S.I. No. 125/1989 - Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (Designation and Immunities) Order, 1989.

S.I. No. 125 of 1989.

MULTILATERAL INVESTMENT GUARANTEE AGENCY (DESIGNATION AND IMMUNITIES) ORDER, 1989.

WHEREAS it is enacted by section 40 (1) of the Diplomatic Relations and Immunities Act, 1967 (No. 8 of 1967), that the Government may by order designate an international body of which the State or the Government is or intends to become a member to be a body to which Part VIII of that Act applies:

AND WHEREAS it is further enacted by section 42A of the Diplomatic Relations and Immunities Act, 1967 , inserted by section 1 of the Diplomatic Relations and Immunities (Amendment) Act, 1976 (No. 2 of 1976), that the Government may be order make provision to enable an international body to have and enjoy in the State any inviolability, exemptions, facilities, immunities, privileges or rights provided for in relation to it by an international agreement to which the State or the Government is or intends to become a party:

AND WHEREAS the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency and the Convention establishing the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, done at Seoul on the 11th day of October, 1985, are respectively a body and an international agreement as aforesaid:

NOW, the Government in exercise of the powers conferred upon them by sections 40 and 42A of the Diplomatic Relations and Immunities Act, 1967 , hereby order as follows:

1. This Order may be cited as the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (Designation and Immunities) Order, 1989.

2. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency is hereby designated as an organisation to which Part VIII of the Diplomatic Relations and Immunities Act, 1967 , applies.

3. (1) Chapter VII of the Convention establishing the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, done at Seoul on the 11th day of October, 1985, shall apply for the purposes of section 42A of the Diplomatic Relations and Immunities Act, 1967 .

(2) The text in the English language of the chapter referred to in paragraph (1) of this Article is set out for convenience of reference in the Schedule to this Order.

SCHEDULE

CHAPTER VII

Privileges and Immunities

Article 43. Purposes of Chapter

To enable the Agency to fulfil its functions, the immunities and privileges set forth in this Chapter shall be accorded to the Agency in the territories of each member.

Article 44. Legal Process

Actions other than those within the scope of Articles 57 and 58 may be brought against the Agency only in a court of competent jurisdiction in the territories of a member in which the Agency has an office or has appointed an agent for the purpose of accepting service or notice of process. No such action against the Agency shall be brought (i) by members or persons acting for or deriving claims from members or (ii) in respect of personnel matters. The property and assets of the Agency shall, wherever located and by whomsoever held, be immune from all forms of seizure, attachment or execution before the delivery of the final judgment or award against the Agency.

Article 45. Assets

(a) The property and assets of the Agency, wherever located and by whomsoever held, shall be immune from search, requisition, confiscation, expropriation or any other form of seizure by executive or legislative action.

(b) To the extent necessary to carry out its operations under this Convention, all property and assets of the Agency shall be free from restrictions, regulations, controls and moratoria of any nature; provided that property and assets acquired by the Agency as successor to or subrogee of a holder of a guarantee, a reinsured entity or an investor insured by a reinsured entity shall be free from applicable foreign exchange restrictions, regulations and controls in force in the territories of the member concerned to the extent that the holder, entity or investor to whom the Agency was subrogated was entitled to such treatment.

(c) For purposes of this Chapter, the term "assets" shall include the assets of the Sponsorship Trust Fund referred to in Annex I to this Convention and other assets administered by the Agency in furtherance of its objective.

Article 46. Archives and Communications

(a) The archives of the Agency shall be inviolable, wherever they may be.

(b) The official communications of the Agency shall be accorded by each member the same treatment that is accorded to the official communications of the Bank.

Article 47. Taxes

(a) The Agency, its assets, property and income, and its operations and transactions authorised by this Convention, shall be immune from all taxes and customs duties. The Agency shall also be immune from liability for the collection or payment of any tax or duty.

(b) Except in the case of local nationals, no tax shall be levied on or in respect of expense allowances paid by the Agency to Governors and their Alternates or on or in respect of salaries, expense allowances or other emoluments paid by the Agency to the Chairman of the Board, Directors, their Alternates, the President or staff of the Agency.

(c) No taxation of any kind shall be levied on any investment guaranteed or reinsured by the Agency (including any earnings therefrom) or any insurance policies reinsured by the Agency (including any premiums and other revenues therefrom) by whomsoever held: (i) which discriminates against such investment or insurance policy solely because it is guaranteed or reinsured by the Agency; or (ii) if the sole jurisdictional basis for such taxation is the location of any office or place of business maintained by the Agency.

Article 48. Officials of the Agency

All Governors, Directors, Alternates, the President and staff of the Agency:

(i) shall be immune from legal process with respect to acts performed by them in their official capacity;

(ii) not being local nationals, shall be accorded the same immunities from immigration restrictions, alien registration requirements and national service obligations, and the same facilities as regards exchange restrictions as are accorded by the members concerned to the representatives, officials and employees of comparable rank of other members; and

(iii) shall be granted the same treatment in respect of travelling facilities as is accorded by the members concerned to representatives, officials and employees of comparable rank of other members.

Article 49. Application of this Chapter

Each member shall take such action as is necessary in its own territories for the purpose of making effective in terms of its own law the principles set forth in this Chapter and shall inform the Agency of the detailed action which it has taken.

Article 50. Waiver

The immunities, exemptions and privileges provided in this Chapter are granted in the interests of the Agency and may by waived, to such extent and upon such conditions as the Agency may determine, in cases where such a waiver would not prejudice its interests. The Agency shall waive the immunity of any of its staff in cases where, in its opinion, the immunity would impede the course of justice and can be waived without prejudice to the interests of the Agency.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Government, this 23rd day of May,

1989.

CHARLES J. HAUGHEY,

Taoiseach.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The effect of this Order is to accord to the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency the privileges and immunities set out in the Convention establishing the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, for the purposes of Section 42A of the Diplomatic Relations and Immunities Act, 1967 (No. 8 of 1967), inserted by Section 1 of the Diplomatic Relations and Immunities (Amendment) Act, 1976 (No. 2 of 1976).