Singapore legislation
Section 38
Section 38
Consequences of failure to pass practice review
(1)
Upon receiving the report of the Practice Monitoring Sub‑committee under section 37(2) and considering the recommendations in the report, the Oversight Committee may —
take any one or more of the following actions:
by order impose such conditions as are necessary to restrict the provision of public accountancy services by the public accountant in such manner as the Oversight Committee thinks fit for a period not exceeding 2 years;
require the public accountant to undergo and satisfactorily complete such remedial programme as may be specified by the Oversight Committee;
require the public accountant to take other steps as may be specified by the Oversight Committee to improve the practice of the public accountant or to give such undertaking as the Oversight Committee thinks fit;
make any other order that the Oversight Committee thinks necessary or expedient; or
if it is of the opinion that it is contrary to the public interest or the interest of the profession of public accountancy for the public accountant to continue in practice, or if the public accountant has failed to comply with any order or requirement of the Oversight Committee under paragraph (a) —
refuse to renew the registration of the public accountant concerned;
suspend the registration of the public accountant concerned for a period not exceeding 2 years; or
cancel the registration of the public accountant concerned.
(2)
The Oversight Committee must not take any action under subsection (1)(b) unless it has given the public accountant concerned an opportunity to show cause against the action proposed to be taken by the Oversight Committee.
(3)
Where the Oversight Committee has made an order referred to in subsection (1)(a), the Oversight Committee may, having regard to any change in circumstances, by another order revoke the original order or revoke or vary any of the conditions imposed by the original order.
(4)
Where the Oversight Committee has, under subsection (3), revoked the order referred to in subsection (1)(a) or revoked or varied any of the conditions imposed by such order, the Registrar must immediately serve on the public accountant concerned a notice of the revocation or variation.
(5)
A decision of the Oversight Committee under subsection (1)(b) does not take effect —
until the expiry of one month from the date on which the decision has been communicated to the public accountant concerned; or
where an appeal against the decision is made to the General Division of the High Court under subsection (7), until the appeal has been determined or withdrawn.
(6)
While any public accountant remains suspended under subsection (1)(b)(ii), he or she is deemed not to be registered as a public accountant under this Act but immediately upon the expiry of his or her period of suspension, his or her rights and privileges as a public accountant are forthwith revived.
(7)
Any public accountant who is aggrieved by a decision of the Oversight Committee to take action under subsection (1)(b) may appeal to the General Division of the High Court within a period of 30 days (or any further period that the Oversight Committee may allow on application in any particular case) after the service of the Oversight Committee’s decision on the public accountant.
(8)
The decision of the General Division of the High Court on an appeal under subsection (7) is final.