Passports Act 2008

20.

Offences.

20.— (1) A person who, whether in the State or elsewhere—

(a) in connection with an application for the issue of a passport (whether or not to himself or herself or another person), provides information or documents that are, and that he or she knows or believes to be or is reckless as to whether they are, false or misleading in a material respect,

(b) has, without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, in his or her possession or control a passport that is, and that he or she knows or believes to be, a false passport,

(c) uses, or attempts to use, a passport that was not issued to him or her, knowing or believing that it was not issued to him or her, as evidence of identity or citizenship (in either case, whether or not in connection with travel abroad),

(d) uses, or attempts to use, a passport that is, and that he or she knows or believes to be, a false passport as evidence of identity or citizenship (in either case, whether or not in connection with travel abroad),

(e) uses, or attempts to use, a passport that has been cancelled, or is required to be surrendered to the Minister, under section 18, knowing or believing that the passport has been so cancelled or is required to be so surrendered, as evidence of identity or citizenship (in either case, whether or not in connection with travel abroad),

(f) permits—

(i) a passport that was issued to him or her, or

(ii) a passport other than a passport that was issued to him or her that he or she has in his or her possession or control,

to be falsely used by another person as evidence of that person’s identity or citizenship (in either case, whether or not in connection with travel abroad), or is reckless regarding such use by another person of the passport,

(g) sells, or attempts to sell, a passport (whether or not a passport that was issued to him or her),

(h) wilfully damages or destroys a passport (whether or not a passport that was issued to him or her),

(i) knowingly makes, or attempts to make, a passport that is false,

(j) without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, makes or has in his or her possession or control a machine, stamp, implement, paper or any other material, which to his or her knowledge is or has been specially designed or adapted for the making of a passport that is false with the intention that it would be so used, or

(k) is required by subsection (3), (4) or (5) of section 18 to surrender a passport to the Minister, or is required in the alternative by the said subsection (5) to deliver a passport to a Garda Síochána station, but, without reasonable excuse, does not do so in accordance with the requirement,

is guilty of an offence.

(2) A person who uses, or attempts to use, a passport that was not issued to him or her, knowing that it was not issued to him or her, so as to represent himself or herself to be of a particular age for the purpose of being admitted to or allowed to be in the bar of—

(a) a licensed premises during certain hours of the day in accordance with the Licensing Acts 1833 to 2004, or

(b) the premises of a club registered under the Registration of Clubs Acts 1904 to 2004 during certain hours of the day in accordance with those Acts,

is guilty of an offence.

(3) A person guilty of an offence under paragraph (b), (c), (h), (j) or (k) of subsection (1) is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding €10,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or both.

(4) A person guilty of an offence under paragraph (a), (d), (e), (f), (g) or (i) of subsection (1) is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or both.

(5) A person guilty of an offence under subsection (2) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding €500.

(6) In this section—

“bar” and “licensed premises” have the meanings they have in the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2003;

“false passport” means—

(a) a passport that is false, or

(b) a passport that is issued following the provision in connection with the application for the passport of information or documents that are false or misleading in a material respect;

“false” and “making”, in relation to a passport, have the meanings assigned to them by section 21.

(7) A reference to a passport in this section (other than subsection (1)(a)) and section 21 includes a reference to a document which was issued as a passport by the Minister before the commencement of sections 6 and 7 and which had ceased to be valid before the commencement of section 27(1).