This Act may be cited as the Coinage Act, 1933, and shall come into force on a date to be fixed in that behalf by the Governor-General by Proclamation.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

The standard weight and the standard fineness of the silver coins of the denominations mentioned in the Schedule to this Act shall be as specified in that Schedule, and the standard weight and the standard composition of bronze or cupro-nickel coins shall be as determined by Proclamation under this Act.

The Minister of Finance may cause to be made and issued silver coins of the denominations specified in the Schedule to this Act, and bronze or cupro-nickel coins of such denominations as may from time to time be determined by a Proclamation under this Act.

In the making of coins pursuant to this Act a remedy (or variation from the standard weight and fineness specified in the Schedule to this Act, or from the standard weight and composition determined by a Proclamation under this Act, as the case may be) shall be allowed of an amount not exceeding the amount of the remedy specified in the said Schedule or determined by such Proclamation.

The cost of all coins made and issued as aforesaid (including freight, insurance, the cost of manufacture and all incidental expenses) shall be paid out of the Public Account without further appropriation than this section.

Subject to the provisions of this section, a tender of payment of money, if made in British coins or New Zealand coins of current weight, shall be a legal tender—

For the purposes of this section a coin shall be deemed to be not of current weight if it has become diminished in weight by wear or otherwise—

Nothing in this Act shall be construed as preventing any bank-notes which by virtue of a Proclamation under section two of the Banking Amendment Act, 1914, or otherwise, are a legal tender from being a legal tender.

The Governor-General may at any time by Proclamation declare that British coins of any denomination or denominations specified therein (not being British gold coins) shall not be legal tender in New Zealand as from a date to be specified in the Proclamation in that behalf (being not earlier than three months after the publication of such Proclamation in the Gazette).

No piece of gold, silver, copper, bronze, or nickel, or of any metal or mixed metal, of any value whatever (other than a British coin or a New Zealand coin) shall be made or issued as a coin or as a token for money or as purporting that the holder thereof is entitled to demand any monetary or other value denoted thereon:

Provided that the Minister of Finance may in his discretion and subject to such conditions (if any) as he thinks fit authorize the use of tokens purporting to entitle the holder thereof to demand goods or services, and may at any time revoke any authority so given.

Every person who acts in contravention of this section shall be guilty of an offence, and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding five hundred pounds, or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, or to both such fine and imprisonment.

Every contract, sale, payment, bill, note, instrument, and security for money, and every transaction, dealing, matter, and thing whatever relating to money, or involving the payment of or the liability to pay any money, which is made, executed, or entered into, done, or had, in New Zealand, shall be made, executed, entered into, done, and had according to the coins or notes which for the time being are current and are a legal tender in pursuance of this or of some other Act and not otherwise, unless the same be made, executed, entered into, done, or had according to the currency of some other part of His Majesty’s dominions, or of some foreign State.

The Governor-General may from time to time, by Proclamation, do all or any of the following things, namely:—

The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, make regulations not inconsistent with this Act prescribing all matters and things which are necessary or convenient to be prescribed for giving effect to this Act, including (but not so as to limit the generality of the power conferred by this section) the submission of coins issued under this Act to trial of the pyx or similar test.

All Proclamations and Orders in Council issued under this Act shall be laid before Parliament within one month after the issue thereof if Parliament is then in session, and if not, shall be laid before Parliament within one month after the commencement of the next ensuing session thereof.

Section eight of the Finance Act, 1932–33 (No. 2), is hereby repealed.

This Act shall extend to and be in force in the Cook Islands, and every reference herein to New Zealand shall include a reference to the Cook Islands accordingly.