Chapter III

Legal Tender and Legal Tender Amounts

8. —In this Chapter “earlier operative date” has the meaning assigned by section 9 .

9. —(1) Notes and coins denominated in Irish pounds or multiples or subdivisions thereof shall retain legal tender status until the 30th day of June, 2002, or such earlier date (in this Chapter referred to as the “earlier operative date”) as the Minister may specify by order.

(2) The Minister may by order amend or revoke an order under this section before the earlier operative date.

(3) Where it is proposed to make an order under this section, including any order amending or revoking an order to which subsection (1) relates, a draft of the order shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the order shall not be made until a resolution approving of the draft has been passed by each such House.

(4) Section 118 (3) of the Central Bank Act, 1989 , is hereby repealed with effect from the earlier operative date or, where there is no such date, the 30th day of June, 2002.

10. —(1) No person, other than the Central Bank of Ireland and such persons as may be designated by the Minister by order, shall be obliged to accept more than 50 coins denominated in euro or in cent in any single transaction.

(2) The following provisions are hereby repealed with effect from the earlier operative date or, where there is no such date, the 30th day of June, 2002:

(a) sections 8 to 10 of the Act of 1969,

(b) section 15 of the Decimal Currency Act, 1970 .

(3) The Minister may by order amend or revoke an order under this section.

11. —(1) The Minister may provide coins denominated in euro or in cent and may set out by order the technical specifications, dimensions, composition and design or designs of such coins subject to such specifications complying with the denominations and technical specifications which the Council lays down in accordance with the second sentence of Article 105a(2) of the Treaty.

(2) Coins provided under subsection (1) shall be issued by the Minister through the Central Bank of Ireland, subject to approval by the European Central Bank of the volume of the issue and, with effect from the commencement of this provision, coins issued under Part III shall be subject to such approval.

(3) Sections 3 , 4 and 5 of the Act of 1969 are hereby repealed with effect from the earlier operative date or, where there is no such date, the 30th day of June, 2002.

(4) The Minister may by order amend or revoke an order under this section.

12. — Section 14 of the Act of 1969 is hereby amended by the substitution of the following for subsection (1):

“(1) Except coins issued under this Act, the Decimal Currency Act, 1990 , and the Economic and Monetary Union Act, 1998, and coins denominated in euro or in cent and issued by one or more of the other participating Member States, no piece of metal or mixed metal of any purported nominal face value whatsoever shall be made or issued in the State as a coin or a token for money or as purporting (whether expressly or by implication) that the holder thereof is entitled to demand any value denoted thereon.”.

13. —All sums required for the provision of coins denominated in euro or in cent and provided under section 11 shall be defrayed out of the general fund of the Central Bank and debited therein to the currency reserve.

14. —The proceeds of every issue of coins denominated in euro or in cent and provided under section 11 shall be paid into the general fund of the Central Bank of Ireland and carried therein to the credit of the currency reserve.