National Registration Bill

Bill No. 60/1965

Read the first time on 13th December 1965.

An Act to provide for the registration of persons in Singapore, for the issue of identity cards and for purposes connected therewith, and to repeal the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1955 (No. 32 of 1955).

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 National Registration Act, 1965, and shall come into operation on such date as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint.

Interpretation

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

“Commissioner” means the Commissioner of National Registration appointed under section 3;

“householder” means the owner, tenant, sub-tenant or occupier of a house, shophouse, flat, apartment, hut or other dwelling place;

“identity card” means an identity card issued under the provisions of this Act, and includes an identity card issued or deemed to be issued under the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1955 (Ord. 32 of 1955);

“registration officer” means the Commissioner of National Registration and includes the Deputy Commissioner of National Registration, any Assistant Commissioner of National Registration and any person appointed as a registration officer under section 3.

Appointment of officers

3.—(1) The Minister may appoint a Commissioner of National Registration, a Deputy Commissioner of National Registration and such number of Assistant Commissioners of National Registration and registration officers as the Minister may consider necessary or expedient for the purposes of this Act.

(2) The Commissioner shall, subject to the general direction and control of the Minister, perform the duties and exercise the rights and powers imposed and conferred upon him by this Act.

(3) The Deputy Commissioner of National Registration, the Assistant Commissioners of National Registration and all registration officers shall be under the direction and control of the Commissioner.

Establishment of register

4.—(1) The Commissioner shall cause to be kept and maintained a register of all persons in Singapore who are required to be registered under the provisions of this Act.

(2) The register shall be in such form and shall contain such particulars as the Minister may require.

Registration

5. Subject to the provisions of section 6 and any exemptions which may be granted by regulations made under section 19, every person lawfully resident within Singapore shall be registered under and in accordance with the provisions of this Act and of any regulations made thereunder.

Registration of persons in possession of identity cards

6.—(1) Every person who, on the date of the coming into operation of this Act is in possession of a valid identity card issued or deemed to be issued under the provisions of the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1955 (Ord. 32 of 1955), shall apply to be registered under the provisions of this Act within such period as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, specify.

(2) All identity cards issued or deemed to be issued under the provisions of the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1955 (Ord. 32 of 1955), shall cease to be valid at the expiration of the period within which persons in possession of such identity cards are required to be registered under subsection (1).

(3) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any person who, on the date of the coming into operation of this Act, is in possession of a valid identity card issued or deemed to be issued under the provisions of the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1955, but who has not been granted unrestricted residence in Singapore under any written law relating to immigration in force in Singapore.

Issue of identity cards

7. Every person registered under this Act shall be issued with an identity card.

Change of residence

8. Any person registered under the provisions of this Act who changes his place of residence shall, within fourteen days thereof, report such change to a registration officer.

Returns by householders

9.—(1) Every householder shall, when so required in writing by a registration officer, submit in respect of his household such returns at such times during the year, as may be prescribed for the carrying out of the provisions of this Act.

(2) Such returns shall be sent by a householder to such public officer or statutory authority as may be declared by the Minister by notification in the Gazette to be a public officer or statutory authority for the purposes of this section.

(3) The owner, manager or other person in charge of a hotel, boarding house, hostel or other like dwelling place may be required by a registration officer to submit the returns required under subsection (1).

Cancellation of identity card

10. Where a person has been registered under the provisions of this Act and the Minister is satisfied that the registration —

(a)	was obtained by means of fraud, false representation or the concealment of any material fact; or
(b)	was effected by mistake,

the Minister may by order require the Commissioner to cancel the registration of such person.

Onus of proof of contents of written applications and of identity cards, etc

11. The onus of proving the truth of the contents of any written application for registration made under the provisions of this Act and of any regulations made thereunder or the contents of an identity card shall be on the applicant or on the person to whom such identity card has been issued or on any other person alleging the truth of such contents.

Proof of citizenship by birth

12.—(1) No claim by a person, seeking to be registered under this Act that he is a citizen of Singapore by birth shall, subject to the provisions of subsection (3), be accepted by a registration officer if the person making the claim does not produce a birth certificate or other evidence to his satisfaction.

(2) The onus of proving the status of citizenship of Singapore by birth shall be on the person who makes such claim.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (1), the evidence of —

(a)	a birth certificate without the name of the child;
(b)	a birth certificate without the name of the child, but supported by a statutory declaration to the effect that the birth certificate refers to the birth of the person referred to in the statutory declaration; or
(c)	an identity card issued or deemed to be issued under the provisions of the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1955 (Ord. 32 of 1955), wherein the holder of the identity card is stated to have been born in Singapore,

shall not necessarily be sufficient evidence for the purposes of subsection (1).

Offences and penalties

13.—(1) Any person who —

(a)	being a person liable to be registered under this Act, fails to register, or fails to register within the prescribed time;
(b)	fails to report his change of residence as required under section 8;
(c)	fails to submit, or fails to submit within the time prescribed, such returns as are required to be submitted under section 9;
(d)	without lawful authority, transfers an identity card;
(e)	without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, knowingly obtains or is in possession of, or makes use of, a forged identity card or an identity card other than his own;
(f)	without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, is in possession of one or more identity cards;
(g)	unlawfully issues an identity card;
(h)	forges or reproduces an identity card;
(i)	unlawfully deprives any person of an identity card; or
(j)	aids or abets in the commission of any offence under this Act,

shall be guilty of an offence under this Act and shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or to a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars or to both such imprisonment and fine.

(2) Every offence under this Act (Cap. 132) shall be deemed to be a seizable offence for the purposes of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Registration of persons arrested or convicted

14.—(1) The provisions of the Registration of Criminals Ordinance relating to the taking of finger impressions and photographs of persons under arrest and accused of any crime shall apply to persons arrested under this Act (Cap. 136) as if they were persons arrested for any crime within the meaning of the said Ordinance.

(2) The provisions of the Registration of Criminals Ordinance shall apply to persons convicted of an offence under this Act as if such offence were a crime included in the First Schedule to the said Ordinance.

Attempt to commit offences and assisting offenders

15.—(1) Without prejudice to the operation of Chapter V and Chapter XXIII of the Penal Code, any person who attempts to commit or does any act preparatory to the commission of an offence under this Act shall be deemed to be guilty of such offence under this Act (Cap. 119).

(2) No person, knowing or having reasonable cause to believe, that another person is guilty of an offence under this Act shall give such other person any assistance with intent thereby to prevent, hinder or interfere with the apprehension, trial or punishment of that person for that offence.

Arrest and search

16.—(1) Where any person —

(a)

is reasonably suspected by a registration officer or police officer of the commission of any offence under this Act or any regulations made thereunder; or

(b)

on the demand of a registration officer or a police officer —

(i)	does not give his name and address;
(ii)	gives a name or address which such officer has reason to believe is false; or
(iii)	gives as his address a place outside Singapore,

such person may be arrested without warrant by such registration officer or police officer.

(2) Any police officer may without warrant and with or without assistance —

(a)	enter and search any premises;
(b)	stop and search any vessel, vehicle or individual, whether in a public place or not,

if he suspects that any evidence of the commission of an offence under this Act or any regulations made thereunder is likely to be found on such premises or individual or in such vehicle and may seize any evidence so found.

(3) No woman shall be searched under this section except by a woman.

Report of certain persons admissible as evidence

17.—(1) Any document purporting to be a report under the hand of any of the persons mentioned in subsection (2) upon any matter or thing duly submitted to any such person for examination, analysis or report, may be used as evidence in any trial or other proceedings under this Act or any regulations made thereunder, unless the court requires such person to be called as a witness:

Provided that in any case in which the Public Prosecutor intends to give in evidence any such report, he shall deliver a copy thereof to the accused not less than ten clear days before the commencement of the trial or other proceedings.

(2) The following are persons to whom the provisions of this section apply: —

(a)	any officer or any person duly authorised to issue identity cards by virtue of any written law, including subsidiary legislation in force in Malaysia; and
(b)	any police officer of Malaysia charged with the registration or collation of fingerprints.

Obligation to be in possession of travel document

18. Nothing in this Act or in any regulation made thereunder shall relieve any person of any obligation under any other written law to be in possession of a passport or any other travel document whatsoever.

Regulations

19.—(1) The Minister may make regulations for or in respect of any purpose which is deemed by him necessary for carrying out the provisions of this Act and for the prescribing of any matter which is authorised or required under this Act to be prescribed.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, the Minister may, by such regulations, provide for —

(a)	the manner in which and the places at which application for registration of persons under this Act shall be made;
(b)	the establishment of a central registry;
(c)	the nature of information and documents to be furnished for the purposes of registration;
(d)	the taking and recording of photographs and thumb prints of persons required to be registered under this Act;
(e)	the issue of identity cards and the particulars to be entered thereon and the different categories of identity cards that may be issued to such categories or classes of persons as may be prescribed;
(f)	the inspection of identity cards by persons in charge of hotels, boarding houses, hostels and such other classes or descriptions of persons as may be prescribed;
(g)	the replacement of identity cards which have been issued under this Act;
(h)	the requiring of persons who have obtained identity cards or replacements thereof before attaining the age of seventeen years to re-register within such period, not exceeding five years from the date of their first registration as may be prescribed;
(i)	the requiring of persons who have obtained identity cards or replacements thereof to re-register within such period, not exceeding ten years from the date of their last preceding registration, as may be prescribed;
(j)	the maximum charges that may be made for, and the conditions which may be imposed in respect of, the taking by any person of photographs for the purposes of this Act;
(k)	the temporary surrender of identity cards;
(l)	the custody and production of identity cards;
(m)	the times and places for the attendance before a registration officer of applicants and holders of identity cards;
(n)	the publication of information derived from the register;
(o)	the making of corrections to and alterations in the register and identity cards;
(p)	the absolute or conditional exemption of any person or category of persons from the provisions of this Act or of any regulations made thereunder;
(q)	the surrender and replacement of identity cards issued or deemed to be issued under the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1955 (Ord. 32 of 1955);
(r)	the prescribing of fees and charges for the purposes of this Act.

(3) Such regulations may —

(a)	prescribe that any act or omission, any contravention of the provisions of any regulation shall be an offence;
(b)	provide for the imposition of penalties which shall not exceed imprisonment for a term of two years or a fine of three thousand dollars or both such imprisonment and fine.

(4) The Minister may authorise the Commissioner to devise and use such forms as the Commissioner considers necessary for the purposes of this Act.

Repeal

20.—(1) The Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1955 (Ord. 32 of 1955), is hereby repealed.

(2) All appointments and registrations made and all things done under the provisions of the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1955, and having force or effect at the commencement of this Act, shall, from the date of such commencement, be deemed to have been made or done under this Act and shall continue to have force and effect until the period of validity thereof has expired or until lawfully determined under this Act.

Search within Legislation