Postal Services Act

(CHAPTER 237A)

(Original Enactment: Act 42 of 1999)

REVISED EDITION 2000

(30th December 2000)

An Act to provide for the operation and provision of postal systems and services in Singapore and for matters connected therewith.

[1st December 1999]

PART I

PRELIMINARY

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Postal Services Act.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“code of practice” and “standard of performance” mean, respectively, a code of practice and a standard of performance issued or approved under section 24;

“equipment” includes any appliance, apparatus or accessory used or intended to be used for postal purposes;

“installation or plant used for posts” includes all buildings, lands, structures, machinery, equipment, boxes and receptacles used or intended for use in connection with the transmission of postal articles by post;

“letter” includes any communication in the nature of current and personal correspondence;

“mail bag” means any bag, container, envelope or covering in which postal articles are conveyed;

“parcel” means a postal article which is posted at a post office in Singapore as a parcel in accordance with the provisions of this Act or is received at a post office in Singapore by parcel post;

“post” means any system for the collection, despatch, conveyance, handling and delivery of postal articles by or through a public postal licensee;

“post office” means any building, house, room, vehicle or place where postal articles are received, delivered, sorted, made up or despatched;

“postage” means the fee chargeable for the transmission by post of postal articles;

“postage stamp” means any label or stamp for denoting any postage or other sum payable in respect of a postal article, and includes any adhesive postage stamp or stamp printed, impressed or otherwise indicated on a postal article, whether the postage stamp is issued under this Act or by the government of any other country;

“postal article” means any article or thing transmissible by post but does not include such article or thing as the Postal Authority may prescribe to be not transmissible by post;

“Postal Authority” means the person appointed under section 3 to be responsible for the administration of this Act;

“postal licensee” means a person to whom a licence has been granted under section 6;

“postal service” means any service by post;

“postcard” means a card recognised as a postcard in accordance with the terms of the Convention regulating the affairs of the Universal Postal Union;

“posting box” includes any pillar box and wall box and any other box or receptacle provided by or under the authority of a public postal licensee for the purpose of receiving postal articles for transmission by, or under the authority of, a public postal licensee;

“public postal licensee” means a person designated by the Postal Authority under section 7;

“public postal licensee’s installation or plant” means any installation or plant used for posts belonging to or used by a public postal licensee;

“repealed Act” means the Telecommunication Authority of Singapore Act (Cap. 323, 1993 Ed.) repealed by the Info-communications Development Authority of Singapore Act (Cap. 137A);

“TAS” means the Telecommunication Authority of Singapore reconstituted under the repealed Act;

“vessel” includes any ship, boat, air-cushioned vehicle or floating rig or platform used in any form of operations at sea or any other description of vessel.

(2) For the purposes of this Act —

(a)

the delivery of a postal article by depositing it —

(i)

into the letter box of the addressee or by leaving it at the house or office of the addressee, or with the addressee or with his employee or agent or other person authorised to receive it and, where the addressee is a guest or is a resident at a hotel, hostel or lodging of a similar nature, by leaving it with the proprietor or manager thereof or with his agent shall be a delivery to the addressee; and

(ii)

into any posting box or by handing it over to an employee or agent of a public postal licensee authorised to receive it shall be a delivery to the licensee; and

(b)

a postal article shall be in the course of transmission by post from the time of it being delivered to a public postal licensee to the time of it being delivered to the addressee, or it being returned to the sender or otherwise disposed of under this Act.

Postal Authority

3.—(1) The Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint such person to be the Postal Authority responsible for the administration of this Act.

(2) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the functions conferred on the Postal Authority by this Act may be performed by any officer of or any person who is in the employment of the Postal Authority who has been generally or specially authorised by name or office by the Postal Authority, and subject to its direction and control.

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