ACT No. XXX of 2016 AN ACT to amend the Consumer Affairs Act, Cap. 378, and for any other matter consequential or ancillary thereto.

I assent.

M ARIE- L OUISE

(L.S.)

C OLEIRO P RECA

President

17th June, 2016

ACT No. XXX of 2016

AN ACT to amend the Consumer Affairs Act, Cap. 378, and for

any other matter consequential or ancillary thereto.

BE IT ENACTED by the President, by and with the advice and

consent of the House of Representatives, in this present Parliament

assembled, and by the authority of the same as follows:-

The short title of this Act is the Consumer Affairs

(Amendment) Act, 2016, and this Act shall be read and construed as

one with the Consumer Affairs Act, hereinafter referred to as "the

principal Act".

Article 2 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows

(a)

immediately after the definition "goods", there shall

be added the following new definition

" "Malta Financial Services Authority"

means the Authority established under the Malta

Financial Services Authority Act;"; and

(b) immediately after the definition "Minister", there

shall be added the following new definition

" "Mortgage Credit Directive" means Directive 2014/

17/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of

4 February 2014 on credit agreements for consumers

relating to residential immovable property and amending

Directives 2008/48/EC and 2013/36/EU and Regulation

(EU) No. 1093/2010, as may be amended from time to

time, and includes any implementing measures,

implementing technical standards, regulatory technical

standards, guidelines and similar measures that have

been or may be issued thereunder;".

Immediately after sub-article (1) of article 7 of the Amendment of

article 7 of the

principal Act there shall be added the following new sub-article

principal Act.

"(1A) The Minister, acting on the advice of the Malta

Financial Services Authority and the Council, may make

regulations for the following purposes

(a) to transpose, implement and, or give effect to

the requirements of the Mortgage Credit Directive, and

may for such purpose introduce provisions that are more

stringent than the said Directive in order to protect

consumers, provided that such provisions are made in

accordance with European Union law, and provided

further that such provisions shall not diverge from those

laid down in Article 14(2) and Annex II Part A of the

said Directive, with regard to standard pre-contractual

information through a European Standardised

Information Sheet (ESIS), and Article 17(1) to (5), (7)

and (8) and Annex I of the Directive with regard to a

common, consistent European Union standard for the

calculation of the annual percentage rate of charge

(APRC);

(b) to provide for powers and functions of the

Malta Financial Services Authority in relation to any

person or matter regulated by the Mortgage Credit

Directive;

(c) to enable the Malta Financial Services

Authority to impose any application, annual and other

fees payable in respect of an admission of a credit

intermediary, and to levy charges in respect of any

request or other matter that may be submitted to the

Malta Financial Services Authority, including the fees

and charges in respect of any permission, exemption or

other benefit, as well as fees and charges in respect of

the regulatory, supervisory or investigative functions of

the Malta Financial Services Authority;

(d) to enable the Malta Financial Services

Authority to make, amend or revoke Credit

Intermediaries Rules for the better carrying out of, and

to better implement, the provisions of the regulations

transposing and, or implementing the Mortgage Credit

Directive, and for the purpose of implementing any

guidelines, recommendations and decisions issued by

the European Banking Authority in terms of Regulation

(EU) No. 1093/2010 of the European Parliament and of

the Council of 24 November 2010 establishing a

European Supervisory Authority (European Banking

Authority);

(e) generally to provide for any other matter

ancillary or connected with the above.".

Passed by the House of Representatives at Sitting No. 402 of the

14th June, 2016.

A NĠLU F ARRUGIA

Speaker

R AYMOND S CICLUNA

Clerk of the House of Representatives

€0.36