Singapore legislation
Section 42
Section 42
Proceedings for recovery of money due
(1)
Unless otherwise expressly provided in this Act, the competent authority has and may exercise the following additional powers for the purpose of recovering any money due under this Act:
the competent authority may issue a warrant of attachment and may seize by virtue thereof any movable property and crops of any person liable to pay any sum due, and may, after service of the prescribed notice, sell the same by public auction or in such manner as may be prescribed;
the competent authority may, by notice of sale to be served or published in the prescribed manner, declare the competent authority’s intention of selling, at the expiry of 3 months from the date of the notice of sale, any land belonging to the person from whom any sum is due and, if at the expiry of that period, that sum has not been paid or satisfied, the competent authority may sell, by public auction or otherwise, the whole of that land or such portion thereof or such interest therein as the competent authority considers sufficient for the recovery of that sum and costs.
(2)
Despite subsection (1), the competent authority must not proceed under subsection (1)(b) and sell the land of any person from whom any sum is due, or any portion thereof or interest therein, where there is upon the land and liable to be seized and sold under subsection (1)(a) movable property or crops belonging to that person of a value estimated by the competent authority to be sufficient to realise the sum required to satisfy the money due and costs.
(3)
Any tenant, subtenant or occupier (called in this subsection the relevant person) who, in order to avoid the seizure or sale of the land for non‑payment of any sum due from the owner of the land, pays that sum and costs may thereafter, in the absence of any written agreement to the contrary, deduct the amount so paid by the relevant person from the rent due or to become due by the relevant person to the relevant person’s immediate landlord on account of the land or such part thereof as is held or occupied by the relevant person, and may retain possession thereof until that amount has been fully reimbursed to the relevant person whether by deduction from the rent or otherwise.
(4)
Any tenant or subtenant (A) who has reimbursed, whether by allowing a deduction from the rent or otherwise, any subtenant or occupier (B) holding or occupying under A the amount so paid by B has a similar right to retain possession until similarly reimbursed.
(5)
The receipt of the competent authority or of any duly authorised officer for any amount so paid by any such tenant, subtenant or occupier is deemed to be an acquittance in full for the like amount of the rent.
(6)
If any land belonging to a person from whom any sum is due, or any movable property or crops that are mentioned in subsection (1)(a) or the proceeds of sale of that movable property or crops, is or are already in the custody of the law under any process of execution whereby the competent authority is unable to exercise the powers vested in the competent authority by this section, the competent authority may notify the sheriff or the bailiff of the court concerned of the amount due, and the competent authority is entitled, without obtaining judgment, to be paid that amount out of the proceeds of sale of the land, movable property or crops in priority to the judgment debtor and to the judgment creditor and to any other creditor, except the Government.
(7)
A certificate from the competent authority is conclusive evidence of the amount of any sum that may be due.