Singapore legislation
Section 24
Section 24
Revocation or suspension of licence
(1)
Subject to subsection (3), the licensing officer may by order revoke any licence if he is satisfied that —
the licensee has failed to comply with any condition imposed by the licensing officer on his or its licence;
the licence had been obtained by fraud or misrepresentation;
a circumstance which he becomes aware of would have required or permitted him to refuse to grant or renew the licensee’s licence, had he been aware of the circumstance immediately before the licence was granted or renewed;
the licensee has ceased to carry on in Singapore the business or activity for which he or it is licensed;
the licensee has been declared bankrupt or has gone into compulsory or voluntary liquidation other than for the purpose of amalgamation or reconstruction;
the licensee has been convicted of an offence under this Act;
where the licensee is an individual — he is no longer a fit and proper person to continue to hold the licence;
where the licensee is a business entity — an officer of the business entity is no longer a fit and proper person; or
it is in the public interest to do so.
(2)
Subject to subsection (3), the licensing officer may, in any case in which he considers that no cause of sufficient gravity for revoking any licence exists, by order —
suspend the licence for a period not exceeding 6 months;
censure the licensee concerned; or
impose such other directions or restrictions as the licensing officer considers appropriate on the licensee’s business or functions, as a private investigator, private investigation agency, security officer, security agency or security service provider, as the case may be.
(3)
The licensing officer shall not exercise his powers under subsection (1) or (2) unless an opportunity of being heard (whether in person or by a representative and whether in writing or otherwise) had been given to the licensee against whom the licensing officer intends to exercise his powers, being a period of not more than 14 days after the licensing officer informs the licensee of such intention.
(4)
Where the licensing officer has by order revoked a licence under subsection (1) or made any order under subsection (2) in respect of a licensee, he shall serve on the licensee concerned a notice of his order made under those subsections.
(5)
Notwithstanding subsection (3), where a licensee holding a private investigator’s licence or a security officer’s licence has been charged with or convicted of a prescribed offence, being an offence which would make it undesirable in the public interest for the licensee to continue to carry out the functions of a private investigator or security officer —
the licensing officer may serve on the licensee a notice of immediate suspension of the licence, which shall take immediate effect and shall remain in force until the licensing officer makes an order under subsection (7) and any appeal to the Minister under section 26 against such an order is determined; and
the licensee shall, upon a notice being served under paragraph (a) but subject to subsection (7), immediately cease to carry out any function of a private investigator or security officer, as the case may be.
(6)
A licensee whose private investigator’s licence or security officer’s licence has been suspended with immediate effect under subsection (5) may, within 14 days after the licensing officer has served the notice of immediate suspension under paragraph (a) of that subsection, apply to the licensing officer to review his decision under subsection (7).
(7)
The licensing officer may, on reviewing his decision, by order —
revoke the private investigator’s licence or security officer’s licence in question;
suspend that private investigator’s licence or security officer’s licence for a period not exceeding 6 months starting from the date of immediate suspension of that licence; or
rescind the immediate suspension of that private investigator’s licence or security officer’s licence.
(8)
Where the licensing officer has by order revoked or suspended a licence under subsection (7) in respect of a licensee, he shall serve on the licensee concerned a notice of his order made under that subsection.
(9)
Subject to section 26, an order under subsection (1), (2) or (7)(a) or (b) by the licensing officer revoking or suspending a private investigator’s licence or security officer’s licence shall not take effect until the expiration of 14 days after notice has been served on the licensee under subsection (4) or (8).
(10)
In any proceedings under this section in relation to the conviction of a licensee for a criminal offence, the licensing officer shall accept the licensee’s conviction as final and conclusive.
(11)
In deciding for the purposes of this section whether a person or an officer of a business entity is a fit and proper person, the licensing officer may consider any of the following matters as indicating that the person or officer may not be a fit and proper person:
that the person or officer associates with a criminal in a way that indicates involvement in an unlawful activity; or
that in dealings in which the person or officer has been involved, the person or officer —
has shown dishonesty or lack of integrity; or
used harassing tactics.
(12)
Subsection (11) shall not limit the circumstances in which a person or an officer of a business entity may be considered by the licensing officer not to be a fit and proper person.