Section 15: Offences

15. Offences (1) Any person who— (a) for the purpose of or in connection with payment of a contribution or a claim for a lump sum or any other sum under this Act, for himself or on behalf of any other person, knowingly— (i) makes a false statement or a statement which he knows or ought to have known to be false in any material particular; (ii) makes a false representation; or (iii) fails to disclose a material fact; (b) fails to pay contributions within the prescribed time limit; or (c) fails to comply with this Act or any regulations made under this Act, shall commit an offence. (2) (a) A person shall, on conviction for an offence under subsection (1) (a) or (c), be liable to a fine not exceeding 5,000 rupees and to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months. (b) A person shall, on conviction for an offence under subsection (1) (b), be liable to a fine equal to twice the amount of unpaid contributions or 1,000 rupees, whichever is the higher, and to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months. (c) A person shall, on conviction for an offence under subsection (1) (b) or (c), in addition to the penalty imposed upon him under this subsection, be ordered to pay to the Minister the amount of any unpaid contribution or surcharge. (3) An order made under subsection (2) (c) may be executed in the same manner as a judgment delivered by a Court in the exercise of its civil jurisdiction. (4) Where a person has received any payment to which he is not entitled or which he was not qualified to receive or was disqualified from receiving, the amount of the payment may be recovered by the Minister in the same manner as a small State debt is recoverable under the Recovery of State Debts Act. [S. 15 amended by s. 70 (4) (f) of Act 33 of 2008 w.e.f. 2 February 2009.]