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Chapter Law Content

Title: Pawnshop Act CH
Category: Ministry of the Interior(內政部)
Chapter 3 Operation Management
Article 15
When a pawnshop accepts an item to be pawned, it shall verify the pledgor’s ID and have the pledgor affix his/her fingerprint on the duplicate copy of the pawn ticket.
The fingerprint prescribed in the preceding paragraph shall be a clear rolled fingerprint of the left thumb. If the left thumb is incomplete, another digit of either hand shall be affixed and the name of the finger shall be specified unless the pledgor does not have any digits.
Article 16
No pawnshop shall accept the following items:
1. Contraband
2. Securities or various deposit certificates.
3. Institutional seals or other property managed by government agencies.
4. Police and military uniforms and other accessories.
5. Government-issued licenses and certificates and personal identity documents.
6. Other items whose trading is prohibited and restricted by the government.
When a pawnshop finds any items prescribed in subparagraph 1, 3, 4, and 6 of the preceding paragraph or other illicit items, it shall report its findings to the local police authority.
Article 17
No pawnshop shall accept items from people without legal capacity or with limited legal capacity. This restriction shall not apply to people with limited legal capacity if they have consent from the legal representatives.
Article 18
A pledgor with a pawn ticket shall be entitled to redeem the pledged items at any time during business hours before the maturity date. To redeem a pawned item, the pawn ticket shall be returned to the pawnshop and the pledgor shall indicate that the pawned item has been redeemed on the duplicate ticket.
The pledgor shall notify the pawnbroker of a lost or damaged pawn ticket. If the pledgor fails to do so, the pawnshop will not be held liable for compensation in the event that the pledged items have been redeemed by a third party with the pawn ticket.
Article 19
When the pledged items are redeemed within a month, the interest and fees shall be charged for one month.
There will be no charge for the first five days after one month. When it is more than five days, an additional half month of interest and fees will be charged. When it is more than fifteen days, an additional month of the interest and fees will be charged. Interest and fees, however, shall not be deducted in advance.
Article 20
A pawnshop shall not collect fees other than interest and storage cost.
The storage fees prescribed in the preceding paragraph shall not exceed 5% of the amount of money advanced.
Article 21
The maturity date given by a pawnshop shall not be shorter than three months. When it is shorter than three months, it shall be regarded as three months. It is allowed to redeem the pawned item or pay off the interest to extend the maturity date within five days after the loan period expires. Failure to redeem the pawned item or extend the expiration date within five days after the expiration, the ownership of the pledged item shall be transferred to the pawnshop.
Article 22
A pawnshop shall prepare its own registration book that records information about the pledgors and pawned items. Two photocopies of the records shall be submitted to the competent authority for reference every two weeks.
When pawned items are five days past the maturity date and are not redeemed or the maturity date has not been extended, a detailed list of unredeemed items shall be made and be sent to the competent authority for inspection.
The unredeemed items may be auctioned or displayed for sale.
Article 23
The local police authority may inspect pawnshops, if it is considered necessary.
Article 24
When a pawnshop suspects the identity of the pledgor or the item to be pawned, it may refuse to accept the item and shall report it immediately to the nearby police authority.
Article 25
When a pawnshop receives lost and found data from police, it shall carefully check it against the pawned items in its inventory. In case of finding similar or suspicious ones, it shall notify the nearest police authority immediately.
Article 26
When a pledged item accepted by the pawnbroker or the clerk of a pawnshop in accordance with the provisions of this Act is found to be stolen, the owner of the item may redeem it with the original pawned value.
When a pledged item accepted by the pawnbroker or the clerk of a pawnshop not in accordance with the provisions of this Act is found to be stolen, it shall be returned to the original owner free of charge. If the original owner has already redeemed the stolen item, the money he/she has paid shall be refunded.