DOMINION OF CANADA STATUTES  31 Victoria 1867 CHAP. IX. An Act to impose duties on Promissory Notes and Bills of Exchange. [Assented to 21st December, 1867.]
HER Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:	Preamble
1. Upon and in respect of every Promissory Note, Draft or Bill of Exchange, for an amount not less than twenty five, dollars, made,drawn or accepted in Canada, upon or after the first day of February, in the year one thousand eight-hundred and sixty-eight, there shall be levied, collected and paid to Her Majesty, for the public uses of the Dominion, the duties hereinafter mentioned; that is to say:--	Duties imposed on Notes, Drafts and Bills.
On each such Promissory Note, and on each such Draft or Bill of Exchange, a duty of one cent, if such Note, Bill or Draft, amounts to but does not exceed twenty-five dollars;-- a duty of two cents if the amount thereof exceeds twenty-five dollars but does not exceed fifty dollars,-- and a duty of three cents if the amount thereof exceeds fifty dollars but is less than one hundred dollars.	The Duties.
On each such Promissory Note, and on each such Draft or Bill of Exchange, for one hundred dollars or more executed singly, a duty of three cents, for the first hundred dollars of the amount thereof, and a further duty of three cents for each additional hundred dollars or fraction of a hundred dollars of the amount thereof;
On each such Draft or Bill of Exchange executed in duplicate, a duty of two cents on each part for the first hundred dollars of the amount thereof, and a further duty of two cents for each additional hundred dollars or fraction of a hundred dollars of the amount thereof;
On each such Draft or Bill of Exchange executed in more than two parts, a duty of one cent on each part for the first hundred dollars of the amount thereof, and a further duty of one cent for each additional hundred dollars or fraction of a hundred dollars of the amount thereof;
And any interest made payable at the maturity of any Bill, Draft or Note, with the principal sum, shall be counted as part of the amount thereof.
2. Every bill, draft, order or instrument,--	What shall be deemed instruments liable to duty.
For the payment of any sum of money by a bill or promissory note, whether such payment be required to be made to the bearer or to order,--
Every document usually termed a letter of credit, or whereby any person is entitled to have credit with, or to receive from or draw upon any person for any sum of moneys,--
And every receipt for money, given by any bank or person, and entitling the person paying such money, or the bearer of such receipt, to receive the like sum from any third person,--
Shall be deemed a bill of exchange or draft chargeable With duty under this Act.
3. Every. bill of exchange, draft or order drawn by any officer of Her Majesty's Commissariat, or by any other officer in Her Majesty's Imperial or Provincial Service, in his official capacity, or any acceptance or endorsement by such offices on a bill of exchange drawn out of Canada, or any draft of or on any Bank payable to the order of any such officer in his official capacity as aforesaid, or any note payable on demand to bearer issued by any Chartered Bank in Canada, or by any Bank issuing such note under the Act, chapter fifty-five of the Consolidated Statutes of the late Province, of Canada, intituled: An Act respecting Banks and freedom of Banking, shall be free from duty under this Act, --and	Exceptions from duty.
Any cheque upon any Chartered Bank or Licensed Banker; or on any Savings Bank, if the same shall be payable on demand,--
Any post office money order, or order on any post office Savings Bank,-- and
Any municipal debenture or coupon of such debenture, --be free of duty under this Act.
4. The duty on any such Promissory Note, Draft, Bill of Exchange or part thereof, shall be paid by making it upon paper stamped in the manner hereinafter provided, to the amount of such duty, --or	How the duties shall be paid. Stamped paper.
By affixing thereto an adhesive stamp or adhesive stamps of the kind hereinafter mentioned, to the amount of such duty, upon which the signature or part of the signature of the maker or drawer, or in the case of a Draft or Bill made or drawn out of Canada of the acceptor or first endorser in Canada, or his initials, or some integral or material past of the instrument	Adhesive Stamps.
shall be written, so as (as far as may be practicable) to identify, each stamp with the instrument to which it is attached, and to show that it has not before been used, and to prevent its being thereafter used for any other instrument,--or	Provision for cancelling adhesive stamps.
The person affixing such adhesive stamp, shall, at the time of affixing the same, write or stamp thereon the date at which it is affixed, and such stamp shall be held primâ facie to have been affixed at the date stamped or written thereon;	On date to be written on Stamps.
And if no integral or material part of the instrument, nor any part of the signature of the maker; drawer, acceptor or first endorser in Canada be written thereon; nor any date be so stamped or written thereon, -- or if the date do not agree with that of the instrument, such	Penalty for non-compliance with this Act.
adhesive stamp, shall be of no avail; and any person wilfully writing or stamping a false date on any adhesive stamp shall incur a penalty of one hundred dollars for each such offence.	Avoidance of Instrument.
5. The Governor in Council may from time to time direct stamped paper to be prepared for the purposes of this Act, of such kinds and bearing respectively such device as he thinks proper, and may defray the cost thereof out of any unappropriated monies forming part of the Consolidated Revenue Fund; but the device on each stamp shall express the value thereof, that is to say, the sum at which it shall be reckoned in payment of the duties imposed by this Act.	Stamp paper may be prepared and used.
6. The Governor its Council may from time to time direct stamps to be prepared for the purposes of this Act of such kinds and bearing respectively such device as he thinks proper, and may defray the cost thereof out of any unappropriated moneys forming part of the Consolidated Revenue Fund; but the device on each stamp shall express the value thereof, that is to say, the sum at which it shall be reckoned in payment of the duties hereby imposed.	Or adhesive stamps.
7. Provided, that as regards any Promissory Note, Draft or Bill of Exchange on which the duty is payable in Nova Scotia; the amount on which the duty is payable under this Act, and the amount of such duty, shall be reckoned in the currency of that Province, and the stamped paper and stamps to be used there shall be marked according, and shall not be used in any other part of Canada.	As to duty payable in Nova Scotia.
8. The Minister of Inland Revenue may appoint any Postmasters, Collectors of Inland Revenue, or other officers of the Government, to be the distributors of stamps and stamped paper, under this Act, and may authorize any other persons to purchase stamps from such distributors to sell again;-- and the Governor in Council may fix the remuneration to be allowed to such distributors, and the discount to be made to persons so purchasing to sell again; but such discount shall in no case exceed five per cent on the value of such stamps, and shall not be allowed on any quantity less than one hundred dollars worth.	Sales and distribution of stamps and stamped paper.
9. The Governor in Council may make such further regulations as he may deem necessary for carrying this Act into effect, and may by any order in Council declare that any kind or class of instruments as to which doubts may arise, are or are not chargeable with any and what duty under this Act according to the true meaning thereof; and any order in Council made under this Act may be explained, amended or repealed by any other such order of later date; and any order in Council under this Act shall be published, and may be proved in the manner provided by the Act respecting the Customs as to orders in Council under that Act.	Governor in Council may make further regulations, to provide for doubtful cases.
10. The stamp or stamps required to pay the duty hereby imposed shall in the case of any Promissory Note, Draft or Bill of Exchange made or drawn within Canada, and not made upon paper stamped to the amount of the duty, be affixed by the maker or drawer thereof, and in the case of any Draft or Bill of Exchange drawn out of Canada, by the acceptor	By whom the stamps shall be affixed.
thereof or the first endorser thereof in Canada; and such maker or drawer, acceptor or first indorser, failing to affix such stamp or stamps at the time of making, drawing, accepting or endorsing such Note, Draft or Bill, or affixing stamps of insufficient amount shall thereby incur a penalty hereinafter imposed, and the duty payable on such instrument, or the duty by which the stamps affixed fall short of the proper amount, shall be doubled; stamps upon the paper being deemed to be affixed thereto for all the purposes of this Act; and any deficiency in the amount of the stamp on the paper may be made up by adhesive stamps.	Penalty in default and duty doubled.
11. If any person in Canada makes, draws, accepts, indorses, signs, becomes a party to or pays any promissory note, draft or bill of exchange, chargeable with duty under this Act, before the duty (or double duty as the case may be) has been paid by affixing thereto the proper stamp or stamps, such person shall thereby incur a penalty of one hundred dollars, and save only in case of the payment of double duty as hereinafter mentioned, such instrument shall be invalid and of no effect in law or in equity, and the acceptance or	Penalty for not affixing proper stamps.
payment or protest thereof shall be of no effect; except that any subsequent party to such instrument or person paying the same, may at the time of his so paying or becoming a party thereto, pay such double duty by affixing to such instrument a stamp or stamps to the amount thereof, or to the amount of double the sum by which the stamps affixed fall short of the proper duty, and by writing his signature or part thereof, or his initials or the proper date, on such stamp or stamps, in the manner and for the purposes mentioned in the fourth section of this Act; and such instrument shall thereby become valid, but no prior party who ought to have paid the duty thereon shall be released from the penalty by him incurred as aforesaid;	Exception in favor of subsequent parties:double duty to be paid.
and in suing for any such penalty, the fact that no part of the signature of the party charged with neglecting to affix the proper stamp or stamps is written over the stamp or stamps affixed to any instrument, or that no date, or a date that does not correspond with the time when the duty ought to have been paid, is written or marked on the stamp or stamps, shall be primâ facie evidence that such party did not affix it or them as required by this Act.	Presumption in suits for penalties.
12. No party to or holder of any Promissory Note, Draft, or Bill of Exchange, shall incur any penalty by reason of the duty thereon not having been paid at the proper time and by the proper party or parties, provided that at the time it came into his hands it had affixed to it stamps to the amount of the duty apparently payable upon it, that he had no knowledge that they were not affixed at the proper time and by the proper party or parties, and that he pays the double duty, or additional duty as soon as he acquires such knowledge,-- and any	Provision in favor of innocent parties.
holder of such instrument may pay the duty thereon, and give it validity; under section eleven of this Act, without becoming a party thereto,-- In this section the word "duty" includes any double or additional duty payable under the said section eleven.	Holder may pay duty without becoming a party.
13. If any person wilfully affixes to any promissory note, draft or bill of exchange, any stamp which has been previously affixed to any other, or used for the purpose of paying any duty under this Act or any other Act, or which has been in any way previously written upon or defaced, such person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall thereby incur a penalty of five hundred dollars.	Penalty for affixing stamps already used.
14. The penalties hereinbefore imposed shall be incurred in respect of each such promissory note, draft or bill of exchange, on which the duty or double duty hereby imposed is not paid as aforesaid, or to which a stamp previously used has been fraudulently affixed, whatever be the number of such instruments executed, accepted, paid or delivered, or offences committed on the same day; and a separate penalty to the full amount shall be incurred by each person committing such offence, whatever be the number of such persons.	Penalty incurred on each instrument, tho' several be made on the same day, &c.
15. The penalties imposed by the foregoing sections of this Act, shall be recoverable in the manner prescribed by the Interpretation Act in cases where penalties are imposed and the recovery is not otherwise provided for.	Recovery of penalties.
16. If any person forges, counterfeits or imitates or procures to be forged, counterfeited or imitated, any stamp or stamped paper, issued or authorized to be used for the purposes of this Act, or by means whereof any duty hereby imposed may be paid, or any part or portion of any such stamp,-- or knowingly uses, offers, sells or exposes to sale, any such forged, counterfeited or imitated stamp,--or engraves, cuts, sinks or makes any plate, die or other thing whereby to make or imitate such stamp or any, part or portion thereof, except by permission of the Minister of Inland Revenue, or some officer, or person who, under an Order in Council in that behalf, may lawfully grant such permission --or has possession of any such plate, die or other thing, without such permission, --or without such per mission uses or has possession of any such plate, die or thing lawfully engraved, cut or made,--or tears off or removes from any instrument, on which a duty is payable under this Act, any stamp by which such duty has been wholly or in part paid,--or removes from any such stamp any writing or mark indicating that it has been used for or towards the payment of any such duty,--such person shall be guilty of felony, and shall on conviction be liable to be	Punishment for forging stamps, or making or having instruments for forging.
imprisoned in the Penitentiary for any term not exceeding twenty-one years; and every such offence in the Province of Quebec or in the Province of Ontario, shall be forgery within the meaning and purview of chapter ninety-four of the Consolidated Statutes of Canada, intituled: An Act respecting Forgery, and all the provisions of that Act shall apply to every such offence, and to principals in the second degree and accessories, as if such offence were expressly mentioned in the said Act, and in any other of the Provinces composing the Dominion of Canada every such offence shall be forgery and punishable in the manner in which that crime is punishable by the laws of the Province in which the offence is committed.	Offence to be within the lands relative to forgery.
17. The duties imposed by this tact shall be duties within the meaning and purview of the Act passed in the present Session intituled: An Act respecting the collection and management of the Revenue, the auditing of Public Accounts and the liability of Public Accountants, and the proceeds of the said duties shall form part of the Consolidated Revenue Fund of this Province.	Duties to be within the Revenue Act.
18. No duty shall be payable under the Act of the Legislature of the late Province of Canada, passed in the Session held in the twenty-seventh and twenty-eighth years of Her Majesty's Reign, chapter four, or under the Act of the said Legislature, passed in the twenty-ninth year of Her Majesty's Reign, chapter four, on any Promissory Note, Draft or Bill of Exchange made, drawn or accepted, upon or after the said first day of February one	No duty under certain Canadian Acts, on notes &c., make &c., on or after 1st February, 1868.
thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, but to all Promissory Notes, Drafts or Bills of Exchange made, drawn or accepted in the late Province of Canada, or in the Provinces of Quebec or Ontario, before the said day, and to all offences committed and penalties incurred in respect thereof, the said Acts shall continue to apply.	Acts to apply to notes, &c., made before that day.

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