PART 1 | Citation and commencement |
| 1. These Regulations are the COVID‑19 (Temporary Measures) (Rental Waiver Due to COVID‑19 Event in 2021) Regulations 2021 and come into operation on 5 October 2021. |
2.—(1) In these Regulations —| “Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority” means the body established by section 3 of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority Act (Cap. 2A); |
| “Accounting Standards” means the accounting standards made or formulated by the Accounting Standards Council under Part III of the Accounting Standards Act (Cap. 2B); |
| “annual value” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Property Tax Act (Cap. 254); |
| “business” includes a profession or trade or an occupation or undertaking, whether or not conducted on a regular, repetitive or continuous basis and whether or not engaged in or carried on for a fee or profit; |
| “committee of management” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Co‑operative Societies Act (Cap. 62); |
| “co‑operative society” has the meaning given to “society” by section 2(1) of the Co‑operative Societies Act; |
| “Corppass” means the identity authentication service, known as Singapore Corporate Access, by which an entity authenticates its identity in order to carry out an online transaction with the Government or a public body; |
| “Corppass credential” means any username, password or 2‑factor authentication detail required to authenticate, using Corppass, the identity of an entity; |
“designated email address”, in relation to a party, means —| (a) | in the case of a party who submitted to the Registrar an application for a specified determination —| (i) | that party’s email address as specified in the application; or | | (ii) | if that party has submitted any form to the Registrar or a rental waiver assessor in relation to an application for a specified determination in which another email address is specified as that party’s email address — that other email address; or |
| | (b) | in the case of any other party — the email address designated by that party for the purpose of receiving documents or communications under Part 12 of the Act or these Regulations; |
|
“designated postal address”, in relation to a party, means —| (a) | in the case of a party who submitted to the Registrar an application for a specified determination —| (i) | that party’s postal address as specified in the application; or | | (ii) | if that party has submitted any form to the Registrar or a rental waiver assessor in relation to an application for a specified determination in which another postal address is specified as that party’s postal address — that other postal address; or |
| | (b) | in the case of any other party — the postal address designated by that party for the purpose of receiving documents or communications under Part 12 of the Act or these Regulations; |
|
| “electronic system” means the electronic system established under regulation 15; |
“encroachment on a property” means —| (a) | any erection of a perimeter fence or boundary wall on the property; | | (b) | any enclosure of a part of the property as a part of another property; or | | (c) | any protrusion of a part of another property into the property; |
|
“entity” means —| (a) | a specified person; or | | (b) | any of the following (including when acting as a trustee of a trust) that is not a specified person:| (i) | a corporation registered under section 19 or 368 of the Companies Act (Cap. 50); | | (ii) | a sole proprietorship; | | (iii) | a partnership; | | (iv) | a limited partnership; | | (v) | a limited liability partnership; | | (vi) | a co-operative society; |
|
|
| “exempt charity” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Charities Act (Cap. 37); |
“financial statements” —| (a) | in relation to an entity (other than a sole proprietorship), means —| (i) | the audited financial statements of the entity for or covering the financial year concerned, prepared in accordance with the Accounting Standards, or equivalent accounting standards of a country outside Singapore, applicable to that entity; or | | (ii) | in the absence of the statements mentioned in sub‑paragraph (i) — the unaudited balance sheet, profit and loss statement and cash flow statement of the entity for or covering that financial year, supported by a statutory declaration by a relevant officer of the entity; or |
| | (b) | in relation to a sole proprietorship or an individual, means —| (i) | the audited statement of accounts of the sole proprietorship or individual for or covering the financial year concerned, prepared in accordance with the Accounting Standards, or equivalent accounting standards of a country outside Singapore, applicable to that sole proprietorship or individual; or | | (ii) | in the absence of the statement mentioned in sub‑paragraph (i) — the unaudited balance sheet, profit and loss statement and cash flow statement of the sole proprietorship or individual for or covering that financial year, supported by a statutory declaration by the sole proprietorship or individual; |
|
|
| “financial year” means the period in respect of which the financial statements of a person who carries on a business are made up, whether the period is a year or not; |
| “key employee” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Co‑operative Societies Act; |
| “National Arts Council” means the body established by section 3 of the National Arts Council Act (Cap. 193A); |
| “National Council of Social Service” means the body established by section 3 of the National Council of Social Service Act (Cap. 195A); |
| “national disability sports association” means a sports organisation in Singapore that is recognised by the Singapore Sports Council as the governing body for a particular sport for the disabled in Singapore; |
| “National Heritage Board” means the body established by section 3 of the National Heritage Board Act (Cap. 196A); |
| “national sports association” means a sports organisation in Singapore that is recognised by the Singapore Sports Council as the governing body for a particular sport in Singapore; |
“ordinary address” means —| (a) | in the case of a body corporate (including a limited liability partnership) or unincorporated association —| (i) | the body corporate’s or unincorporated association’s registered office, or principal office, in Singapore; or | | (ii) | in the absence of a registered office, or principal office, in Singapore, the body corporate’s or unincorporated association’s last known place of business in Singapore; |
| | (b) | in the case of an individual, the individual’s usual or last known place of residence or business in Singapore; or | | (c) | in the case of a partnership (other than a limited liability partnership), the partnership’s principal or last known place of business in Singapore; |
|
“party”, for a specified determination in relation to a prescribed property, means —| (a) | an applicant who makes an application for the specified determination; or | | (b) | the respondent to the application for the specified determination, |
| and includes a person authorised by that party to represent that party in the proceedings of the determination; |
|
| “prescribed mode of service” has the meaning given by regulation 6; |
| “PTO’s supporting documents” means the documents mentioned in regulation 10(1)(b) or copies of those documents; |
| “registered charity” means a charity that is registered under section 5 of the Charities Act; |
| “Registrar’s directives” means directives issued by the Registrar under regulation 33; |
| “Registry” means the Registry of Rental Waiver Assessors established under regulation 31; |
“relevant officer”, in relation to an entity, means —| (a) | if the entity is a corporation registered under section 19 or 368 of the Companies Act — a director or secretary of the corporation or a person employed in an executive capacity by the corporation; | | (b) | if the entity is a sole proprietorship — the sole proprietor; | | (c) | if the entity is a partnership — a partner of the partnership; | | (d) | if the entity is a limited partnership — a general partner of the limited partnership; | | (e) | if the entity is a limited liability partnership —| (i) | a manager of the limited liability partnership; or | | (ii) | a partner of the limited liability partnership; |
| | (f) | if the entity is a co-operative society —| (i) | a member of the committee of management of the co-operative society; or | | (ii) | a key employee of the co-operative society; or |
| | (g) | in any other case — any person who is involved in the general control and management of the administration of the entity; |
|
| “relevant period” means the period starting on 5 August 2021 and ending on 18 August 2021; |
| “Rental Relief Regulations” means the COVID‑19 (Temporary Measures) (Rental and Related Measures) Regulations 2020 (G.N. No. S 664/2020); |
| “rental waiver” has the meaning given by section 94 of the Act; |
“respondent”, for an application for a specified determination in relation to a prescribed property, means —| (a) | in the case of a determination mentioned in section 95(3)(a) of the Act — a tenant that is the PTO of that property; | | (b) | in the case of a determination mentioned in section 95(3)(b), (c) or (d) of the Act — the tenant of the applicant; | | (c) | in the case of a determination mentioned in section 95(5)(a) or (b) of the Act —| (i) | where the applicant for the determination is a landlord of that property — the tenant of the applicant; or | | (ii) | where the applicant for the determination is a tenant of that property — the landlord of the applicant; or |
| | (d) | in the case of a determination mentioned in section 100(3) of the Act — the landlord of the applicant; |
|
| “Singapore Sports Council” means the body established by section 3 of the Singapore Sports Council Act (Cap. 305); |
| “Singpass” means the identity authentication service, known as Singapore Personal Access, by which an individual authenticates the individual’s identity in order to carry out an online transaction with the Government or a public body; |
| “Singpass credential” means any username, password or 2‑factor authentication detail required to authenticate, using Singpass, the identity of an individual; |
| “society” has the meaning given by section 2 of the Societies Act (Cap. 311); |
“specified determination” means a determination by a rental waiver assessor —| (a) | under section 97 of the Act, on an application made under section 95(2) of the Act; or | | (b) | under section 102 of the Act, on an application made under section 100(2) of the Act; |
|
“specified person” means —| (a) | a registered charity or an exempt charity; or | | (b) | any of the following that is not a registered charity or an exempt charity:| (i) | a member of the National Council of Social Service; | | (ii) | a national sports association; | | (iii) | a national disability sports association; | | (iv) | an arts and culture society; | | (v) | a trade association; |
|
|
| “SSIC classification” means the Singapore Standard Industrial Classification 2015 (Version 2018) that is established by the Department of Statistics of the Ministry of Trade and Industry; |
| “voting share” has the meaning given by section 4(1) of the Companies Act; |
| “working day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday. |
(2) For the purposes of paragraph (b)(iv) of the definition of “specified person” in paragraph (1), “arts and culture society” means a society —| (a) | that is classified under an SSIC classification code set out in the Second Schedule to the Rental Relief Regulations; | | (b) | that is registered under section 4 or 4A of the Societies Act; and | | (c) | that satisfies one or more of the following conditions:| (i) | the society is a participant in any project, activity, programme or festival that is funded (whether wholly or partially), commissioned or organised by the National Arts Council or the National Heritage Board in the period from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2021 (both dates inclusive); | | (ii) | the society operates a museum that became a member of a group established by the National Heritage Board known as the Museum Roundtable on or before 31 March 2021; | | (iii) | the society is listed as an accredited Arts Education Programme provider in the 2019‑2022 National Arts Council‑Arts Education Programme Directory on the National Arts Council Internet website at https://aep.nac.gov.sg; | | (iv) | the society has more than 66% of its activities (conducted in the course of the society’s business during the periods specified below) that fall within one or more of the descriptions set out in the column titled “Description” in the Second Schedule to the Rental Relief Regulations:| (A) | where the society commences its business on or before 28 December 2020 —| (AA) | 28 December 2020 to 7 May 2021 (both dates inclusive); | | (AB) | 16 May 2021 to 13 June 2021 (both dates inclusive); and | | (AC) | 22 July 2021 to 18 August 2021 (both dates inclusive); or |
| | (B) | where the society commences its business after 28 December 2020 but before 15 May 2021 —| (BA) | the date of commencement of the business to 7 May 2021 (both dates inclusive); | | (BB) | 16 May 2021 to 13 June 2021 (both dates inclusive); and | | (BC) | 22 July 2021 to 18 August 2021 (both dates inclusive). |
|
|
|
|
(3) For the purposes of paragraph (b)(v) of the definition of “specified person” in paragraph (1), “trade association” means a society —| (a) | that is registered under section 4 or 4A of the Societies Act; | | (b) | that supports its members in developing their respective businesses by conducting activities that relate to trade, commerce, investment or industry development; and | | (c) | where one or more members of the society are regulated by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority under any written law. |
|
|
3.—(1) For the purposes of Part 12 of the Act, “prescribed property” is any immovable property that comprises or includes —| (a) | any property specified in Part 2 of the First Schedule or a part of such property; or | | (b) | any property that —| (i) | is a property specified in Part 2 of the First Schedule (or a part of such property) during any portion or portions of the relevant period, and a property specified in Part 3 of the First Schedule (or a part of such property) during the remaining portion or portions of the relevant period, due to one or more changes in the use of the property; and | | (ii) | is leased or licensed to the same tenant during the relevant period, |
|
| whether or not the immovable property includes any other property. |
(2) However, the following are not prescribed properties:| (a) | any property the annual value of which has been assessed as if it were vacant land under section 2(3)(b) of the Property Tax Act; | | (b) | any property that is exempt from payment of property tax under section 6(6), (6A) or (7) of the Property Tax Act. |
|
|
4. For the purposes of Part 12 of the Act, “rent” (as defined in section 86 of the Act), payable by a tenant to a landlord for a property —| (a) | includes —| (i) | any amount payable by the tenant to the landlord that is determined by the gross turnover of any business carried on by the tenant at the property or part of the property; and | | (ii) | any amount payable by the tenant to the landlord as property tax for the property; but |
| | (b) | where the property (called in this paragraph the subject property) is part of a larger property (called in this paragraph the main property) that is leased or licensed to the tenant by the landlord, excludes —| (i) | such part of the rent for the main property that is not attributable to the subject property, as agreed between the tenant and the landlord; or | | (ii) | in the absence of such agreement, an amount calculated using the formula  where —| (A) | A is the total gross floor area of the main property; | | (B) | B is the total gross floor area of the subject property; and | | (C) | C is the rent payable by the tenant to the landlord for leasing or licensing the main property. |
|
|
|
| Persons prescribed as not being tenants |
5. For the purposes of Part 12 of the Act, “tenant”, for any property, does not include —| (a) | a tenant who enters into a lease agreement for the purposes of accommodation at the property or part of the property; | | (b) | a tenant who enters into a lease agreement for the purposes of providing accommodation to employees employed by the tenant; and | | (c) | a person who enters into a lease agreement for an encroachment on a property. |
|
| Prescribed mode of service |
6.—(1) For the purposes of these Regulations (other than regulation 9 and Part 4), a person (A) serves a document on another person (B) by the prescribed mode of service if —| (a) | either —| (i) | A sends the document to B’s last email address; or | | (ii) | A sends the document to B’s last postal address by prepaid registered post; or |
| | (b) | where —| (i) | A is for any reason unable to send the document in the manner described in sub‑paragraph (a); | | (ii) | B has an account for the use of an internet‑based messaging service; | | (iii) | that service provides a mechanism for B to receive electronic communications in that account; and | | (iv) | that mechanism is the means or one of the means by which A corresponds with B, |
| A sends an electronic communication of the document to B using that mechanism. |
|
(2) For the purposes of Part 4, a person (A) serves a document on another person (B) by the prescribed mode of service if —| (a) | A sends the document to B’s last email address using the electronic system; | | (b) | where A is for any reason unable to send the document in the manner described in sub‑paragraph (a), either —| (i) | A sends the document to B’s last email address using any other means; or | | (ii) | A sends the document to B’s last postal address by prepaid registered post; or |
| | (c) | where —| (i) | A is for any reason unable to send the document in the manner described in sub‑paragraphs (a) and (b); | | (ii) | B has an account for the use of an internet‑based messaging service; | | (iii) | that service provides a mechanism for B to receive electronic communications in that account; and | | (iv) | that mechanism is the means or one of the means by which A corresponds with B, |
| A sends an electronic communication of the document to B using that mechanism. |
|
|
(3) In this regulation —| “document” includes a form; |
“last email address” means —| (a) | B’s designated email address; or | | (b) | if B has no designated email address — an email address by which A corresponds with B, or (if there is no such email address) an email address which B represents to A as the email address to which communications to B may be sent; |
|
“last postal address” means —| (a) | B’s designated postal address; or | | (b) | if B has no designated postal address — B’s ordinary address. |
|
|
|
| When service takes effect and proof of service |
7.—(1) Service of a document on a person takes effect —| (a) | if it is sent to an email address — at the time that the document becomes capable of being retrieved by the person; | | (b) | if it is sent to a postal address by prepaid registered post — on the second day after the day the document was posted (even if it is returned undelivered); or | | (c) | if it is sent by an electronic communication using a mechanism mentioned in regulation 6(1)(b) or (2)(c) — at the time that the document becomes capable of being retrieved by the person. |
| (2) In proving service of any document sent by registered post to any person, it is sufficient to prove that the envelope containing the document was properly addressed to that person, stamped and posted by registered post. |
| (3) In this regulation, “document” includes a form. |
|
|
