and
sufficient security to his satisfaction in an amount in every case to
be fixed by the Minister responsible for development, for the due
and proper fulfilment by the applicant and by those claiming
through or under him of the conditions of the grant. In case of
default in or breach of any such condition, the amount of the
security or such portion thereof as the Minister responsible for
development may in his discretion decide, shall be forfeited to the
Government.
(3) It shall rest solely with the Minister responsible for
development, after consultation with the Corporation, to determine
whether an industry is to be deemed a new industry for the
purposes of this Act, and in the exercise of his powers he may
consider as new any industry, already existing, which is, or has
been carried on, on a small scale, or at intervals, or has ceased to be
carried on for more than six months:
Provided that in any such case the grantee of the exclusive
*See Government Notice No. 187 of the 17th of July. 1925.
†Transposed respectively from s.15(1) and from s.2(3) of the 1942 Revised Edition of
the Laws of Malta as subsequently amended.
Short title.
Interpretation.
Amended by:
VII.1947.2;
XV.1958.2;
XXI. 1959.33;
XXV.1962.2,4;
L.N.4 of 1963.
Substituted by:
XXVII. 1967.20.
Cap. 202.
Power of Minister
to grant exclusive
rights to carry on
new industries.
Amended by:
VIII. 1950.2;
XV. 1958.2;
XXI. 1959.33;
XXV. 1962.2,4;
L.N. 4 of 1963;
XXVII. 1967.20;
XI. 1977.2.
Power of Minister
to determine
whether an
industry is a new
industry.
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CAP. 53.]
E NC O U R A G E M E N T O F N E W I N D U S T R I E S
right shall bind himself to carry on the industry with new or more
profitable means of production.
To whom grant
may be made.
Amended by:
VI.1947.2;
XV. 1958.2;
XXV.1962.2,4;
L.N.4 of 1963.
Substituted by:
XXVII. 1967.20.
4.
A grant under the last preceding article shall not be made
to any person who is not a citizen of Malta or to any firm or
partnership which is not wholly or mainly owned or controlled by
citizens of Malta:
Provided that it shall be lawful to make any such grant to
any other person, firm or partnership (a) if no identical application is made by a citizen of
Malta or by a firm or partnership wholly or mainly
owned or controlled by citizens of Malta, within such
time and under such conditions as the Minister
responsible for development may deem proper to fix;
or
(b) if such other person, firm or partnership undertakes to
employ a reasonable number of Maltese workers or
shows that one-half, at least, of the capital necessary
for the establishment of the new industry is owned by
citizens of Malta.
Application for
grant of exclusive
right.
Amended by:
VI.1947.2;
XV. 1958.2;
XXI. 1959.33;
XXVII. 1967.20.
5.
The application for the grant of an exclusive right under
article 3 shall be addressed to the Corporation and shall be
accompanied by a specification stating the nature and purpose of
the proposed new industry, and such other particulars as may be
necessary for describing the working thereof.
Publication for
application.
Amended by:
XV.1958.2;
XXV.1962.2, 4;
L.N.4 of 1963;
XXVII.1967.20;
XI.1977.2.
6. (1) Every such application shall be published in the
Government Gazette and any person interested may make
opposition thereto.
(2) Where the application is made by a person who is not a
citizen of Malta or by a firm or partnership which is not wholly or
mainly owned or controlled by citizens of Malta, such fact shall
likewise be published.
(3) No decision shall be taken by the Minister responsible for
development in regard to such application until the lapse of six
weeks, at least, from the day of the said publication.
Power of Minister
to grant or refuse
applications.
Amended by:
XV.1958.2;
XXI.1959.33;
XXV.1962.2,4;
L.N. 4 of 1963;
XXVII. 1967.20;
XI. 1977.2.
7.
It shall be competent to the Minister responsible for
development, after having heard the Corporation, to consider any
opposition which may have been made to the application or
applications for an exclusive right, and to grant any of the
applications or to refuse them all.
E N C OU R A G E M E NT O F NE W I N DU S T R I E S
[CAP. 53.
3
8.
The grant of an exclusive right in terms of article 3 or its
extension as provided hereunder shall be signed by the Minister
responsible for development and shall be published in the
Government Gazette and in another newspaper.
Grant to be
published in
Government
Gazette.
Amended by:
VI. 1947.2;
XV.1958.2;
XXV.1962.2;
L.N. 4 of 1963;
X.1963.2;
XI. 1977.2.
9.
The duration of each grant shall be fixed or extended by
the Minister responsible for development for a total period not
exceeding fifty years.
Duration of grant.
Amended by:
XV.1958.2;
XXV.1962.2,4;
L.N. 4 of 1963;
XI.1977.2.
10. (1) During the period for which an exclusive right to carry
on a new industry is granted or extended, it shall be lawful for the
Minister responsible for development to order the revocation of the
grant on the ground that the reasonable requirements of the public
for which the exclusive right was granted are not being met, or on
proof of any breach of the conditions attaching to the grant, or on
any other reasonable ground.
Revocation of
grant.
Amended by:
XV.1958.2;
XXV.1962.2,4;
L.N. 4 of 1963;
XI.1977.2.
(2) Any person may demand the revocation of the grant on any
of the aforesaid grounds provided he shows a good reason for his
demand and produces the necessary evidence.
(3) The revocation shall, in every case, be published in the
Government Gazette and in another newspaper.
11. Any person who shall fraudulently infringe any grant made
under article 3, shall be liable, at the suit of the grantee, to be
condemned by the Civil Court, First Hall, to the payment of
damages and interest, or to the payment of a fine of not less than
twenty-three euro and twenty-nine cents (23.29) nor exceeding one
thousand and one hundred and sixty-four euro and sixty-nine cents
(1,164.69), or to the restitution of all the profits derived by him
from the infringement of the grant.
Damages for
infringement.
Amended by:
L.N. 148 of 1975;
XIII.1983.5;
XXIV.1995.362;
L.N. 408 of 2007.
12. In the case referred to in the last preceding article, the
court may, on the demand of the plaintiff, order that the machinery
or other industrial means used in the infringement of the grant be
forfeited, wholly or in part, or delivered up to the grantee, without
prejudice to the payment of any other sum as provided in the said
article.
Forfeiture of
machinery used in
infringement.
13. If, for the purpose of securing the claim for the forfeiture
referred to in the last preceding article, application is made for the
issue of a warrant of description, or of a garnishee order, or of a
warrant of seizure, or of prohibitory injunction, the court may,
before issuing such warrant or order, require the applicant to give
security.
Power of court to
require security
where warrant of
description, etc., is
applied for.
14. Civil actions arising under this Act shall be barred by the
lapse of five years.
Limitation of time
for civil actions.
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E NC O U R A G E M E N T O F N E W I N D U S T R I E S
Power of Minister
to make, alter or
revoke regulations.
Amended by:
XV.1958.2;
XXV.1962.2,4;
L.N. 4 of 1963;
XI.1977.2.
Cap. 9.
15. The Minister responsible for development may make, and
when made, vary or revoke regulations on matters relating to the
grant of exclusive rights to exercise new industries, and may
prescribe that any person offending against such regulations shall,
on conviction, be liable to the punishments established in the
Criminal Code for contraventions.
Other functions of
the Corporation.
Amended by:
VI.1947.2;
XV.1958.2;
XXI.1958.33;
XXV.1962.2,4;
L.N. 4 of 1963.
Substituted by:
XXVII. 1967.20.
16. All questions of a technical nature arising under this Act
shall be submitted to the Corporation for examination.