Entertainments Duty (Amendment) Ordinance

Bill No. 22/1964

Read the first time on 10th June 1964.

An Ordinance to amend the Entertainments Duty Ordinance (Chapter 161 of the Revised Edition).

Be it enacted by the Yang di-Pertuan Negara with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Singapore, as follows: —

Short title and commencement

1. This Ordinance may be cited as the Entertainments Duty (Amendment) Ordinance, 1964, and shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 1st day of January 1964.

Amendment of section 2

2. Section 2 of the Entertainments Duty Ordinance (hereinafter in this Ordinance referred to as the “principal Ordinance”) is hereby amended by inserting immediately after the definition of “officer of customs” appearing therein the following new definition: —

“ “open air cinema” means any entertainment by means of a cinematograph where the area in which the audience is accommodated is exposed to the sky, whether or not such area is enclosed;”.

Amendment of section 4

3. Section 4 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended —

(a)

by deleting the expression “professional boxing,” appearing in the seventeenth line of subsection (2) thereof; and

(b)

by inserting immediately after subsection (3) thereof the following new subsection: —

“(4) The Comptroller shall pay all moneys collected under the provisions of this Ordinance into the Consolidated Fund.”.

Amendment of section 5

4. Subsection (1) of section 5 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended by inserting immediately after the expression “(2)” appearing in the ninth line thereof the expression “or (3)”.

Amendment of section 6

5. Section 6 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended by inserting immediately after subsection (2) thereof the following new subsection: —

“(3) The Comptroller may require the proprietor of any entertainment to lodge with the Comptroller such security as the Comptroller may deem appropriate for the payment of entertainments duty.”.

Repeal and re-enactment of section 7

6. Section 7 of the principal Ordinance is hereby repealed and the following substituted therefor: —

“Duty chargeable in respect of each person

7. Entertainments duty shall be chargeable in respect of each person admitted to an entertainment for payment and, in the case of admission by stamped ticket, shall be paid by means of the stamp on the ticket. In the case of admission otherwise than by stamped ticket, it shall, unless the Comptroller, in exercise of the powers conferred by subsection (2) or (3) of section 4 of this Ordinance, directs otherwise, be calculated and paid on the number of admissions.”.

Amendment of section 8

7. Section 8 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended by deleting the words “debt due to the Crown in the manner provided by Part I of the Crown Suits Ordinance” appearing therein and substituting therefor the words “civil debt due to the Government”.

New sections 8A and 8B

8. The principal Ordinance is hereby amended by inserting immediately after section 8 thereof the following new sections: —

“Refund of duty overpaid

8A. It shall be lawful for the Comptroller, if it is proved to his satisfaction that any money has been overpaid as entertainments duty under this Ordinance, to direct the refund of the money so overpaid:

Provided that no such refund shall be allowed unless a claim in respect thereof is made within six months of such over-payment.

Duty not paid, short paid, or erroneously refunded

8B. Whenever for any reason entertainments duty payable under this Ordinance has not been paid, or has been short paid, or the whole or any part of entertainments duty, after having been paid, has, owing to any cause, been erroneously refunded, the person liable to pay such duty, or the person to whom such refund has been erroneously made, as the case may be, shall pay the entertainments duty not paid or short paid, or the amount erroneously refunded to him, on demand being made by the Comptroller, within six months of the date of such non-payment, or short payment, or erroneous refund, as the case may be, without prejudice to any other remedy for the recovery of the amount unpaid or erroneously refunded.”.

Amendment of section 9

9. Subsection (2) of section 9 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended by deleting the expression “or covers admission to an entertainment during any period for which duty has not been in operation,” appearing in the fourth and fifth lines thereof.

Amendment of section 10

10. Section 10 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended —

(a)

by deleting the word “Colony” appearing in the third line of paragraph (a) of subsection (1) thereof and substituting therefor the word “State”;

(b)

by deleting the words “and that the audience will be restricted to persons who are receiving whole time education at a recognized educational establishment and to the tutorial staff of such establishment” appearing in the third to the sixth lines of paragraph (b) of subsection (1) thereof;

(c)

by deleting the words “taking such statements and” appearing in the first line of paragraph (b) of the proviso to subsection (1) thereof; and

(d)

by inserting immediately after subsection (3) thereof the following new subsection: —

“(4) Where a certificate of exemption is or is deemed to be invalidated under the provisions of subsection (3) of this section, and the entertainment in respect of which the exemption was granted has been performed, the person to whom such certificate was issued shall, on demand, pay to the Comptroller the entertainments duty which would have been levied had the exemption not been granted.”; and

(e)

by renumbering subsection (4) thereof as subsection (5).

Repeal and re-enactment of section 12

11. Section 12 of the principal Ordinance is hereby repealed and the following substituted therefor: —

“Exemption from, and variation of, entertainments duty

12. The Minister may, subject to any condietions that may by imposed —

(a)	exempt any entertainment or class of entertainment from the payment of entertainments duty; or
(b)	vary the rate of entertainments duty payable in respect of any entertainment or class of entertainment.”.”.

Amendment of section 14

12. Subsection (1) of section 14 of the principal Ordinance is hereby amended by deleting the word “Colony” appearing in the eighth line thereof and substituting therefor the word “State”.

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