Copyright (Border Enforcement Measures) Regulations

(Chapter 63, Section 140B(8))

Rg 5

G.N. No. S 224/2009

REVISED EDITION 2009

(31st March 2009)

[16th April 1998]

Citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Copyright (Border Enforcement Measures) Regulations.

Definitions

2. In these Regulations —

“authorised officer”, “copyright material” and “Director‑General” have the meanings given by section 140A of the Act;

“officer of customs” has the meaning given by section 3(1) of the Customs Act (Cap. 70).

[S 556/2018 wef 10/10/2018]

Notice under section 140B(1), or section 140B(1) read with section 254B, of Act

3.—(1) A notice to the Director-General under section 140B(1), or section 140B(1) read with section 254B, of the Act shall —

(a)	where the notice is given by the owner or licensee of the copyright in the copyright material, be in Form 1 in the Schedule; and
(b)	where the notice is given by the performer of a performance embodied in an unauthorised recording, be in Form 2 in the Schedule.

(2) The notice shall be accompanied by —

(a)	a statutory declaration that the particulars in the notice are correct; and
(b)	the fee of $200 specified in item (1) in the Schedule to the Fees (Copyright Act — Border Enforcement Measures) Order (Cap. 106, O 40A).

(3) The owner or licensee of the copyright in the copyright material may appoint another person to act as his agent for the purpose of giving the notice.

(4) Where the notice is given in relation to an unauthorised recording of a performance, the performer of the performance embodied in the unauthorised recording may appoint another person to act as his agent for the purpose of giving the notice.

Time and manner of giving notice

4. A notice to the Director-General under section 140B(1), or section 140B(1) read with section 254B, of the Act shall be delivered to the Singapore Customs —

(a)	during such time as the office of the Singapore Customs is open for business; and
(b)	at such time as is reasonably possible for an authorised officer to take any action under the Act in relation to the notice.

Further information and evidence

5.—(1) A person who has given a notice to the Director-General in relation to any copyright material shall, as and when required by the Director-General, give to the Director-General such information and evidence within such time and in such form as the Director-General may require including such information and evidence as the Director-General may require to establish —

(a)	the subsistence of copyright in the copyright material;
(b)	the ownership of that copyright;
(c)	that goods to be seized, or which have been seized, are copies of the copyright material to which section 140B of the Act applies; and
(d)	where the notice was given by a person as agent for the owner or licensee of the copyright, the authority of the person giving the notice.

(2) Where a notice is given to the Director-General in relation to any unauthorised recording of a performance, the person who has given the notice shall, as and when required by the Director-General, give to the Director-General such information and evidence within such time and in such form as the Director-General may require including such information and evidence as the Director-General may require to establish —

(a)	that the performance is protected under Part XII of the Act and the protection period in respect of the performance has not expired;
(b)	the identity of the performer of the performance embodied in the unauthorised recording;
(c)	that goods to be seized, or which have been seized, are copies of an unauthorised recording of a performance to which section 140B read with section 254B of the Act applies; and
(d)	where the notice was given by a person as agent for the performer of the performance, the authority of the person giving the notice.

Change in particulars

6. A person who has given a notice to the Director-General shall notify the Director-General in writing of any change in the particulars specified in the notice or affecting the notice within 7 days of the change and further notice shall be given as the Director-General may require.

Refusal to seize

7. An authorised officer may refuse to seize copies of any copyright material or copies of an unauthorised recording of a performance to which a notice under section 140B(1), or section 140B(1) read with section 254B, of the Act relates if the person who has given the notice fails to comply with —

(a)	any requirement by the Director-General under these Regulations; or
(b)	any provision of these Regulations.

Period for instituting action for infringement of copyright

8. For the purposes of section 140E(3) of the Act, the prescribed period is 10 working days.

Period for extension of retention period

9. For the purposes of section 140E(6) of the Act, the prescribed period is 10 working days after the end of the retention period mentioned in that subsection.

Written undertakings for forfeiture by consent of copies seized on request

9A. For the purposes of section 140G(1) of the Act, or that provision as applied by section 254B of the Act, the prescribed written undertakings are that the importer must —

(a)

propose an arrangement for the disposal of the seized copies for the Director‑General’s approval; and

(b)

dispose of the seized copies in accordance with an arrangement approved by the Director‑General —

(i)	within one month after the date of a notice given by the Director‑General; and
(ii)	under the supervision of an officer of customs.

[S 556/2018 wef 10/10/2018]

Written undertakings for forfeiture by consent of copies detained under section 140LA of Act

9B.—(1) The prescribed written undertakings for the provisions mentioned in paragraph (2) are that the exporter or the consignee (as the case may be) must —

(a)

propose an arrangement for the disposal of the detained copies for the Director‑General’s approval; and

(b)

dispose of the detained copies in accordance with an arrangement approved by the Director‑General —

(i)	within one month after the date of a notice given by the Director‑General; and
(ii)	under the supervision of an officer of customs.

(2) The provisions in paragraph (1) are the following:

(a)	section 140G(1) of the Act as applied by section 140LA(5)(b) of the Act;
(b)	the provisions mentioned in sub‑paragraph (a) as applied by section 254B of the Act.

[S 556/2018 wef 10/10/2018]

Disposal of seized or detained copies forfeited by consent

9C.—(1) This regulation applies to any seized or detained copies that are forfeited to the Government under any of the following:

(a)	section 140G(3) of the Act;
(b)	section 140G(3) of the Act as applied by section 254B of the Act;
(c)	section 140G(3) of the Act as applied by section 140LA(5)(b) of the Act;
(d)	the provisions mentioned in sub‑paragraph (c) as applied by section 254B of the Act.

(2) Upon forfeiture of the seized or detained copies, the copies must be disposed of by the importer, exporter or consignee (as the case may be) in accordance with an arrangement approved by the Director‑General —

(a)	within one month after the date of a notice given by the Director‑General; and
(b)	under the supervision of an officer of customs.

(3) If the importer, exporter or consignee (as the case may be) does not dispose of the copies within the period mentioned in paragraph (2)(a), the Director‑General must dispose of those copies in such manner as the Director‑General thinks fit.

[S 556/2018 wef 10/10/2018]

Prescribed period under section 140LA(3) of Act

10. For the purposes of section 140LA(3) of the Act, the prescribed period shall be —

(a)

48 hours after the Director-General has given the owner of the copyright in the copyright material or the performer of the performance embodied in an unauthorised recording, as the case may be, the written notice referred to in section 140LA(2) of the Act; or

(b)

where —

(i)	the detained copies of copyright material or unauthorised recording of a performance, as the case may be, are copies that are to be exported from Singapore or goods in transit that are consigned to a person with a commercial or physical presence in Singapore; and
(ii)	the owner of the copyright or the performer of the performance embodied in the unauthorised recording, as the case may be, has complied with section 140LA(3)(b)(iii), or section 140LA(3)(b)(iii) read with section 254B, of the Act within the period referred to in paragraph (a),

10 working days after the Director-General has given the owner of the copyright in the copyright material or the performer the written notice referred to in section 140LA(2) of the Act.

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