s 23A Offences for section 23
23A.—(1) If —(a) the grantee of a conveyance of equity interests in an entity asks the grantor whether the entity is a PHE or for any information concerning the PHE’s underlying property; (b) the grantor falsely informs the grantee that the entity is not a PHE, or provides false or misleading information concerning the PHE’s underlying property; and (c) the information results in a failure to pay or an underpayment of ad valorem duty chargeable under section 23 on the conveyance, then the grantor shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding 4 times the amount of duty not paid or underpaid. [13/2017] (2) It is a defence to a charge under subsection (1) for the grantor to prove on a balance of probabilities that the grantor had used reasonable efforts in finding the required information, and in verifying the truth of the information before providing it to the grantee.[13/2017] (3) If —(a) before a conveyance of equity interests in an entity, the grantor or grantee asks an associate of the grantor or grantee (as the case may be) for information on the equity interests in the entity which the associate beneficially owns; (b) the associate provides false or misleading information to the grantor or grantee; and (c) the information results in a failure to pay or an underpayment of ad valorem duty chargeable under section 23 on the conveyance, then the associate shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding 4 times the amount of duty not paid or underpaid. [13/2017]