Communications Regulation (Postal Services) Act 2011
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Chapter 10 Offences in relation to postal services | ||
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Prohibition on opening of postal packets and mail bags. |
53.— (1) A person commits an offence if he or she, without the agreement of the addressee and, in the case of a person who is a postal service provider or an employee or agent of a postal service provider, contrary to his or her duty, intentionally— | |
(a) delays, detains, interferes with or opens, a postal packet addressed to another person or does anything to prevent its delivery or authorises, suffers or permits another person (who is not the addressee) to do so, | ||
(b) discloses the existence or contents of a postal packet referred to in paragraph (a), or | ||
(c) uses for any purpose any information obtained from a postal packet referred to in paragraph (a). | ||
(2) A person commits an offence if he or she, without reasonable excuse and, in the case of a person who is a postal service provider or an employee or agent of a postal service provider, contrary to his or her duty, intentionally opens a mail bag. | ||
(3) A person who commits an offence under this section is liable— | ||
(a) on summary conviction, to a class C fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or both, or | ||
(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding €75,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or both. | ||
(4) This section does not apply to any person who is acting— | ||
(a) pursuant to any of the powers as to the transmission of postal packets set out in section 47 , | ||
(b) pursuant to a direction given by the Minister under section 110 of the Act of 1983, as applied by section 54 , or | ||
(c) under other lawful authority. |