Cap. 123 Art. 9BAssets registered under the Invest- ment Registration Scheme.

(1) In this article:

"relevant laws" means the Income Tax Acts, the Succession and Donation Duties Ordinance (Cap. 70 of the revised edition of the

Laws of Malta, 1942), the Death and Donation Duty Act, the Duty on Documents Act and the Duty on Documents and Transfers Act;

"qualifying asset" means an asset that is registered in accordance with a scheme made under article 39 of the Exchange Control Act or article 11 of the External Transactions Act;

"tax" means any tax or duty chargeable under any provision of the relevant laws.

(2) Subject to the provisions of sub-article (3), there shall be exempt from tax otherwise chargeable under any provision of the relevant laws:

(a) any income, including capital gains, derived from a qualifying asset at any time before the date on which that asset is registered as a qualifying asset;

(b) any income, including capital gains, to the extent that a qualifying asset represents such income or an undeclared part of such income or an accumulation thereof, at any time before the date on which that asset is registered as a qualifying asset, derived by any person during the year immediately preceding any year of assessment in respect of which that person has furnished a return of his income to the Commissioner before the 31st March, 2005, or during the year immediately preceding any year of assessment commencing on or before the 1st January, 2005, in respect of which that person was not required to furnish a return of his income;

(c) any transfer or transmission of inter vivos causa mortis any asset, any document of transfer of such an asset and any assignment of an asset made or happening before the 31st March, 2005, or in respect of the undeclared part of the value or consideration of such transfer or transmission, to the extent that a qualifying asset represents such asset or the value in consideration of such transfer or transmission at any time before the date on which that asset is registered as a qualifying asset.

(3) The exemption from tax on income referred to in sub-article (2)(a) and (b) shall apply to the extent that the said income has not been declared in any income tax return furnished to the Commissioner, and no tax has been assessed with respect thereto in any assessment raised under the Income Tax Acts and notified before the 31st March, 2005, and the exemption from tax referred to in paragraph (c) of the said sub-article shall apply to the extent that no return, declaration or notice of the relative transfer, transmission or assignment has been furnished to the Commissioner and no tax has been paid or assessed thereon in an assessment raised and notified before the said date under any provision of the relevant laws or to the extent that the value or consideration or transfer or transmission has been undeclared and represented as aforesaid by the qualifying asset.

(4) No person shall be bound to make or furnish, or be considered to have ever been bound to make or furnish, any return, declaration, act or notice that would otherwise have been required to be made or furnished in accordance with any provision of the relevant laws relating to income, transfer, transmission, assignment or document that is exempt from tax in terms of sub-article (2), and any responsibility which the said person would have had under the relevant laws for the failure to make or to furnish any such return, declaration, act or notice shall be considered as never having existed, and every person who, under any scheme made by the Government or any public entity or under any law, whichever it may be including this Act, before such registration was considered to be entitled to any benefit, exemption or other advantage as a result of not having declared such eligible assets (or income therefrom) in connection with any claim for such benefit, exemption or advantage, shall not be considered as having committed an offence as a result of not having declared those assets (or income therefrom) and shall not be required to refund that benefit, exemption or other advantage acquired before that declaration: Provided that if such person, after the date of registration of those eligible assets (or income therefrom) continues for a period after the declaration to take that benefit, exemption or advantage without being entitled thereto, such person shall be considered as never having been exempted from liability for the offence, and shall forfeit the right not to refund any benefit, exemption or advantage acquired before the registration: Provided further that nothing in this article shall be construed as exempting any person from refunding any benefit, exemption or other advantage demanded to be paid back by the competent authority before the making of such declaration:

Provided also that in the case of a qualifying asset that is registered under the Investment Registration Scheme Regulations, 2014, made under the External Transactions Act, the references to the dates "31st March, 2005" and "1st January, 2005" in sub-article (2) and "31st March, 2005" in sub-article (3) shall be construed as references to "4th November, 2013", "1st January, 2013" and “31st May, 2014”, respectively. Provided also that in the case of a qualifying asset that is registered under the Special Registration Scheme Regulations, made under the External Transactions Act, the references to the dates "31st March, 2005" and "1st January, 2005" in sub-articles

(2) and (3) of this article shall be construed as references to "15th March, 2007" and "1st January, 2006", respectively.

(5) Where a person has availed himself of this article with respect to the Investment Registration Scheme Regulations, 2014, any losses referred to in article 5(10)(a) and article 14(1)(g) declared in the return for year of assessment 2013 and for any preceding year of assessment, whenever submitted, shall not be carried forward and set off against the total income of the said person for the year preceding the year of assessment 2014 or in any subsequent year.

(6) (a) A person who is served with a notice of enquiry referred to in article 13(7) of the Income Tax Management Act shall, within thirty days from the date of service of the said notice, submit to the Commissioner the Registration Certificate referred to in regulation 9 of the Investment Registration Scheme Regulations, 2014.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-article (2), the exemption referred to in the said sub-article shall not apply if the person referred to in paragraph (a) fails to submit the said Certificate within thirty days from the date of service of the said notice: Provided that the Commissioner, upon being satisfied that the said person was prevented from submitting the said Certificate within such period owing to absence from Malta, sickness or other reasonable cause, may extend the period as may be reasonable in the circumstances.