Economic Expansion Incentives
(Relief from Income Tax)
Act 1967
2020 REVISED EDITION
This revised edition incorporates all amendments up to and including 1 December 2021 and comes into operation on 31 December 2021
An Act relating to incentives for the establishment of pioneer industries and for economic expansion generally, by way of providing relief from income tax.
[15 December 1967]
PART 1
PRELIMINARY
Short title
1.  This Act is the Economic Expansion Incentives (Relief from Income Tax) Act 1967.
Act to be construed as one with Income Tax Act 1947
2.  This Act must, unless otherwise expressly provided for in this Act, be construed as one with the Income Tax Act 1947.
Interpretation
3.  In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —
“approved foreign loan” means a loan which is approved under section 33 to be an approved foreign loan;
“approved royalties, fees or contributions” means royalties, technical assistance fees or contributions to research and development costs which have been approved under section 37 to be approved royalties, fees or contributions;
“certificate” includes a letter or other document issued by the Minister to a company pursuant to an application made by the company under a provision of this Act;
“company” means any company incorporated or registered in accordance with the provisions of any written law relating to companies;
“Comptroller” means the Comptroller of Income Tax appointed under the Income Tax Act 1947;
“foreign loan certificate” means a foreign loan certificate issued under section 33;
“intellectual property income” means any intellectual property income prescribed by the Minister under section 64;
“manufacture”, in relation to a product, includes any process or method used in making or developing the product;
“new trade or business” means the trade or business —
(a)in respect of any product or products specified in a single pioneer certificate of a pioneer enterprise; and
(b)that is considered under section 7 to have been set up and commenced on the day following the tax relief expiry date of the old trade or business in respect of that product or those products;
“old trade or business” means the trade or business of a pioneer enterprise which satisfies all of the following conditions:
(a)it is in respect of one or more pioneer products specified in a single pioneer certificate of the pioneer enterprise;
(b)the part of the trade or business in respect of each pioneer product is carried on during the tax relief period for that product;
(c)it either ceases before or is considered, under section 7, to have permanently ceased on the tax relief expiry date;
“pioneer certificate” means a pioneer certificate issued under section 5;
“pioneer enterprise” means any company which has been approved by the Minister under section 5 for a pioneer product and to which a pioneer certificate is issued under that section;
“pioneer industry” means an industry approved under section 4 to be a pioneer industry;
“pioneer product” means a product approved under section 4 to be a pioneer product;
“production day”, in relation to a pioneer product that is approved under section 5(3) for a pioneer enterprise, means the date specified in the pioneer enterprise’s pioneer certificate under section 5(5)(b) or (7)(a) or (c) as the production day of that product;
“productive equipment” means machinery or plant which would normally qualify for deduction under sections 19, 19A, 20, 21 and 22 of the Income Tax Act 1947;
“royalties, fees or contributions certificate” means a certificate issued under section 37;
“royalties or technical assistance fees” includes —
(a)any royalties, rentals or other amounts paid as consideration for the use of, or the right to use, copyright, scientific works, patents, designs, plans, secret processes, formulae, trade marks, licences or other like property or rights;
(b)income derived from the alienation of property or information mentioned in paragraph (a); and
(c)other amounts paid in consideration of services rendered by a non-resident person or the person’s employee in connection with the use of property or rights belonging to, or the initial operation of any plant, machinery or other apparatus purchased from, the non-resident person,
but does not include royalties, rentals or other amounts paid in respect of the operation of mines, quarries or other places of extraction of natural resources; or fees paid to an individual for the performance of professional services in Singapore other than as an employee;
“tax” means income tax imposed by the Income Tax Act 1947;
“tax relief expiry date”, in relation to an old trade or business, means —
(a)where the old trade or business is in respect of only one pioneer product, the date on which the tax relief period for that pioneer product expires; or
(b)where the old trade or business is in respect of 2 or more pioneer products, the date on which all the tax relief periods for those products expire, or (if the Minister has removed one or more but not all of those products from the pioneer certificate under section 5, or extended the tax relief period or periods for one or more but not all of those products under section 6) the date of expiry of the tax relief period with the latest date of expiry.
[1/2012; 11/2016; 8/2018]