Underused Housing Tax Act

Marginal note:Definitions

• 32 (1) The following definitions apply in this section.

  authorized person

  authorized person means a person who is engaged or employed, or who was formerly engaged or employed, by or on behalf of Her Majesty in right of Canada to assist in carrying out the provisions of this Act. (personne autorisée)

  confidential information

  confidential information means information of any kind and in any form that relates to one or more persons and that is

  • (a) obtained by or on behalf of the Minister for the purposes of this Act, or

  • (b) prepared from information referred to in paragraph (a),

  but does not include information that does not directly or indirectly reveal the identity of the person to whom it relates and, for the purposes of applying subsections (3), (13) and (14) to a representative of a government entity that is not an official, includes only the information described in paragraph 211(6)(j) of the Excise Act, 2001. (renseignement confidentiel)

  court of appeal

  court of appeal has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Criminal Code. (cour d’appel)

  government entity

  government entity means

  • (a) a department or agency of the government of Canada or of a province;

  • (b) a municipality;

  • (c) an aboriginal government as defined in subsection 2(1) of the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act;

  • (d) a corporation all of the shares (except directors’ qualifying shares) of the capital stock of which are owned by one or more persons each of which is

    • (i) Her Majesty in right of Canada,

    • (ii) Her Majesty in right of a province,

    • (iii) a municipality, or

    • (iv) a corporation described in this paragraph; or

  • (e) a board or commission, established by Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province, that performs an administrative or regulatory function of government, or by a municipality, that performs an administrative or regulatory function of a municipality. (entité gouvernementale)

  municipality

  municipality means an incorporated city, town, village, metropolitan authority, township, district, county or rural municipality or other incorporated municipal body however designated. (municipalité)

  official

  official means a person that is employed in the service of, that occupies a position of responsibility in the service of, or that is engaged by or on behalf of Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province, or a person that was formerly so employed, that formerly occupied such a position or that formerly was so engaged. (fonctionnaire)

  representative

  representative of a government entity means a person that is employed in the service of, that occupies a position of responsibility in the service of, or that is engaged by or on behalf of, a government entity, and includes, for the purposes of subsections (2), (3), (13) and (14), a person that was formerly so employed, that formerly occupied such a position or that formerly was so engaged. (représentant)

• Marginal note:Provision of confidential information

  (2) Except as authorized under this section, an official or other representative of a government entity must not knowingly

  • (a) provide, or allow to be provided, to any person any confidential information;

  • (b) allow any person to have access to any confidential information; or

  • (c) use any confidential information other than in the course of the administration or enforcement of this Act.

• Marginal note:Confidential information evidence not compellable

  (3) Despite any other Act of Parliament or other law, no official or other representative of a government entity is required, in connection with any legal proceedings, to give or produce evidence relating to any confidential information.

• Marginal note:Communications — proceedings have been commenced

  (4) Subsections (2) and (3) do not apply in respect of

  • (a) criminal proceedings, either by indictment or on summary conviction, that have been commenced by the laying of an information or the preferring of an indictment, under an Act of Parliament; or

  • (b) any legal proceedings relating to the administration or enforcement of this Act, any other Act of Parliament or law of a province that provides for the imposition of a duty or tax, the Canada Pension Plan, the Employment Insurance Act or Part 1 of the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act.

• Marginal note:Authorized provision of confidential information

  (5) The Minister may provide appropriate persons with any confidential information that may reasonably be regarded as necessary solely for a purpose relating to the life, health or safety of an individual or to the environment in Canada or any other country.

• Marginal note:Disclosure of confidential information

  (6) Subsections 211(6) and (6.1) of the Excise Act, 2001 apply in this Act, with any modifications that the circumstances require, as if

  • (a) the references in those subsections to the Excise Act, 2001 were references to this Act;

  • (b) confidential information for the purposes of this Act were confidential information for the purposes of the Excise Act, 2001;

  • (c) an authorized person for the purposes of this Act were an authorized person for the purposes of the Excise Act, 2001; and

  • (d) a business number for the purposes of this Act were a business number for the purposes of the Excise Act, 2001.

• (7) [Repealed, 2024, c. 17, s. 140]

• Marginal note:Public disclosure

  (8) The Minister may, in connection with a program, activity or service provided or undertaken by the Minister, make available to the public the business number of, and the name of (including any trade name or other name used by), the holder of a business number.

• Marginal note:Public disclosure by representative of government entity

  (9) A representative of a government entity may, in connection with a program, activity or service provided or undertaken by the government entity, make available to the public the business number of, and the name of (including any trade name or other name used by), the holder of a business number, if

  • (a) a representative of the government entity was provided with that information under subsection (6); and

  • (b) the government entity uses the business number as an identifier in connection with the program, activity or service.

• Marginal note:Serious offences

  (10) An official may provide information to a law enforcement officer of an appropriate police organization in the circumstances described in subsection 211(6.4) of the Excise Act, 2001.

• Marginal note:Threats to security

  (11) An official may provide information to the head, or their delegate, of a recipient Government of Canada institution listed in Schedule 3 to the Security of Canada Information Sharing Act in the circumstances described in subsection 211(6.5) of the Excise Act, 2001.

• Marginal note:Measures to prevent unauthorized use or disclosure

  (12) The person presiding at a legal proceeding relating to the supervision, evaluation or discipline of an authorized person may order any measures that are necessary to ensure that confidential information is not used or provided to any person for any purpose not relating to that proceeding, including

  • (a) holding a hearing in camera;

  • (b) banning the publication of the information;

  • (c) concealing the identity of the person to whom the information relates; and

  • (d) sealing the records of the proceeding.

• Marginal note:Disclosure to person or on consent

  (13) An official or other representative of a government entity may provide confidential information relating to a person

  • (a) to that person; and

  • (b) with the consent of that person, to any other person.

• Marginal note:Appeal from order or direction

  (14) An order or direction that is made in the course of or in connection with any legal proceedings and that requires an official or other representative of a government entity to give or produce evidence relating to any confidential information may, by notice served on all interested parties, be appealed forthwith by the Minister or by the person against whom the order or direction is made to

  • (a) the court of appeal of the province in which the order or direction is made, in the case of an order or direction made by a court or other tribunal established under the laws of the province, whether that court or tribunal is exercising a jurisdiction conferred by the laws of Canada; and

  • (b) the Federal Court of Appeal, in the case of an order or direction made by a court or other tribunal established under the laws of Canada.

• Marginal note:Disposition of appeal

  (15) The court to which an appeal is taken under subsection (14) may allow the appeal and quash the order or direction appealed from or may dismiss the appeal, and the rules of practice and procedure from time to time governing appeals to the courts must apply, with any modifications that the circumstances require, in respect of an appeal instituted under subsection (14).

• Marginal note:Stay

  (16) An appeal instituted under subsection (14) must stay the operation of the order or direction appealed from until judgment is pronounced.