Guide · Money and debt · 3 min read
Getting back money you are owed
Which claims a small claims tribunal can hear, how they are heard, and the time limits for going to court.
In plain English · by laws.sg · not legal advice· Law as at 30 Sep 2026
On this page · 4 parts
The short answer
Except where the Act expressly provides otherwise, a small claims tribunal cannot hear a claim worth more than the prescribed limit, or a claim brought more than 2 years after the cause of action accrued.
Small Claims Tribunals Act s 5(3)
The prescribed limit is $20,000 and the prescribed extended limit is $30,000, unless the Minister prescribes other sums by order in the Gazette after consulting the Chief Justice.
Small Claims Tribunals Act s 2
In court, subject to the Act, a claim founded on a contract cannot be brought after 6 years from the date the cause of action accrued.
Small claims tribunals
Subject to the Act, a small claims tribunal can hear and decide a claim that is a specified claim and is served in Singapore on the respondent under section 19(1).
Small Claims Tribunals Act s 5(1)
A specified claim is a claim listed in the Schedule to the Act. The prescribed limit is $20,000 and the prescribed extended limit $30,000, or other sums the Minister prescribes by order in the Gazette after consulting the Chief Justice.
Small Claims Tribunals Act s 2
Except where the Act expressly provides otherwise, a tribunal cannot hear a claim worth more than the prescribed limit, or a claim brought more than 2 years after the cause of action accrued.
Small Claims Tribunals Act s 5(3)
Subject to the Act's other conditions, a tribunal can hear a claim above the prescribed limit, up to the prescribed extended limit, if the parties agree to it in a memorandum they sign.
Small Claims Tribunals Act s 5(4)
A tribunal cannot hear a claim for damage to property caused by an accident arising out of or in connection with the use of a motor vehicle.
How a claim is heard
A tribunal's primary function is to try to bring the parties to an agreed settlement. If it appears impossible to reach one within a reasonable time, the tribunal must decide the dispute, according to the substantial merits and justice of the case, having regard to the law but without being bound by strict legal forms or technicalities.
Small Claims Tribunals Act s 12
Subject to the exceptions in section 23, each party must present their own case. For example, one of a company's officers or full-time employees may present the company's case. No party may be represented by an advocate and solicitor, or, except as the Act allows, by an agent.
Small Claims Tribunals Act s 23(1), (3)
A party can appeal against a tribunal's order under section 35(1) to the General Division of the High Court only on a question of law, or on the ground that the claim was outside what the tribunal can hear, and only with leave from a District Court.
Time limits in court
Subject to the Act, an action founded on a contract or on tort cannot be brought after 6 years from the date the cause of action accrued.
An action on a judgment cannot be brought after 12 years from the date the judgment became enforceable.
For a claim for damages for negligence, nuisance or breach of duty that includes personal injuries, the action cannot be brought after 3 years from the date the cause of action accrued, or 3 years from the earliest date you had the knowledge the Act requires, if that is later.
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