Entertainments Duty (Cinema and Television Shows) (Jersey) Law 1958

Jersey Law 3/1958 ENTERTAINMENTS DUTY (CINEMA AND TELEVISION SHOWS) (JERSEY) LAW, 1958. ____________ A LAW to restrict the charge to duty on admission to entertainments to cinematograph and television shows, to alter the rate of duty, and otherwise to amend the Law relative thereto, sanctioned by Order of Her Majesty in Council of the 7th day of JANUARY, 1958. ____________ ( Registered on the 1 st day of February, 1958). ____________ STATES OF JERSEY. ____________ The 26th day of June, 1957. ____________ T HE STATES , subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, have adopted the following Law : - ARTICLE 1 INTERPRETATION (1) In this Law, unless the context otherwise requires – “admission” means admission as a spectator or one of an audience ; “admission to an entertainment” includes admission to any place in which the entertainment is held ; “the Committee” means the Finance Committee; “entertainment” means any entertainment which consists wholly or partly of a cinematograph show or a television show, to which members of the public are admitted on payment ; “entertainments duty” has the meaning assigned thereto by Article 2 ; “non-profit-making body” means a body of persons (whether incorporated or not) which is not established or conducted for profit ; “payment for admission” includes any payment made by a person who, having been admitted to one part of a place of entertainment, is subsequently admitted to another part thereof for admission to which a payment involving duty or more duty is required ; “proprietor” in relation to any entertainment includes any person responsible for the management thereof and any person on whose behalf payments for admission to an entertainment are received ; “society” includes a body corporate and any institution, club or other association of persons by whatever name called ; “stamp” means any stamp, whether adhesive, printed or impressed, approved by the Committee for use for the purposes of this Law. (2) For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby declared that any reference in Article 3 of this Law to a person providing any entertainment includes, in the case of an entertainment provided by two or more persons in combination, a reference to each one of those persons. ARTICLE 2 DUTY ON PAYMENTS FOR ADMISSION TO ENTERTAINMENTS (1) Subject to the provisions of this Law, there shall be charged, levied and paid on all payments for admission to any entertainment including – (a) payments for admission to an entertainment made to a person other than the proprietor of the entertainment ; and (b) payments of rent made in respect of an interest in any premises which is primarily acquired for the purpose of securing admission to an entertainment ; a duty (in this Law referred to as “entertainments duty”) at the rate of one penny for every fourpence , or part thereof, of the amount by which the payment for admission (excluding the amount of the duty) exceeds elevenpence . (2) All entertainments duty received under this Law shall be credited to the General Revenues of the States. (3) No person shall be admitted for payment to any entertainment where the payment is subject to entertainments duty except – (a) with a ticket stamped with a stamp (not before used) denoting that the proper entertainments duty has been paid ; or (b) in special cases with the approval of the Committee, through a barrier which, or by means of a mechanical contrivance which, registers automatically the number of persons admitted ; unless the proprietor of the entertainment has made arrangements approved by the Committee for furnishing returns of the payments for admission to the entertainment and has given security for the payment of duty up to an amount and in a manner approved by the Committee. (4) If any person is admitted for payment to any place of entertainment and the provisions of this Article are not complied with, the proprietor of the entertainment to which that person is admitted shall be liable in respect of each offence to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds, and he shall in addition be liable to pay any duty which should have been paid. (5) Entertainments duty shall be charged in respect of each person admitted for payment, and, in the case of admission by stamped ticket, shall be paid by means of the stamp on the ticket, and, in the case of admission otherwise than by stamped ticket, shall be calculated and paid on the number of admissions. (6) Entertainments duty, in the case of admission otherwise than by stamped ticket, shall be recoverable from the proprietor, and proceedings for the recovery thereof may be instituted by the Treasurer of the States either in term or in vacation. (7) Where the payment for admission to an entertainment is made by means of a lump sum paid as a subscription or contribution to any society, or for a season ticket, or for the right of admission to a series of entertainments, or to any entertainment during a certain period of time, the entertainments duty shall be paid on the amount of the lump sum, but where the Committee is of the opinion that the payment of a lump sum or any payment for a ticket represents payment for other privileges, rights or purposes besides the admission to an entertainment, or covers admission to an entertainment during any period for which the duty is not chargeable, the duty shall be charged on such an amount as appears to the Committee to represent the right of admission to entertainments in respect of which entertainments duty is payable. (8) Where payment for admission to two or more entertainments is made by means of a lump sum within the meaning of paragraph (7) of this Article, and the Committee is satisfied – (a) that the lump sum constitutes full payment for admission to each of the entertainments in respect of which it is paid ; and (b) that all of those entertainments are to take place within a period of one year ; the amount of the entertainments duty to be charged in respect of that sum shall be an amount equal to the aggregate of the amounts (if any) which would be charged by way of duty if separate payments were made for admission to each of those entertainments, being payments of such amounts as appear to the Committee to be proportionate respectively to the values of the rights of admission to those entertainments, and of which the aggregate is equal to the said lump sum. (9) Where payment for admission to two or more entertainments is made by means of a single payment representing the aggregate of separate prices of admission to those entertainments respectively and not being a lump sum within the meaning of paragraph (7) of this Article, and the Committee is of the opinion that the said prices of admission as taken for the purpose of arriving at the single payment are not substantially proportionate to the respective values of the rights of admission to the entertainments to which they relate, the Committee may direct that the amount of the entertainments duty to be charged in respect of the said payment shall be ascertained in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (8) of this Article as if that payment were a payment to which that paragraph applies, and those provisions shall have effect accordingly. (10) Where a person who has made a payment for admission to an entertainment subsequently on being admitted to another part of the place of entertainment makes a further payment for admission in respect of the same entertainment, there shall, for the purposes of entertainments duty, be deemed to have been one payment of an amount equal to the aggregate amount of the several payments. ARTICLE 3 EXEMPTION FROM ENTERTAINMENTS DUTY (1) Entertainments duty shall not be charged on payments for admission to any entertainment held during the period from the first day of October in any year to the thirty-first day of March in the year next following, both dates inclusive. (2) Entertainments duty shall not be charged in respect of an entertainment by reason of the inclusion in that entertainment of any cinematograph or television show which is merely ancillary to a lecture or exhibition or designed to give instruction or information relevant to the purposes of a lecture or exhibition. (3) Entertainments duty shall not be charged on payments for admission to any entertainment which is certified by the Education Committee to be wholly educational. (4) Entertainments duty shall not be charged on payments for admission to any entertainment where the Committee is satisfied – (a) that the entertainment is provided by a non-profit-making body established and conducted for partly educational purposes ; or (b) that the entertainment is provided by a non-profit-making body of a permanent character established and conducted wholly for charitable purposes consisting in the provision of entertainments. (5) Where the Committee is satisfied that the whole of the net takings of an entertainment are devoted to philanthropic or charitable purposes, and either – (a) the expenses do not amount to more than one half of the gross takings ; or (b) the entertainment is provided by a body of a permanent character established and conducted wholly or partly for philanthropic or charitable purposes and not regularly engaged in providing entertainments by way of business and the expenses added to the duty chargeable apart from the exemption are less than nineteen-twentieths of the takings ; the amount of the entertainments duty paid in respect of the entertainment shall be repaid to the proprietor. For the purposes of this paragraph “expenses” means the expenses incurred in connexion with the entertainment by the person providing it, whether in respect of the production of the entertainment or any other matter (but not including the duty which is in question); “gross takings” means the sums received by that person in connexion with the entertainment, whether payments for admission, for programmes , refreshments or the like, for rights of reproduction or for any other matter (but not including any donation made towards defraying the costs of the entertainment) ; and “net takings” means the gross takings so far as not used to meet expenses. ARTICLE 4 SUPPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS (1) The Committee may, by order, make provision for securing the payment of entertainments duty, for preventing the evasion thereof, and generally for the purposes of carrying this Law into effect, and in particular – (a) for the supply and use of stamps or stamped tickets, or for the stamping of tickets sent to be stamped, and for securing the defacement of stamps when used ; and (b) for the use of tickets covering the admission of more than one person and the calculation of the duty thereon, and for the payment of duty on the transfer from one part of a place of entertainment to another ; and (c) for controlling the use of barriers or mechanical contrivances (including the prevention of the use of the same barrier or mechanical contrivance for payments of a differing amount), and for securing proper records of admission by means of barriers or mechanical contrivances. (2) Every order made under this Article shall be laid before the States as soon as may be after it is made, and if the States, within the period of twenty-one days beginning with the day on which any such order is laid before them, resolve that it be annulled, it shall cease to have effect, but without prejudice to anything previously done thereunder or to the making of any new order. (3) The Greffier of the States shall cause every order made under this Article to be printed and shall cause to be published in two newspapers circulating in the Island, one being a publication in French and the other a publication in English, a notice stating that the order has been made, the date of the coming into force thereof and the place at which printed copies thereof may be purchased. (4) If any person acts in contravention of or fails to comply with any provision of an order made under this Article, he shall be liable in respect of each offence to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds. ARTICLE 5 PROVISIONS IN RELATION TO POWERS OF THE BAILIFF IN MATTERS OF PUBLIC ENTERTAINMENT Nothing in this Law shall be deemed to derogate from the powers of the Bailiff in matters of public entertainment, and any order under Article 4 of this Law may, if made after consultation with the Bailiff, include provisions for co- ordinating the administration of this Law with the exercise by the Bailiff of those powers. ARTICLE 6 POWER OF ENTRY AND INSPECTION (1) Any officer of the Committee generally or specially authorized in writing in that behalf shall be entitled, subject to the production by him if so required of evidence of his authority, to enter any place of entertainment while the entertainment is proceeding, and any place ordinarily used as a place of entertainment, at all reasonable times, and to make such examination and enquiry and to do such other things as may be necessary for ascertaining whether the provisions of this Law or of any order made thereunder are being complied with. (2) If any person delays or obstructs my officer in the exercise of his powers under this Article, or fails without reasonable excuse to give any information which he is duly required under this Article to give, he shall be liable to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds. ARTICLE 7 FRAUDULENT USE OF STAMPS (1) If any person – (a) makes or knowingly utters or, unless he shows a lawful excuse, has in his possession any fictitious stamp ; or (b) makes, or unless he shows a lawful excuse has in his possession, any die, plate, instrument or materials for making any facsimile, imitation or representation of any stamp ; or (c) knowingly buys, sells or offers for sale, or takes or gives in exchange, any used stamp or any fictitious stamp ; or (d) fraudulently removes any stamp from any ticket ; or (e) knowingly affixes any used stamp or any fictitious stamp to any ticket ; or (f) fraudulently erases or otherwise removes any mark from any used stamp with the intent that further use should be made of such stamp ; or (g) for the purpose of avoiding the payment of entertainments duty, whether by himself or some other person, or for any other purpose connected with this Law – ( i ) knowingly makes any false statement or false representation ; or (ii) produces or furnishes, or causes or knowingly allows to be produced or furnished, any document or information which he knows to be false in a material particular ; he shall be liable to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or to both such fine and such imprisonment. (2) In any proceedings under paragraph (1) of this Article with respect to used stamps, a stamp shall be deemed to have been used if it has been affixed to a ticket or cancelled or defaced in any way whatsoever and whether it has actually been used for the purpose of payment of entertainments duty or not. (3) In this Article – “fictitious stamp” means any facsimile, imitation or representation of any stamp and includes any stamp which has been fraudulently printed or impressed from a genuine die ; “ticket” means any ticket of admission to an entertainment. ARTICLE 8 OFFENCES BY CORPORATIONS Where an offence under this Law which has been committed by a body corporate is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any negligence on the part of, any director, manager, secretary or other officer of the body corporate, he, as well as the body corporate, shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly. ARTICLE 9 APPLICATION OF FINES With the exception of fines imposed in respect of offences under Article 7 of this Law, which fines shall be for the benefit of Her Majesty, all fines imposed in respect of offences under this Law or any order made thereunder shall be credited to the General Revenues of the States. ARTICLE 10 REPEAL The Entertainments Duty (Jersey) Law, 1953, 1 is hereby repealed. ARTICLE 11 TRANSITIONAL PROVISION In relation to lump sum payments within the meaning of paragraph (7) of Article 2 of this Law in respect of entertainments some of which are held before, and the remainder on or after, the date on which this Law comes into force, entertainments duty shall be chargeable under either paragraph (8) of Article 2 of the Law hereby repealed or under paragraph (8) or (9) of Article 2 of this Law according to whichever requires the payment of the lesser amount of duty, and where any duty has been charged on any payment made before that day and by virtue of this Article less duty should have been charged than the amount that was in fact charged the person by whom the duty was paid shall be entitled to repayment of the overcharge. ARTICLE 12 SHORT TITLE AND COMMENCEMENT (1) This Law may be cited as the Entertainments Duty (Cinema and Television Shows) (Jersey) Law, 1958. (2) This Law shall come into force on the first day of October, 1957. To be printed, published and posted. F. DE L. BOIS, Greffier of the States. 1 Tome 1951–1953, page 685.