Investigators
69.—(1) The Council may, in writing, appoint a member of the Council, a public officer or any other person as an investigator, subject to such conditions and limitations as the Council may specify —(a)
to investigate the commission of an offence under this Act; or
(b)
to carry out an investigation under Part 5.
(2) An investigator may, for the purposes of subsection (1) —(a)
by written order require any person —(i)
to furnish any information within his or her knowledge; or
(ii)
to produce any book, document, paper or other record, or any article or thing which may be in his or her custody or possession and which may be related to or be connected with the subject matter of the investigation for inspection by the investigator and for making copies thereof, or to provide copies of such book, document, paper or other record,
and may (if necessary) further require such person to attend at a specified time and place for the purpose of complying with sub‑paragraph (i) or (ii);
(b)
by written order require the attendance before the investigator of any person who, from information given or otherwise, appears to be acquainted with the facts and circumstances of the matter under investigation;
(c)
examine orally any person apparently acquainted with the facts and circumstances of the matter under investigation, and to reduce into writing the answer given or statement made by that person who is bound to state truly the facts and circumstances with which he or she is acquainted, and the statement made by that person must be read over to him or her and must, after correction, be signed by him or her; and
(d)
without warrant enter, inspect, and search during regular business hours any premises which are used or proposed to be used, or in respect of which there is reasonable cause to believe are being used, by the registered allied health professional who is under investigation to carry out the practice of the prescribed allied health profession and may —(i)
inspect and make copies of and take extracts from, or require the registered allied health professional or the person having the management or control of the premises to provide copies of or extracts from, any book, document, record or electronic material relating to the affairs of the premises or the facilities or services provided or the practices or procedures being carried out thereat;
(ii)
inspect any apparatus, appliance, equipment or instrument used or found on the premises;
(iii)
inspect, test, examine, take and remove any chemical, pharmaceutical or any other substance found on the premises;
(iv)
inspect, test, examine, take and remove any container, article or other thing that the investigator reasonably believes to contain or to have contained any chemical, pharmaceutical or any other substance found on the premises;
(v)
inspect any test or procedure performed or carried out on the premises;
(vi)
take such photographs or video recording as the investigator thinks necessary to record the premises or part thereof, including any apparatus, appliance, equipment, instrument, article, book, document or record found on the premises; and
(vii)
seize and remove from the premises any book, record, document, apparatus, equipment, instrument, material, chemical, pharmaceutical or any other substance which the investigator reasonably believes to be the subject matter of, or to be connected with, an investigation under subsection (1)(a) or (b).
(3) Any person who —(a)
intentionally offers any resistance to or wilfully delays an investigator in the exercise of any power under subsection (2); or
(b)
fails to comply with any requisition or order of an investigator under subsection (2),
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both.
(4) In this section, “record” includes the medical record of any person.
Assessors to Council
70.—(1) For the purposes of advising the Council, and any committee or professional board appointed by the Council, the Council may appoint a legal assessor to the Council who must be an advocate and solicitor of at least 10 years’ standing.
(2) The legal assessor must not participate or sit in any deliberations of the Council or its committees and professional boards unless invited to do so, and his or her participation is limited only to questions of law arising from the proceedings.
(3) The Council may appoint a medical assessor to assist the Council and any committee or professional board appointed by the Council in proceedings before any of them under the provisions of this Act.
(4) The Council may pay to the legal assessor and medical assessor, as part of the expenses of the Council, such remuneration as the Council may determine.
(5) In this section, a committee appointed by the Council includes a Complaints Committee, a Disciplinary Tribunal, a Health Committee and an Interim Orders Committee.
No action against Council, etc., in absence of bad faith
71. No action or legal proceedings shall lie against —(a)
a member of the Council or a person authorised, appointed or employed to assist the Council;
(b)
a member of a Complaints Committee, a Disciplinary Tribunal, a Health Committee, an Interim Orders Committee or any other committee or professional board appointed by the Council;
(c)
a member of a Performance Assessment Panel, a Fitness Assessment Panel or a Review Committee; or
(d)
an investigator appointed under section 69,
for any act or thing done under this Act, which is done with reasonable care and in good faith in exercise of any power or the performance of any duty or function under this Act.
Service of documents
72.—(1) A document that is permitted or required by or under this Act to be served on a person may be served as described in this section.
(2) A document permitted or required by or under this Act to be served on an individual may be served —(a)
by giving it to the individual personally;
(b)
by sending it by prepaid registered post to the address specified by the individual for the service of documents generally, or specifically for the document, or (if no address is so specified) the individual’s residential address or business address;
(c)
by leaving it at the individual’s residential address with an adult apparently resident there, or at the individual’s business address with an adult apparently employed there;
(d)
by affixing a copy of the document in a conspicuous place at the individual’s residential address or business address; or
(e)
by sending it by email to the individual’s last email address.
(3) A document permitted or required by or under this Act to be served on a partnership (other than a limited liability partnership) may be served —(a)
by giving it to any partner or other similar officer, or an authorised representative, of the partnership;
(b)
by leaving it at, or by sending it by prepaid registered post to, the partnership’s business address; or
(c)
by sending it by email to the partnership’s last email address.
(4) A document permitted or required by or under this Act to be served on a body corporate (including a limited liability partnership) or an unincorporated association may be served —(a)
by giving it to the secretary or other similar officer of the body corporate or unincorporated association, or the limited liability partnership’s manager;
(b)
by leaving it at, or by sending it by prepaid registered post to, the registered office or principal office in Singapore of the body corporate or unincorporated association; or
(c)
by sending it by email to the last email address of the body corporate or unincorporated association.
(5) Service of a document under this section takes effect —(a)
if the document is sent by prepaid registered post, 2 days after the day the document was posted (even if it is returned undelivered); or
(b)
if the document is sent by email, at the time that the email becomes capable of being retrieved by the person to whom it is sent.
(6) However, service of any document under this Act on a person by email may be effected only with the person’s prior written consent to service in that way.
(7) This section does not apply to documents to be served in proceedings in court.
(8) In this section —“authorised representative”, in relation to a partnership (other than a limited liability partnership), means any person authorised to accept service of documents on behalf of the partnership;
“business address” means —(a)
in the case of an individual, the individual’s usual or last known place of business in Singapore; or
(b)
in the case of a partnership (other than a limited liability partnership), the partnership’s principal or last known place of business in Singapore;
“document” includes an order or a notice permitted or required by or under this Act to be served;
“last email address” means the last email address given by the addressee concerned to the person giving or serving the document as the email address for the service of documents under this Act;
“residential address” means an individual’s usual or last known place of residence in Singapore.[Act 19 of 2025 wef 05/12/2025]
Composition of offences
73.—(1) The Council may compound any offence under this Act which is prescribed as a compoundable offence by collecting from a person reasonably suspected of having committed the offence a sum not exceeding the lower of the following sums:(a)
one half of the amount of the maximum fine that is prescribed for the offence;
(b)
$2,000.
(2) On payment of the sum of money, no further proceedings are to be taken against that person in respect of the offence.
(3) The Council may, with the approval of the Minister, make regulations to prescribe the offences which may be compounded.
(4) All sums collected under this section must be paid to the Consolidated Fund.
Exemption
74. The Minister may, after consultation with the Council, by order in the Gazette and subject to such conditions as the Minister may impose, exempt any person or class of persons from all or any of the provisions of this Act.
Regulations
75.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Council may, with the approval of the Minister, make such regulations as may be necessary or expedient to give effect to the provisions and purposes of this Act and for the due administration of this Act.
(2) Without limiting subsection (1), regulations may be made to —(a)
provide for the duties of the Registrar;
(b)
provide for different registration requirements for different prescribed allied health professions;
(c)
provide for the form of the registers and the mode in which they must be kept;
(d)
regulate the grant and renewal of practising certificates, including prescribing conditions for such grant and renewal;
(e)
regulate the procedure of, and the conduct of any proceedings before, a Complaints Committee, a Disciplinary Tribunal, a Health Committee, an Interim Orders Committee, any other committee or professional board appointed by the Council and a Review Committee;
(f)
provide for payment of fees to any member of a Complaints Committee, a Disciplinary Tribunal, a Health Committee, an Interim Orders Committee, any other committee or professional board appointed by the Council or a Review Committee;
(g)
regulate the removal of and restoration of names to a register;
(h)
regulate the professional practice, etiquette, conduct and discipline of registered allied health professionals;
(i)
prescribe the forms necessary for the administration of this Act;
(j)
prescribe the fees and other charges for the purposes of this Act;
(k)
prescribe acts or activities which a registered allied health professional may perform only on satisfaction of specified requirements;
(l)
provide that a contravention of any regulation made under this Act is an offence and provide for penalties not exceeding a fine of $5,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or both for each such offence; and
(m)
prescribe such other matter as are necessary or authorised to be prescribed under this Act.
Saving and transitional provisions
76.—(1) Any person who, immediately before 8 April 2013, was practising in any prescribed allied health profession is deemed to be a duly qualified allied health professional in that prescribed allied health profession until such time as the person becomes registered under section 16, 17, 18 or 19 in respect of that prescribed allied health profession or the person’s application for registration is refused or withdrawn, or until such date as may be prescribed, whichever is the earlier.
(2) For the purpose of the first appointment of the members of the Council under section 6, the reference in subsection (1)(d) of that section to an allied health professional with full registration from a prescribed allied health profession is to be read as a reference to any person who —(a)
immediately prior to 8 April 2013, had been practising that profession; and
(b)
possesses such qualification in or in relation to that profession which the Minister is satisfied renders him or her fit for appointment as a member of the Council.
Source: Singapore Statutes Online (Attorney-General's Chambers), © Government of Singapore.
