Singapore legislation
Section 18
of Planning Act
Section 18
Obligation to purchase land in certain cases
(1)
Without prejudice to the operation of any other written law relating to the acquisition of land for a public purpose —
any person whose land is allocated in the Master Plan for development for a public purpose, other than a green belt, may upon completion of the development of any contiguous land belonging to him in accordance with the permission granted by the competent authority under section 10 serve on the competent authority a notice (referred to in this Act as a purchase notice) requiring his interest in the land so required for that public purpose to be purchased in accordance with this section; and
any person may serve a purchase notice on the competent authority if he is refused permission under section 10 to develop land allocated in the Master Plan for a public purpose other than a green belt in an area where permission would otherwise have been granted for such development of land.
(2)
The competent authority shall investigate every purchase notice so served and when he is satisfied with the correctness thereof he shall transmit the purchase notice to the Minister together with information as to the specific public purpose relating to the land and information regarding any permission granted to the owner of the land to develop it notwithstanding the allocation of the land for a public purpose.
(3)
The Minister may reject a purchase notice where the land in its existing state is capable of a reasonably beneficial use or where the land will not, in the opinion of the Minister, be required for development for a public purpose, other than a green belt, within 5 years from the date of service of the purchase notice.
(4)
The Minister may declare that the land referred to in a purchase notice is needed for a public purpose and may order proceedings to be taken for obtaining possession of the land for the competent authority and for determining compensation to be paid to any person or persons interested therein.
(5)
Such compensation shall be assessed in the manner and according to the principles laid down in any written law for the time being in force relating to the acquisition of land for a public purpose, but account shall be taken of any such permission for development granted as referred to in subsection (2).
(6)
For the purposes of this section, land within a conservation area shall not be deemed to be land allocated in the Master Plan for development for a public purpose. [13