MALTA GOVERNMENT SAVINGS BANK ORDINANCE

CHAPTER 167

MALTA GOVERNMENT SAVINGS BANK

ORDINANCE

To regulate the deposit at interest of monies in the Malta Government

Savings Bank with the guarantee of the Government for the repayment

thereof.

(1st September, 1961) *

Enacted by ORDINANCE XXV of 1961, as amended by Act I of 1962;

Legal Notice 4 of 1963; and Acts: XXVIII of 1971, XXIX of 1979, XIII of

1983; XVI of 1997, Legal Notice 410 of 2007 and Act XXXIV of 2025.

This Ordinance may be cited as the Malta Government

Savings Bank Ordinance.

[A RTICLE 6 (2)]

A CCOUNTS O PENED I N F AVOUR O F M INORS

1. A savings account in the Savings Bank may be opened in

favour of a minor by such minor himself, if he is of the age of seven

years or upwards, or by some other person.

2. Where the account is opened by the minor himself

withdrawals from such account shall, subject to the provisions of

paragraph 5 of this Schedule, be governed by the following

provisions of this paragraph, that is to say

(a) if the minor is of the age of fourteen years or upwards

he may withdraw any sum standing to his credit in

such account;

(b) if the minor is of the age of less than fourteen years, he

may not withdraw any sum exceeding five liri unless

he is accompanied by -

(i) one of his parents, or

(ii) his tutor, or

(iii) a person charged with his care, custody or

control.

3. Where the account is opened by a person other than the

minor under the condition that withdrawals form such account shall

not be made by the minor, withdrawals from such account shall not

be made except by the person legally authorized to claim such

withdrawal on behalf of such minor, but if the account is not

opened under such condition as aforesaid the provisions of

paragraph 2 of this Schedule shall apply.

4. Where a withdrawal is made by a minor in accordance with

any of the provisions of this Schedule his receipt shall be a good

discharge to the Accountant General for the sum stated therein

provided that where it is required by such provisions that the minor

should be accompanied by some other person such receipt shall be

signed also by the person accompanying the minor during such

withdrawal.

5. Any one of the parents or the tutor of a minor in whose

favour an account has been opened in the Savings Bank may at any

time notify the Accountant General, in writing, of his opposition to

any withdrawal by such minor from such account, and in such case

the provisions of this Schedule authorizing such minor to make any

withdrawal shall cease to operate in regard to such minor.

6. Nothing in this Schedule shall affect any deposit made in

favour of a minor in pursuance of a court order and any such

deposit shall be governed by the provisions of the Civil Code and

by the terms of the order.

In this Ordinance unless the context otherwise requires -

"Malta" has the same meaning as is assigned to it by article 124

of the Constitution of Malta;

" p r e s c r i b e d " m e a ns p r e s c r ib e d b y r e g u l a t i o n s un d e r t h i s

Ordinance;

"revenue of the Savings Bank" does not include money received

on deposit;

"Savings Bank" means the Malta Government Savings Bank

constituted and established under article 3.

(1) From and after the commencement of this Ordinance

there shall be a Government Savings Bank in and for Malta and,

upon such commencement, the Malta Government Savings Bank

and all offices thereof subsisting at the time when this Ordinance

comes into force shall be deemed to be constituted and established

under this Ordinance.

(2) All deposits made, and all entries made in depositors’

passbooks, and all monies invested in securities remaining unsold

at the commencement of this Ordinance, and all other business

transacted in the Savings Bank prior to the commencement of this

Ordinance shall, so far as may be consistent with the provisions of

this Ordinance, be deemed to be deposits and entries made, monies

invested and Savings Bank business transacted under this

Ordinance.

The Savings Bank shall be under the management and

control of the Accountant General, who may, subject to the

provisions of this Ordinance and any regulations made thereunder,

take such steps as may be desirable for the encouragement of thrift,

for the proper management of the Savings Bank, and otherwise for

the promotion of the objects and purposes of this Ordinance.

*See Government Notice No. 398 of the 1st of September, 1961.

The Accountant General, with the approval of the Minister

responsible for finance, may open branches of the Savings Bank in

any place in Malta and may, with the like approval, close any

branch of the Savings Bank and notice of any such opening or

closing shall be given in the Government Gazette.

(1) Deposits of money to be paid into the Savings Bank

shall be received and repaid under such conditions as may be

prescribed.

(2) The provisions of the Schedule to this Ordinance shall

apply in relation to the opening of accounts in favour of minors and

to withdrawals from such accounts.

The repayment of all monies deposited in the Savings Bank

together with interest thereon is guaranteed by the Government of

Malta and accordingly if at any time the assets of the Savings Bank

shall be insufficient to pay the lawful claims of every depositor the

Minister responsible for finance shall, by warrant under his hand

and without the need of any appropriation other than this

Ordinance, cause such deficiency to be met out of the general

revenues of the Government of Malta.

(1) Interests on deposits shall be payable on such amounts

and at such rates per centum per annum as may from time to time

be prescribed.

(2) Save as may be otherwise prescribed interest on deposits

shall be calculated, until the year 1979, to 31st March and again

from 1st April to 31st December of t hat year, and, for any

subsequent year, to 31st December in every year and shall then be

added to and become part of any principal money remaining on

deposit.

(1) All expenses incurred in carrying out the objects of this

Ordinance shall be met from the monies in the Savings Bank.

(2) For the purposes of sub-article (1) "expenses" shall mean

the cost of any work or service done by or in connection with the

Savings Bank, including such sum on account of administrative and

other overhead expenses as may, with the approval of the Minister

responsible for finance, be reasonably assigned to that work or

service.

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Ordinance monies in

the Savings Bank shall not be applied in any way to the purposes of

the Government of Malta but, except so far as any sums may be

prescribed to be kept in hand for the general purposes of the

S a v i n g s B a n k , s h a l l b e d e p o s i t e d i n t h e Tr e a s u r y o f t h e

Government of Malta and accounted for separately, and shall be

invested by the Accountant General on behalf of the Savings Bank

in such manner as he may, with the approval of the Minister

responsible for finance, deem proper, or in accordance with such

directions as the Minister responsible for finance may give.

(2) Any sums of money that may from time to time be required

for the repayment of any deposits under the authority of this

Ordinance, or for the payment of interest thereon or expenses

incurred in carrying out the objects of this Ordinance, may be

raised by the sale of the whole or part of such securities

Provided that any sums of money which may be required for the

purposes aforesaid may, until they can be raised by the sale of such

securities, with the approval of the Minister responsible for

finance, be advanced to the Savings Bank by the Accountant

General -

(a) out of the general revenues of the Government of

Malta, or

(b) out of monies which the Accountant General may

acquire for that purpose from such other sources and

subject to such conditions as the Minister responsible

for finance may approve,

and such advances shall bear interest at such rate as may be fixed

from time to time by the Minister responsible for finance.

A statement of the revenue and expenditure of the Savings

Bank and of deposits received and repaid and interest credited to

depositors during the year ending, until the year 1979, on 31st

March and again during the nine months ending on 31st December

of that year, and subsequently during the year ending on 31st

December of each year together with a statement of the assets and

liabilities of the Savings Bank shall, as soon as possible after the

close of each financial year and in any case not later than three

m o n t h s a f t e r t h e c l o s e o f s u c h y e a r, b e f o r w a r d e d b y t h e

Accountant General to the Auditor General, and sub-article (2) of

article 35 of the Public Finance Management Act, shall apply to

such statement.

(1) If in any year the revenue of the Savings Bank shall be

insufficient to defray the interest due to depositors and all expenses

under this Ordinance, such deficiency shall be met out of the

general revenue of the Government of Malta.

(2) If in any year the revenue of the Savings Bank shall be

more than sufficient to defray the interest due to depositors and all

expenses under this Ordinance, the Minister responsible for finance

may direct the transfer of the surplus or any portion thereof to the

general revenues of the Government of Malta

Provided that no such transfer shall be made unless the assets of

the Savings Bank will thereafter exceed the liabilities by not less

than fifteen per centum of the liabilities to depositors.

(3) If on 31st March in any year until the year 1979, and again

on 31st December of the said year, and if on 31st December in any

subsequent year in any year the assets of the Savings Bank exceed

the liabilities by more than fifteen per centum of the liabilities to

depositors, the Minister responsible for finance may direct that the

surplus over fifteen per centum or any portion thereof shall be

transferred to the general revenues of the Government of Malta.

(1) The Minister responsible for finance may make

regulations for the management and regulation of the Savings Bank

and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing such

regulations, may -

(a) prescribe the kinds of deposits which may be made and

limits of deposits;

(b) prescribe the modes of making deposits;

(c) prescribe the modes of withdrawing deposits and

interest;

(d) prescribe the times at which deposit books shall be

returned to the Savings Bank by depositors;

(e) authorize the Accountant General to enter into an

arrangement with the Post Office Savings Bank of the

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

or with the Government Savings Bank of any British

Dominion, Colony, Protected State or Protectorate or

any territory administered by the Government of any

part of the British dominions under the trusteeship

system of the United Nations, or any foreign country,

for the transfer of any sums standing to the credit of

depositors from such Savings Banks to the Malta

Government Savings Bank, and vice versa, and

prescribe conditions for such transfers;

(f)

provide for any such matters as are authorized by this

Ordinance to be prescribed;

(g) prescribe penalties not exceeding one hundred liri for

the breach of any such regulation.

(2) All regulations made under this Ordinance shall be

published in the Government Gazette and shall come into operation

on such publication or at such later date as may be named in such

regulations.

(1) No person, who is appointed to discharge any duty in

connection with the Savings Bank, shall disclose the name of a

depositor or the amount which may have been withdrawn or

deposited by a depositor unless required to do so in accordance

with law.

(2) Any person who contravenes the provisions of this article

shall be guilty of an offence and on conviction shall be liable to a

fine (multa) not exceeding one hundred liri.

When any payment is made or act done by the Accountant

General or any person acting under his authority in accordance with

this Ordinance and the regulations for the time being made

thereunder, the Government, the Accountant General and such

person shall not be liable in respect of any claim on the part of any

person in connection with such payment or act, but any person may

nevertheless recover any sum lawfully due to him from the person

to whom the Accountant General has paid the same

Provided that nothing in this article contained shall be

construed as exempting any person from liability for damage or

loss caused to any person by reason of fraud on the part of such

first mentioned person in relation to his official duties.