Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 84: To ask the Minister for Finance the reason whereby under section 139 of the Finance Act 1992 a vehicle can be impounded even though it is legitimately registered to a person residing outside the State; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44506/10]

Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that under section 139(6) of the Finance Act 1992 a vehicle in respect of which certain offences are committed is subject to forfeiture. Those offences are prescribed in section 139(3) and section 139(5) of that Act. Section 139(3) of that Act deems it to be an offence for a person, in respect of a vehicle in the State –

(a) to be in possession of the vehicle if it is unregistered, unless he or she is an authorised person or the vehicle is the subject of an exemption under section 135 of that Act for the time being in force and the vehicle is being used in accordance with any conditions, restrictions or limitations referred to in that section,

(b) if the vehicle is the subject of an exemption under section 134 of that Act, to be in possession of the vehicle other than in accordance with any conditions, restrictions or limitations referred to in that section,

(c) to issue or to be in possession of a document which purports to be, but is not, a certificate of registration in respect of the vehicle,

(d) to fail to pay any vehicle registration tax due by him/her,

(e) if the vehicle is an unregistered vehicle or a converted vehicle, to fail to account for it in accordance with section 137 of that Act,

(f) to be in possession of the vehicle if it is a converted vehicle in relation to which particulars of the conversion have not been declared in accordance with section 131 of that Act, or a converted vehicle in relation to which particulars of the conversion have been so declared but vehicle registration tax has not been paid on the declaration, unless he is an authorised person, or

(g) if the vehicle is an unregistered vehicle or a converted vehicle in relation to which particulars of the conversion have not been declared in accordance with section 131 of that Act, or a converted vehicle in relation to which particulars of the conversion have been so declared but vehicle registration tax has not been paid on the declaration, to deliver the vehicle to a person other than an authorised person.

Section 139(5) of the Finance Act 1992 provides that if any person is knowingly concerned in the evasion or the taking of steps for the purposes of the evasion, whether by himself/herself or by another, of vehicle registration tax, he or she shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable -

(a) on summary conviction, to a penalty under the law relating to excise of €5,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both, or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a penalty, under the law relating to excise, of three times the amount of the vehicle registration tax concerned or €12,695, whichever is the greater, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or to both.

Without knowing the specific details of any single vehicle that might have been liable to forfeiture, it is not possible to be specific as to which of the provisions under section 139(3) or (5) of the Finance Act 1992, the vehicle became liable to forfeiture. However, it should be noted that a vehicle that is legitimately registered outside the State may still be liable to forfeiture if it is the subject of one of the offences provided for under section 139 of that Act while in the State.