Law No. (18) for the year 1998
Industry and Trade Law
Published at page 3782 of the Official Gazette No.4304 dated 1/10/1998
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Article 1- This law shall be called (the Industry and Trade Law for the year 1998) and shall be enforcing after thirty days of publication in the official gazette.
Article 2- The following terms and phrases, whenever mentioned in this law, shall have the meanings cited below, unless otherwise is indicated:-
Ministry : Ministry of Industry and Trade.
Minister : Minister of Industry and Trade.
Basic Materials: The materials that the cabinet shall deem to be basic pursuant to the provisions of this law.
Strategic stock: The stock piles of basic materials that the Cabinet decides to keep in defined quantities at the Ministry for purposes of fulfilling its policies and objectives.
Article 3- A- Upon the enforcement of this law, the Ministry shall be considered the legal successor to the Ministry of Supply, and hence shall take over the responsibilities which were carried by the Ministry of Supply as indicated in this law. The terms (Ministry of Supply) and (Minister of Supply) shall be replaced by (Ministry of Industry and Trade) and (Minister of Industry and Trade) whenever mentioned in any effective law or regulation.
B- Any instructions or resolutions issued by the Minister of Supply or the Ministry of Supply or any effective agreements in which the same ministry is part shall be deemed to be issued by the Minister or the Ministry or made with the same whatever necessity might be.
Article 4- The Ministry shall be responsible for drawing the economic-industrial and general commercial policies in the Kingdom and shall work on the implementation of such policies in addition to the execution of all affairs under the responsibility of the Ministry pursuant to any effective legislations, and in that context, the Ministry shall be responsible of the following:-
A- In industry:
1. The preparation of programs and studies and consequently work on the development of industry and enhancing its competitiveness.
2. Organize industry in terms of type and the requirements of quality industry as well as classification of industry and registering it in accordance with a regulation issued for this purpose.
3. Follow up the industrial production in terms of production force and quality control according to instructions issued by the Minister for this purpose. The industrial institutions shall be committed to provide the Ministry with regular reports and whenever necessary.
B. In trade:
Organize and monitor of internal and external trade and prepare studies on trade, particularly in terms of the following:-
1. Control markets to protect nationals interests and verify the observance of the provisions of this law and the regulations issued accordingly.
2. Conclude contracts, agreements as well as inviting for bids and refer them in order to provide the basic materials required by the Ministry pursuant to the provisions of this law, in addition to maintain a strategic stock from these materials taking into consideration what is available of these stocks at the market.
3. Organize the sale of basic materials and the strategic stock materials of the Ministry, as well as setting price, distribution, transaction, display, transport, stock piling, and use of these materials and exporting the surplus.
4. Manage warehouses and Establish, rent and lease and other facilities necessary for the Ministry affairs.
5. Approve the applications by the local and foreign private and public institutions for organizing trade and industrial exhibitions in the Kingdom and monitor them as well as organizing exhibition for Jordanian products abroad, or participate in exhibitions in foreign countries according to the conditions set by the minister in accordance with regulations published in the official Gazette and local newspapers.
C: In international trade and industrial relations:-
1. Studying the Arab, international, and regional commercial and industrial unions and organizations, and recommending to the Cabinet regarding the relations with such groups and the benefit from joining them including their impacts on the national economy.
2. Preparing projects on industrial and trade agreements and protocols which concern the Ministry affairs and related to investments which the Kingdom shall be member to continue the necessary negotiations with accordance with related authorities.
3. Follow up the execution of any industrial and trade agreements and protocols as well as the implementation of the projects resulting from these agreements and submitting periodical reports to the Cabinet on the economic impacts of those agreements, protocols, and projects.
Article 5- Any industrial Estates shall not be established with out a license of the Minister, and by special instructions for this purpose, and with compliance to the restrictions in this regards.
Article 6- A- A special account shall be set at the Ministry for trading in the basic materials which are required to be provided by the Ministry in the Kingdom which shall be referred to as a commercial account which would have a special budget adopted by the Parliament, and its financial resources shall be:
1. Revenues from trading in basic materials.
2. Revenues from operating Ministry facilities.
3. Allocations for this account in the general budget.
B- The Ministry shall prepare at the end of each fiscal year a report on its activities related to the commercial account which should be submitted to the Cabinet attached with the final accounts within a period not exceeding the thirty first of March of the following year.
C- Any financial surplus proven in the annual commercial account shall be referred to the public treasury, and the treasury shall cover any shortage in this account upon a decision from the Cabinet upon a recommendation from the Minister.
D- Other matters related to the commercial account shall be organized in accordance with regulation issued for this purpose.
Article 7-
A- The Cabinet, upon a recommendation from the Minister, shall determine the prices for any of the basic materials.
B- Market controllers in the Ministry shall be responsible for verifying the sale of materials and commodities transacted in the market according to the prices determined pursuant to paragraph (A) of article (11) in this law or according to the prices disclosed pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (A) of this article. Insure that the material is suitable for human consumption, and take the necessary measures for this regard, as well as prepare reference records in cases of violations to be referred to the specialized court.
Article 8- The Ministry shall be, for statistical purposes, responsible for monitoring the stock piles of basic materials at the wholesaler to ensure the availability of a strategic stock in accordance with instructions issued by the Minister for this purpose which shall include control procedures, stock records, and changes that might take place on the stock in terms of components’ type and quantity. These instructions shall be published in the local newspapers.
Article 9- Any information provided by the industrial institutions pursuant to this law or the regulations issued accordingly or upon a request from the authority in charge at the Ministry shall be treated with strict confidentiality and the disclosure of this information shall not be permitted except with a court order unless this information was available to the public via other means.
Article 10- The Minister shall determine the way to deal with the basic materials available under the custody of the Ministry and which are currently unsuitable for human consumption either by disposal or sale for animal consumption through a committee formed by the Minister for this purpose.
Article 11- A- Each trader shall be obliged to attach in a clear and obvious place a price list indicating the price of each item displayed for sale regardless of weather the price was determined by virtue of the provisions of this law or not, and they shall be committed to these prices as a maximum rate, if it was not possible to attach the price tag in some commodities, the trader shall be requested to prepare a price list to be attached in a clear place close to the store entrance in order to be in sight for all customers.
B- The wholesaler shall provide the customer with a receipt upon purchasing which shall contain the type of the purchased material or commodity, quantity, and sale price, the wholesaler shall keep a copy of this receipt for a period not less than two years, while the retailer dealing with any commodity or material shall provide the customer with a purchase receipt upon request.
Article 12- A- Any person shall not be allowed to do any of the following:-
1. Announce clearance sale of a store through the sale of its assets according to clearance prices as a measure prior to changing store objectives or closing it without following the legal measures required by the Ministry through the registration of the case in the Ministry in the trade registered or corporate registry.
2. Announce superficial sale on the prices of commodities where prices are not actually less than the prices prior to the sale.
3. Announce sale on prices without defining the sale period or continuing the sale after the period defined in the sale announcement.
4. Advertise in a promotional campaign for commodities, contracts, or services, offering free rewards according to defined conditions, and then deny these preconditions, or the distribution of rewards or limiting these rewards to a few number less than what has been indicated in the advertisement or cheating in granting these awards.
5. Manage, organize, promote for, or participate in a program where such a participation shall only be possible upon the payment of some fees without having a direct benefit or promise to financial returns for inviting other participants to this program or any similar condition according to the detailed decisions issued by the Minister for this purpose.
B- The Minister shall issue instructions to be published in the official gazette as well as the daily newspapers illustrating the measures pertaining to the implementation of paragraph (A) of this article.
Article 13- Any violation to any of the provisions of article (11) of this law shall be fined with the payment of at least thirty Jordanian Dinar and not exceeding Three Hundred Jordanian Dinar.
Article 14- Any violation to any of the provisions of items (1), (2), or (3) of paragraph (A) of article (12) of this law shall be fined with the at least Five Hundred Jordanian Dinar and not exceeding Three Thousand Jordanian Dinar.
Article 15- A- A fine not less than One Thousand Jordanian Dinar and not exceeding Ten Thousand Dinar, and imprisonment for a period not less than three months and not exceeding one year shall be imposed in the case of any of the following violations:
1. Violate the provisions of item (4) of paragraph (A) of article (12) in this law.
2. Violate the provisions of item (5) of paragraph (A) of article (12) in this law regarding the management, organization, or promotion for the program as mentioned in this article, and the violate shall be punished by repaying of all returns acquired accordingly.
B- A fine of not less than Fifty Jordanian Dinar and not exceeding Two Hundred shall be imposed on any person participating in a program as indicated in item (5) of paragraph (A) of article (12) in this law, the violate shall be punished by repaying of all returns acquired pursuant to this program.
C- The santence issued according to paragraphs (A) and (B) of this article shall be published in the local newspapers to be disclosed for all concerned, and the costs shall be covered by the accused person.
Article 16- A- A fine of not less than Five Hundred Jordanian Dinar and not exceeding One Thousand, or imprisonment for not less than two months and not exceeding six months or both punishments, shall be imposed on any of the following:
1. Any person Sold, displayed, or stored for later sale, any expired commodity or a commodity unsuitable for human consumption.
2. Withheld any basic materials from customers, denied the sale of basic materials, or sold the material in a price higher than the prices defined according to paragraph (A) of article (11) of this law.
3. Prevent any authorized ministry officer to perform any of his duties, or functions for the implementation of the provisions of this law and the regulations and bylaws issued accordingly, on the condition that this refusal shall be physical.
B- The court shall be entitled to levy the materials or commodities in violation until a decision regarding them is issued or a judgment of confiscation is issued.
Article 17- The punishment shall be maximized if the violation was repeated for one time, according to its maximum, whether it is a fine or imprisonment, and if repeated within three years for more than once, the punishment would be the maximum fine and imprisonment for a period not less than the minimum imprisonment period as defined in the punishment and not exceeding its maximum as indicated in articles (14), (15) and (16) of this law.
Article 18- A- The store owner and its manager shall be held responsible for any violation to the provisions of this law according to each situation.
B- The control documents prepared by the market controllers regarding the violations as indicated in the provisions of this law shall be considered effective until otherwise is proved, and these controllers shall be entitled to search the store and its warehouses in the presence of the store owner or manager for investigating in the violation circumstances, and in case of store owner or manager absence, the presence of any worker or employer in the store shall be considered sufficient and they are entitled to requesting the security interference whenever necessary.
C- The commodity under violation shall be forfeited pursuant to an order form the general persecutor to be entrusted under the store owner custody or transferred to an official warehouse until the court judgment is issued.
D- The emergencies judge, upon a request from the store owner or his representative, or the authorized ministry officer pursuant to paragraph (B) of article 19 of this law, shall be entitled to issue an order for the sale of the forfeited materials if they are of a short life without having to wait for the court decision regarding the violation, and the commodity shall be sold speedily after illustrating in the violation record the justifications and reasons for such hasty measures, and the sale revenues shall be withheld by the Ministry until the court decides the means of disposal, while if the court judges that the store owner or manager are innocent or not responsible, then the revenues shall be repaid for the store owner or manager after deducting expenses regardless of the value of the withheld materials.
E- The sale procedures shall be determined upon an decision issued by the Minister, the Minister shall be entitled to approve keeping the withheld materials under the custody of its owner without the sale of these materials on condition that the owner shall provide a financial bail for the Ministry equal to the value of the materials.
Article 19- A- Magistrate Courts shall hear and decides any of violations as mentioned in this law.
B- The Minister shall deputize a ministry officer responsible for the notification of the concerned parties of the violations reported according to the provisions of this law, as well as the date of court session, according to notification procedures indicated in the Civil Court Procedural Law.
Article 20- The Minister shall be entitled to authorizes in writing any of his duties indicated in this law or the regulations issued accordingly, to the Vice Minister or to the deputy vice minister or to any of the Ministry directors at the different directorates.
Article 21- The Minister shall issue the necessary instructions and resolutions for the implementation of the provisions of this law or the regulations issued accordingly, which includes the determination services cost collected by the Ministry in return of issuing any certificates or having a certified copes or copes .
Article 22- The Cabinet shall issue all regulations necessary for the implementation of the provisions of this law, which includes the determination the fees for commercial register and issuing trade certificate.
Article 23- A- Upon the enforcement of this law, the supply law No. (17) For the year 1992 shall be canceled as well as the provisions of any other regulation contradictory to the provisions of this law.
B- In view of the above mentioned in paragraph (A) of this article, any resolution passed by a specialized authority pursuant to the supply law No. (17) For the year 1992 or any other regulation related to supply shall remain effective unless it is in contradiction with the provisions of this law or there is a decision to cancel the same law was passed by an authority in charge.
Article 24- The Prime Minister and Ministers are charged for implementing the provisions of this Law.