Michael Ring
Ceist:208 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Finance if a person who has a credit card for six months but has never used it, is still liable for the ?40 annual charge. [13754/03]
Written Answers. - Stamp Duty.
The legislative provisions governing stamp duty on credit cards are contained in section 124 of the Stamp Duties Consolidation Act 1999, as amended by section 140 of the Finance Act 2003. The stamp duty of €40 payable on 1 April 2003 is charged by reference to accounts maintained by the provider on that date. An anti-avoidance provision was also included in the recent legislative changes so that, in future, the stamp duty charge will arise by reference to accounts maintained at any time during the year, rather than on a particular day (that is 1 April). However, I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that there is an established Revenue practice for the banks not to charge duty in certain circumstances (e.g. where the card is returned never having been used, is reported stolen or the cardholder is deceased). This practise has not been altered by the recent Finance Act.