47Commonwealth may collect money from a person who owes money to an entity

47 Commonwealth may collect money from a person who owes money to an entity

What this section does (1) This section allows the Commonwealth to collect money from a person who owes money to an entity that has a scheme debt. The Secretary may give direction (2) The Secretary may direct a person (the third party) who owes, or may later owe, money (the available money) to the entity to pay some or all of the available money to the Commonwealth in accordance with the direction. The Secretary must give a copy of the direction to the entity. Limit on directions (3) The direction cannot require an amount to be paid to the Commonwealth at a time before it becomes owing by the third party to the entity. Third party to comply (4) The third party must comply with the direction, so far as the third party is able to do so.

Penalty: 20 penalty units.

Court orders (5) If a person is convicted of an offence in relation to a refusal or failure of the third party to comply with subsection (4), the court may (in addition to imposing a penalty on the convicted person) order the convicted person to pay to the Commonwealth an amount up to the amount involved in the refusal or failure of the third party. Indemnity (6) Any payment made by the third party under this section is taken to have been made with the authority of the entity and of all other persons concerned, and the third party is indemnified for the payment. Notice (7) If the whole of the scheme debt of the entity is discharged before any payment is made by the third party, the Secretary must immediately give notice to the third party of that fact. When third party is taken to owe money (8) The third party is taken to owe money to the entity if: (a) money is due or accruing by the third party to the entity; or (b) the third party holds money for or on account of the entity; or (c) the third party holds money on account of some other person for payment to the entity; or (d) the third party has authority from some other person to pay money to the entity; whether or not the payment of the money to the entity is dependent on a pre‑condition that has not been fulfilled. Building societies—withdrawable shares (9) For the purposes of this section, money that has been paid by a person to a building society for the issue of withdrawable shares in the capital of the society, but has not been repaid, is taken to be: (a) if the money is payable on demand—money due by the building society to the person; or (b) if the money is repayable on demand—money that may become due by the building society to the person. Definition (10) In this section:

building society means a society registered or incorporated as a building society, co‑operative housing society or other similar society under the law in force in a State or Territory.