Central Provident Fund (Amendment) Bill

Bill No. 26/1998

Read the first time on 1st June 1998.

An Act to amend the Central Provident Fund Act (Chapter 36 of the 1997 Revised Edition).

Be it enacted by the President with the advice and consent of the Parliament of Singapore, as follows:

Short title and commencement

1. This Act may be cited as the Central Provident Fund (Amendment) Act 1998 and shall come into operation on such date as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint.

Amendment of section 2

2. Section 2 of the Central Provident Fund Act (referred to in this Act as the principal Act) is amended by inserting, immediately after the word “Fund” in the second line of the definition of “member of the Fund” or “member”, the words “and includes a person who contributes to the Fund voluntarily in accordance with section 13B”.

New section 13B

3. The principal Act is amended by inserting, immediately after section 13A, the following section:

“Voluntary contributions

13B.—(1) Notwithstanding anything in this Act but subject to any regulations made under section 77 —

(a)	a person in respect of whom no contribution is required to be paid under this Act or the regulations made thereunder may contribute voluntarily to the Fund in such manner and at such rate as the Minister may direct; and
(b)	the Board shall credit every contribution received under paragraph (a) into an ordinary account, a medisave account or a special account, for the purposes specified in section 13(1), in such manner as the Minister may direct, and the Minister may give different directions in respect of different classes of members.

(2) Every contribution that was received by the Board before the date of commencement of the Central Provident Fund (Amendment) Act 1998 from a person in respect of whom no contribution is required to be made under this Act or the regulations made thereunder shall be deemed to have been validly received, and every ordinary account, medisave account and special account that was maintained by the Board for that person before that date shall be deemed to have been validly maintained.”.

New section 18B

4. The principal Act is amended by inserting, immediately after section 18A, the following section:

“Transfer of member's moneys in ordinary account to special account

18B.—(1) Subject to subsection (2), a member who has less than the prescribed amount standing to his credit in his special account may on or after 1st July 1998 apply to the Board to transfer a sum standing to his credit in his ordinary account, not exceeding the difference between the prescribed amount and the sum standing to his credit in his special account, to his special account.

(2) An application by a member to transfer the sum standing to his credit in his ordinary account to his special account under subsection (1) shall be irrevocable and the transfer shall be subject to such terms and conditions as the Board may determine.

(3) In this section, “prescribed amount” means —

(a)	$40,000, where no other sum is specified under paragraph (b); or
(b)	where a sum is specified under this paragraph by the Minister for the purposes of this section by notification in the Gazette, such sum as may for the time being be so specified.”.

New section 30A

5. The principal Act is amended by inserting, immediately after section 30, the following section:

“Double insurance cover under Scheme prohibited

30A.—(1) No person shall be insured under the Scheme for more than one immovable property at the same time.

(2) Where a member who is insured under the Scheme in respect of any immovable property purchases another immovable property from a Housing Authority, the member shall, notwithstanding section 35, cease to be covered under the Scheme in respect of the first-mentioned immovable property immediately upon the commencement of cover under the Scheme in respect of the second-mentioned immovable property.

(3) Where a member's cover under the Scheme in respect of any immovable property ceases by virtue of subsection (2), the Board shall refund to the member in cash or by crediting to his ordinary account in the Fund as the Board thinks fit an amount representing the surrender value of his cover under the Scheme in respect of that property as on the date of cessation of cover calculated in accordance with regulations made under this Part as if the member had redeemed the housing loan on the property on that date.

(4) Where a member is insured under the Scheme before the date of commencement of the Central Provident Fund (Amendment) Act 1998 for more than one immovable property at the same time, the member's cover under the Scheme in respect of the earlier of 2 immovable properties purchased by him shall cease on that date and the Board shall refund to the member an amount representing the surrender value of his cover under the Scheme in respect of that property as on that date in the manner provided in subsection (3).”.

Repeal of section 62 and enactment of new sections 62 and 62A

6. Section 62 of the principal Act is repealed and the following sections substituted therefor:

“Notice to attend court

62.—(1) Where an officer of the Board has reasonable ground for believing that a person has committed an offence under this Act or any subsidiary legislation made thereunder, he may, in lieu of applying to a court for a summons, serve upon that person a prescribed notice, requiring that person to attend at the court, at the hour and on the date specified in the notice.

(2) A duplicate of the notice shall be prepared by the officer of the Board and, if so required by the court, produced to the court.

(3) The notice may be served on the person alleged to have committed the offence in the manner provided in section 62A(1).

(4) On an accused person appearing before a court in pursuance of such a notice, the court shall take cognizance of the offence alleged and shall proceed as though he were produced before the court in pursuance of section 136 of the Criminal Procedure Code (Cap. 68).

(5) If a person, upon whom such a notice has been served, fails to appear before a court in person or by counsel in accordance therewith, the court may, if satisfied that the notice was duly served, issue a warrant for the arrest of the person unless that person has before that date been permitted to compound the offence.

(6) Upon a person arrested in pursuance of a warrant issued under subsection (5) being produced before a court, the court shall —

(a)	proceed as though he were produced in pursuance of section 136 of the Criminal Procedure Code; and
(b)	at the conclusion of the proceedings, call upon him to show cause why he should not be punished for failing to attend in compliance with the notice served upon him and if cause is not shown may order him to pay such fine not exceeding $2,000 as the court thinks fit or may commit him to prison for a term not exceeding 2 months.

(7) An officer authorised in that behalf by the Board may, at any time before the date specified in the notice, cancel the notice.

(8) The Board may prescribe such form of notice as it may think fit for the purposes of this section.

Service of notice and summons

62A.—(1) Every notice to attend court issued under section 62, and every summons issued by a court, against any person in connection with any offence under this Act or any subsidiary legislation made thereunder may be served on the person —

(a)

by delivering it to the person or to some adult member of his family at his last known place of residence;

(b)

by leaving it at or sending it by registered post to his usual or last known place of residence or business in an envelope addressed to the person;

(c)

where the person is a body of persons or a company —

(i)	by delivering it to the secretary or other like officer of the body of persons or company at its registered office or principal place business; or
(ii)	by sending it by registered post addressed to the body of persons or company at its registered office or principal place of business.

(2) Any notice to attend court, or summons, sent by registered post to any person in accordance with subsection (1) shall be deemed to be duly served on the person to whom the letter is at the time when the letter would, in the ordinary course of post, be delivered and, in proving service of the summons, it shall be sufficient to prove that the envelope containing the summons was properly addressed, stamped and posted by registered post.”.

Amendment of section 63

7. Section 63 of the principal Act is amended by deleting “$200” in the last line and substituting “$500”.

New section 66A

8. The principal Act is amended by inserting, immediately after section 66, the following section:

“Certificate of Board on non-payment of contributions

66A. In any proceedings relating to the recovery or non-payment of contributions under section 7, a certificate purporting to be issued by the Board certifying the amount of the contributions and interest due thereon and payable by an employer or other person shall be prima facie evidence that the amount of contributions and interest so stated is due and payable by the employer or other person so named in the certificate as at the date of the certificate.”.

Amendment of section 68

9. Section 68 of the principal Act is amended by inserting, immediately after subsection (1), the following subsections:

“(1A) Whenever a writ of distress has been issued under the Distress Act (Cap. 84) to distrain the property of a tenant who is an employer and any moveable property belonging to the employer is seized in execution of the writ, and, prior to the payment of the proceeds of the sale or other realisation to the landlord entitled to the distraint, notice has been given to the Sheriff or other officer charged with the execution of the writ by the Board that any sum is due to the Fund, no part of the proceeds shall be paid to the landlord unless the court issuing the writ has ascertained and provided for the sum due to the Fund at the date of the sale or other realisation.

(1B) Whenever a garnishee order has been issued in execution of a judgment against an employer and, prior to the payment of the amount due or accruing due to the judgment debtor from the garnishee, notice has been given to the garnishee by the Board that any sum is due to the Fund, no amount of the debt sought to be attached under the garnishee order shall be paid to the execution creditor unless the court issuing the garnishee order has ascertained and provided for the sum due to the Fund at the date the debt is due to be paid.”.

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