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Environmental Public Health Act

(Chapter 95, Section 113)

Environmental Public Health (Funeral Parlours) Regulations

Rg 5

G.N. No. S 281/1973

REVISED EDITION 2000

(31st January 2000)

[1st September 1973]

Citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Environmental Public Health (Funeral Parlours) Regulations.

Definitions

2. In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires —

“body” means the dead body of a human being but does not include the skeletal remains of the body or the ashes thereof;

“caretaker” means a person appointed by the licensee to take charge of a funeral parlour;

“inspecting officer” means an inspecting officer who is authorised under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act (Cap. 267) to certify the cause of death of any deceased person;

“licence” means a licence issued under section 67 of the Act;

“licensee” means a holder of a licence;

“registered medical practitioner” means a person registered or deemed to be registered under the Medical Registration Act (Cap. 174).

Inspection of funeral parlour

3.—(1) The Commissioner or a medical officer of health or public health officer may —

(a)	at any time enter and inspect a funeral parlour;
(b)	examine any book or register or any other document relating to the funeral parlour; and
(c)	require from the licensee or caretaker of such funeral parlour or any other person such information as he may consider necessary to determine whether the funeral parlour has been established and used, managed, maintained or operated in accordance with the provisions of the Act and these Regulations.

(2) Every such officer mentioned in paragraph (1) may make or cause to be made copies of or extracts from such book, register or document.

(3) The licensee or caretaker or any other person who, being required by such officer under paragraph (1) to furnish information, fails without reasonable excuse to comply with such requisition shall be guilty of an offence.

Applications for licences

4.—(1) Every applicant for a licence shall state the name, address and identity card number of the applicant.

(2) A licensee shall surrender his licence upon its expiry, revocation, cancellation or suspension to a public officer authorised in writing in that behalf by the Commissioner.

[S 269/2005 wef 29/04/2005]

(3) The fee for the grant or renewal of a licence for a period of one year shall be $120.

Access to funeral parlour and facilities

5.—(1) No part of the premises used as a funeral parlour shall have direct access to any premises used for any other purpose.

(2) Every funeral parlour shall be provided with adequate and functional toilet facilities and facilities for washing.

Lighting and ventilation

6.—(1) Adequate lighting shall be provided in a funeral parlour.

(2) The rooms of a funeral parlour shall be adequately ventilated and extractor fans and other devices for ventilating the rooms shall be installed therein.

Embalming rooms

7. Every room used for the purpose of embalming or preparing any corpse for burial, cremation or putting any corpse into a coffin shall comply with the following requirements:

(a)

a floor of at least 3m x 1.5m in area shall be provided for each embalming or a table of such area shall be provided in such room;

(b)

the surface of the floor shall be made of a smooth impervious material and the area where the walls meet the floor shall be rounded off;

(c)

the floor shall be sufficiently graded so that all moisture may drain into a gully trap which shall lead into a sewer;

(d)

the internal surfaces of the walls shall be tiled or made of smooth impervious material to a height of not less than 2m;

(e)

every window and extractor fan shall be at such positions so that no nuisance is caused to the occupants of any neighbouring or adjoining premises or any other person in a public place;

(f)

every door shall be fitted with a self-closing device, and every door and window shall be screened or otherwise rendered fly-proof;

(g)

every door opening into any part of the premises to which the public has access shall be clearly marked “NO ADMITTANCE” in the English and Chinese languages;

(h)

there shall be provided in the room at least one embalming table of at least 2.1m x 0.9m in area which shall —

(i)	be in such a position as to leave an unobstructed space of not less than 0.6m on every side thereof;
(ii)	be made of or lined with smooth impervious material and fitted with a raised edge of at least 0.05m in height, on every side thereof; and
(iii)	slope to one end so as to drain any moisture falling thereon towards a water pipe or channel so constructed as to lead into the gully mentioned in paragraph (c);

(i)

adequate hygienic facilities for washing shall be provided therein; and

(j)

after an embalmment every part of the room shall be thoroughly cleansed and disinfected.

Preparation of corpse only in embalming room

8. No corpse shall be embalmed or prepared for burial, cremation or put into a coffin in a funeral parlour otherwise than in a room used exclusively for such purpose.

Duties of licensee

9. The licensee shall —

(a)	keep the premises, including all fittings, equipment, furniture, utensils and apparatuses therein, in a clean and sanitary condition to the satisfaction of the Commissioner; [S 269/2005 wef 29/04/2005]
(b)	ensure that no nuisance such as noise, smoke, smell or fume is caused;
(c)	ensure that there is no amplification of any noise caused by cymbals, gongs, drums or any other instrument, and that the use of such cymbals, gongs, drums and other instruments shall cease at midnight; and
(d)	ensure that the burning of joss paper or any other similar article is carried out in a receptacle made for that purpose.

10. The licensee of a funeral parlour shall keep a register in the English language in which shall be recorded such particulars as he may know of —

(a)	the name, address, age and sex of the deceased;
(b)	the date, place and cause of death of the deceased;
(c)	the date on, and the time at, which the remains of the deceased were received into the premises;
(d)	the date on, and the time at, which the remains of the deceased were removed from the funeral parlour;
(e)	the date and the number of the death certificate and of any permit for the burial, cremation, transportation to or removal from Singapore, as the case may be, of such remains;
(f)	the name and address of the medical practitioner, medical officer of health or inspecting officer who certified the death of the deceased, and of the person signing any permit for the burial, cremation, transportation to or removal from Singapore, as the case may be, of such remains; [S 269/2005 wef 29/04/2005]
(g)	the name, address and identity card number of the next-of-kin; and
(h)	the manner in which such remains were disposed of after they were removed from the funeral parlour.

Penalty

11. A person who contravenes or fails to comply with any of the provisions of these Regulations shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $1,000 and, in the case of a second or subsequent conviction, to a fine not exceeding $2,000.

[G.N. No.S 281/73]