<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<Law Era="Showa" Lang="en" LawType="ImperialOrder" Num="243" PromulgateDay="27" PromulgateMonth="4" Year="21">
  <PromulgateBody>
    <PromulgateStatement>We hereby give Our Sanction to the Ordinance for the Restriction or Prohibition on Dividends of Corporations and Others No. of the twenty-first year of Showa (1946) concerning the Orders to be issued in consequence of Our Acceptance of the Declaration of Potsdam, and cause the said Ordinance to be promulgated.</PromulgateStatement>
    <ImperialSignature>Signed: Hirohito, Seal of the Emperor April 1945</ImperialSignature>
    <ApprovalDate>This twenty-sixth day of the fourth month of the twenty-first year of Showa (26 April, 1946).</ApprovalDate>
    <Signature>
      <MinisterialTitle>Countersigned:</MinisterialTitle>
      <MinisterialTitle>Baron</MinisterialTitle>
      <Name>Kijuro Shidehara Prime Minister</Name>
    </Signature>
    <Signature>
      <MinisterialTitle/>
      <MinisterialTitle>Viscount</MinisterialTitle>
      <Name>Keizo Shibusawa Minister of Finance</Name>
    </Signature>
    <Signature>
      <MinisterialTitle/>
      <Name>Sankuro Ogasawara Minister of Commerce and Industry</Name>
    </Signature>
    <Signature>
      <MinisterialTitle/>
      <Name>Sempachi Soejima Minister of Agriculture and Forestry</Name>
    </Signature>
    <Signature>
      <MinisterialTitle/>
      <Name>Giichi Murakami Minister of Transportation</Name>
    </Signature>
  </PromulgateBody>
  <LawNum>Imperial Ordinance No. 243</LawNum>
  <LawBody>
    <LawTitle>Ordinance relating to the Restriction or Prohibition on Dividends of Corporations and Others.</LawTitle>
    <MainProvision>
      <Article Num="1">
        <ArticleTitle>Article 1.</ArticleTitle>
        <Paragraph Num="1">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>Judicial persons (excluding banks, trust companies, insurance companies, and others stipulated by ordinance) whose capital (hereafter referring to subscriptions, stocks or the total of subscriptions and stocks) exceeds two hundred thousand (200,000) yen and who have received or have claim for war insurance payments or government indemnity or who possess overseas assets or who are specified by the Minister of Finance according to the provisions of Article 1-(2) of the Imperial Ordinance No. 675 of 1945 may not pay dividends of profits and surplus in the following cases;</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
          <Item Num="1">
            <ItemTitle>(1)</ItemTitle>
            <ItemSentence>
              <Sentence>if the rate of dividend is in excess of five (5) per cent.</Sentence>
            </ItemSentence>
          </Item>
          <Item Num="2">
            <ItemTitle>(2)</ItemTitle>
            <ItemSentence>
              <Sentence>if the total amount of dividend payments is in excess of the net profit of the business year concerned calculated in the manner prescribed by ordinance.</Sentence>
            </ItemSentence>
          </Item>
          <Item Num="3">
            <ItemTitle>(3)</ItemTitle>
            <ItemSentence>
              <Sentence>Other case stipulated by ordinance.</Sentence>
            </ItemSentence>
          </Item>
        </Paragraph>
        <Paragraph Num="2">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>War insurance, government indemnity and overseas assets stated in the preceding paragraph shall be fixed by ordinance.</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
        </Paragraph>
      </Article>
      <Article Num="2">
        <ArticleTitle>Article 2.</ArticleTitle>
        <Paragraph Num="1">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>The Minister of Finance may, if deemed necessary, order judicial persons designated by him from among those stated in Paragraph 1 of the preceding Article to have their settlement of accounts audited by competent officials.</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
        </Paragraph>
        <Paragraph Num="2">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>Judicial persons, if received orders according to the provisions of the preceding paragraph with reference to auditions of profits and surplus until audited according to the provisions of the preceding Article.</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
        </Paragraph>
      </Article>
      <Article Num="3">
        <ArticleTitle>Article 3.</ArticleTitle>
        <Paragraph Num="1">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>The Minister of Finance may, if deemed necessary, prohibit or restrict, during a certain period of time, the dividend payments of judical persons under stated in Article 1 Paragraph 1 who have distributed profits or surplus for the business year ending before the enforcement of this Ordinance, after August 15th, 1945.</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
        </Paragraph>
        <Paragraph Num="2">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>Judicial persons concerned, if prohibited or restricted according to the preceding Paragraph cannot distribute profits or surplus violating the prohibition and restriction.</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
        </Paragraph>
      </Article>
      <Article Num="4">
        <ArticleTitle>Article 4.</ArticleTitle>
        <Paragraph Num="1">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>The Minister of Finance, if deemed necessary, prescribe by ordinance the submission of reports concerning status of business or property of judical person under stated in Article 1 Paragraph 1 or the despatch of competent officials to inspect necessary places and to examine books, documents and other objects.</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
        </Paragraph>
      </Article>
      <Article Num="5">
        <ArticleTitle>Article 5.</ArticleTitle>
        <Paragraph Num="1">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>A director or corresponding member of a judicial person under stated in Article 1 Paragraph 1 shall be subject to penal servitude of five (5) years or less or to a fine of fifty thousand (50,000) yen or less in the following cases:</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
          <Item Num="1">
            <ItemTitle>(1)</ItemTitle>
            <ItemSentence>
              <Sentence>if a judicial person violates the provisions of Article 1 Paragraph 1.</Sentence>
            </ItemSentence>
          </Item>
          <Item Num="2">
            <ItemTitle>(2)</ItemTitle>
            <ItemSentence>
              <Sentence>if a judicial person violates the provisions of Article 2 Paragraph 2.</Sentence>
            </ItemSentence>
          </Item>
          <Item Num="3">
            <ItemTitle>(3)</ItemTitle>
            <ItemSentence>
              <Sentence>if a judicial person violates the provisions of Article 3 Paragraph 2.</Sentence>
            </ItemSentence>
          </Item>
        </Paragraph>
      </Article>
      <Article Num="6">
        <ArticleTitle>Article 6.</ArticleTitle>
        <Paragraph Num="1">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>Any person who has failed to submit a report according to Article 2, who has made a false statement or who has refused or prevented the inspection and examination by competent officials shall be subject to penal servitude of one year or less or a fine of ten thousand (10,000) yen or less.</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
        </Paragraph>
      </Article>
      <Article Num="7">
        <ArticleTitle>Article 7.</ArticleTitle>
        <Paragraph Num="1">
          <ParagraphNum/>
          <ParagraphSentence>
            <Sentence>In case, a representative, agent employee, or other worker has committed an illegal act violating the preceding two articles, the judical person himself shall be servitude to a fine of the preceding two articles in addition to the punishment given to the actual offender.</Sentence>
          </ParagraphSentence>
        </Paragraph>
      </Article>
    </MainProvision>
    <SupplProvision>
      <SupplProvisionLabel>Supplementary Provision:</SupplProvisionLabel>
      <Paragraph Num="1">
        <ParagraphNum/>
        <ParagraphSentence>
          <Sentence>The present Ordinance shall come into force as from the day of its promulgation.</Sentence>
        </ParagraphSentence>
      </Paragraph>
    </SupplProvision>
  </LawBody>
</Law>