Demand note
11.—(1) If the whole or any part of the premium payable for an insurance period remains unpaid at the expiry of such period as the Board may permit (being not less than one month) after the beginning of that insurance period —(a)
interest may be imposed from time to time on any outstanding premium for that insurance period (excluding any penalty imposed under section 17), to run from the beginning of that insurance period or from such later period as the Board may determine at the prescribed rates; and
(b)
sections 12 to 16 may be applied to the outstanding premium.
(2) A recovery body must serve a demand note on a defaulter liable to pay any outstanding premium —(a)
if any interest or penalty is to be imposed on the defaulter under subsection (1)(a) or section 17, as the case may be; and
(b)
before any power under section 12, 13, 14, 15 or 16 is exercised to recover that outstanding premium from the defaulter.
(3) A demand note must state —(a)
the outstanding premium which is payable by the defaulter; and
(b)
any interest imposed under subsection (1)(a) and any penalty imposed under section 17.
(4) This Part applies to an outstanding premium despite any appeal pending against liability to pay the whole or any part of that outstanding premium.
Defaulter’s agent for recovery of outstanding premiums
12.—(1) A recovery body may, if it considers necessary, by written notice declare any person to be a defaulter’s agent.
(2) The person declared to be the defaulter’s agent under subsection (1) is to be treated as the agent of the defaulter for the purposes of this Act, and may be required by the recovery body to pay any outstanding premium payable by the defaulter from any moneys which may be held by the defaulter’s agent for, or due from the defaulter’s agent to, the defaulter —(a)
on or not more than 90 days after the date on which the defaulter’s agent receives the notice; or
(b)
at any time on or after the date on which the defaulter’s agent receives the notice, if the moneys are earnings and the defaulter’s agent is liable, as a principal and not as an employee or agent, to pay the earnings to the defaulter.
(3) Where separate amounts of moneys come to be held by the defaulter’s agent for, or become due from the defaulter’s agent to, the defaulter at different times within the period in subsection (2)(a) or (b) (as the case may be) the recovery body may require the outstanding premium to be paid in instalments of such sums as the recovery body may specify from one or more of those separate amounts.
(4) Any person who is declared by a recovery body to be a defaulter’s agent under subsection (1) and is aggrieved by the declaration may object to the declaration by written notice to the recovery body within 14 days after the date of receipt of the notice, or within such longer period as the recovery body in its discretion may allow.
(5) The recovery body must examine the objection and may cancel, vary or confirm the declaration.
(6) An objector in subsection (4) who is aggrieved by the recovery body’s decision upon the objection in subsection (5) may appeal against that decision in accordance with the relevant regulations.
(7) If the defaulter’s agent fails to make any payment under subsection (2), the outstanding premium is recoverable from the defaulter’s agent in the manner provided in section 15.
(8) For the purposes of this section, a recovery body may require any person to give information as to —(a)
any moneys, funds or other assets which may be held by that person for any defaulter; or
(b)
any moneys due from that person to any defaulter.
(9) In this section, “earnings”, in relation to a defaulter, means any sum payable to the defaulter —(a)
by way of wages or salary, including any fees, bonus, commission, overtime pay or other emoluments payable in addition to wages or salary by the person paying the wages or salary, or payable under a contract of service; or
(b)
by way of pension, including an annuity in respect of past services, whether or not the services were rendered to the person paying the annuity, and including periodical payments by way of compensation for the loss, abolition or relinquishment, or any diminution in the emoluments, of any office or employment.
(10) Where a defaulter’s agent makes any payment of moneys to the recovery body under this section or section 13 —(a)
the defaulter’s agent is deemed to have been acting under the authority of the defaulter;
(b)
the defaulter’s agent is, by this provision, indemnified in respect of the payment to the recovery body;
(c)
the outstanding premium due from the defaulter is reduced by the amount paid by the defaulter’s agent to the recovery body; and
(d)
the amount paid by the defaulter’s agent to the recovery body is deemed to have been paid to the defaulter in accordance with any law, contract or scheme governing the payment of moneys held by the defaulter’s agent for, or due from the defaulter’s agent to, the defaulter.
Defaulter’s agent in relation to joint moneys
13.—(1) This section applies where the moneys mentioned in section 12(2) are moneys in a joint account of which the defaulter is a joint account holder, or are the proceeds of sale of any immovable property of which the defaulter was a joint owner.
(2) The defaulter’s agent must —(a)
within 14 days after the date of the receipt of the notice under section 12(2), send a notice, by registered post addressed to every owner of the moneys in the bank account or the proceeds of sale (called in this section joint moneys) at the owner’s address last known to the defaulter’s agent, informing the owner of the declaration under section 12(1);
(b)
retain such amount of the joint moneys as is presumed under subsection (3) to be owned by the person from whom the outstanding premium is due; and
(c)
subject to subsections (6) and (7), within the time specified in the notice (being at least 42 days after the date of the receipt of the notice under section 12(2)) pay the outstanding premium due from the retained amount to the recovery body.
(3) It is presumed, until the contrary is proved, that the joint account holders of a joint account have equal shares of the moneys in the account as at the date of the receipt of the notice under section 12(2), and that the joint owners of any immovable property share the proceeds of sale of the property equally.
(4) Any owner of joint moneys who objects to the share presumed under subsection (3) may give written notice of the owner’s objection to the defaulter’s agent within 28 days after the date of the receipt of the agent’s notice under subsection (2)(a), or within such longer period as the recovery body may allow, and furnish proof as to the owner’s share of the joint moneys together with the notice of objection.
(5) Where an objection under subsection (4) is received, the defaulter’s agent must —(a)
inform the recovery body of the objection within 7 days after the date of the receipt of the objection; and
(b)
retain the amount of the joint moneys referred to in subsection (2)(b) until such time as the recovery body by notice under subsection (6) informs the defaulter’s agent of the recovery body’s decision on the objection.
(6) The recovery body must consider the objection under subsection (4) and, by written notice, inform the objector of its decision.
(7) An owner of joint moneys aggrieved by the decision of the recovery body under subsection (6) may appeal against that decision in accordance with the relevant regulations.
(8) Where the recovery body has decided under subsection (6) on the amount of the defaulter’s share of the joint moneys, the defaulter’s agent must, despite any appeal under subsection (7), pay that amount, from the amount of the joint moneys retained under subsection (5)(b), towards any outstanding premium due from the defaulter.
(9) In this section, “joint account” means a bank account in the names of 2 or more persons, but excludes any partnership account, any trust account and any account where a minor is one of the joint account holders.
Payment by Government
14.—(1) Where —(a)
any outstanding premium is due from any person under this Act other than as a defaulter’s agent under section 12 or 13;
(b)
an amount is or would be payable by the Government to the person by or under any written law, contract or scheme —(i)
on or not more than 90 days after the date on which the public officer in paragraph (c) receives the notice in paragraph (c); or
(ii)
at any time on or after the date on which the public officer in paragraph (c) receives the notice in paragraph (c), if the amount is earnings (as defined in section 12(9)) payable to the person by the Government as a principal and not as an agent; and
(c)
before the amount mentioned in paragraph (b) is paid to the person, the recovery body serves a notice on any public officer by whom the payment is to be made that the outstanding premium mentioned in paragraph (a) is due from the person,
then the public officer is, despite that or any other written law, contract or scheme, entitled to pay the whole or any part of the amount mentioned in paragraph (b) towards the whole or any part of the outstanding premium mentioned in paragraph (a).
(2) If a public officer makes a payment under subsection (1) towards the outstanding premium mentioned in subsection (1)(a) —(a)
the amount of the outstanding premium is to be reduced by the amount of that payment; and
(b)
that payment is deemed to have been made to the person in accordance with the law, contract or scheme mentioned in subsection (1)(b).
Suit for outstanding premiums
15.—(1) All outstanding premiums imposed under this Act, and all sums due to the Fund, may be sued for and recovered by a recovery body in its own name by way of specially endorsed originating claim.[Act 25 of 2021 wef 01/04/2022]
(2) A recovery body is entitled to all costs and interest allowed by law against the person sued.
(3) All sums (including costs and interest) recovered in a suit brought under this section are to be paid into the Fund.
Recovery from defaulter leaving Singapore
16.—(1) Where a recovery body is of the opinion that any defaulter is about or likely to leave Singapore without paying all outstanding premiums payable by the defaulter, the recovery body may issue a certificate containing particulars of such outstanding premiums and a direction to the Commissioner of Police or the Controller of Immigration, or both, to prevent the defaulter from leaving Singapore without paying the outstanding premiums or furnishing security to the recovery body for the payment.
(2) Subject to the provisions of any order issued or made under any law for the time being in force relating to banishment or immigration, upon receiving a direction under subsection (1), the Commissioner of Police or the Controller of Immigration, or both (as the case may be) are to take, or cause any police officer or immigration officer to take, such measures as may be necessary to prevent the defaulter from leaving Singapore until every outstanding premium has been paid or secured.
(3) The measures mentioned in subsection (2) may include —(a)
the use of such force as may be necessary; and
(b)
if appropriate, the detention of any passport, certificate of identity or travel document and any exit permit or other document authorising the defaulter to leave Singapore.
(4) At the time the recovery body issues the certificate under subsection (1), the recovery body must issue to the defaulter, by personal service or registered post, a notification of the issue of the certificate; but a non‑receipt of the notification does not invalidate any proceedings under this section.
(5) Payment of the outstanding premium to an officer in charge of a police station or an immigration officer, or production of a certificate issued by the recovery body stating that the outstanding premium has been paid or secured, is sufficient authority for allowing the defaulter to leave Singapore.
(6) A defaulter who, knowing that a direction has been issued under this section to prevent the defaulter’s departure from Singapore, voluntarily leaves or attempts to leave Singapore without paying the outstanding premium or furnishing security to the recovery body’s satisfaction for that payment —(a)
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 12 months or to both; and
(b)
may be arrested, without warrant, by any police officer or immigration officer.
(7) No civil or criminal proceedings are to be instituted or maintained against the Commissioner of Police, the Controller of Immigration or any other police officer or immigration officer, in respect of anything done in good faith and with reasonable care under the authority of this section.
Penalty for late payment of premium
17.—(1) Subject to subsection (3), if the whole or any part of the premium for an insurance period, or any interest imposed under section 11(1)(a), remains unpaid at the expiry of such period as the Board may permit (being at least one month) after the beginning of that insurance period, a penalty may be added to the premium and interest at the rates and times prescribed in the relevant regulations.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), the relevant regulations may provide for penalties to be imposed at different rates for premiums and interest imposed under section 11(1)(a) which remain unpaid for different periods.
(3) The total amount of the penalties imposed on the premium and interest for an insurance period must not exceed 17% of the total amount of the premium for that insurance period and any interest imposed under section 11(1)(a) on the outstanding premiums for that insurance period.
(4) The recovery body may, subject to such terms and conditions as the recovery body may specify, extend the time limit within which payment of any penalty is to be made.
(5) A recovery body may for any good cause shown remit the whole or any part of the penalty imposed by it under subsection (1).
Recovery body
18.—(1) The Minister may prescribe one or more statutory bodies as recovery bodies for the purposes of this Part.
(2) A recovery body may —(a)
only exercise any powers under this Part which the Minister authorises it to exercise; and
(b)
must, in exercising those powers, comply with any directions of the Council.
(3) Despite the provisions of any written law, a legal officer of a recovery body who is an advocate and solicitor may appear for the recovery body in any civil proceedings arising from the exercise of the recovery body’s powers under this Part, and may make and do all acts and applications in respect of such proceedings on behalf of the recovery body.
Source: Singapore Statutes Online (Attorney-General's Chambers), © Government of Singapore.
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