Singapore legislation
Clause 16
Clause 16
Revocation of licence and other regulatory sanctions
(1)
Subject to subsection (3), if the Chief Licensing Officer is satisfied that —
a licensee is contravening or not complying with, or has contravened or failed to comply with —
a condition of the licensee’s licence;
any provision of this Act, the contravention of or non‑compliance with which is not an offence;
any provision of a code of practice applicable to the licensee;
any direction given to the licensee under subsection (2)(e) or (g) or section 27(4); or
any requirement of the Chief Licensing Officer under subsection (2)(c);
the licensee is no longer a suitable person to be granted a licence, having regard to the matters mentioned in section 8;
the licensee is, or likely to be, declared a bankrupt or has gone, or likely to go into compulsory or voluntary liquidation other than for the purpose of amalgamation or reconstruction;
the licensee has made any assignment to, or composition with, the licensee’s creditors or, if a company, is unable to pay its debts;
the licensee has, in connection with the application for the grant or renewal of the licensee’s licence, made a statement or furnished any information or document which is false or misleading in a material particular; or
the licensee is convicted of any offence under this Act,the Chief Licensing Officer may revoke (without compensation and without refunding any fee) the licensee’s licence, with or without forfeiting any performance bond, guarantee or other form of security furnished by the licensee under this Act.
(2)
However, the Chief Licensing Officer may (without compensation), in lieu of revoking a licensee’s licence under subsection (1), do any one or more of the following:
censure the licensee in writing, which may be published in such manner and made accessible to such persons as the Chief Licensing Officer thinks fit;
modify any condition of the licence;
require the furnishing of any performance bond, guarantee or other form of security, or an additional performance bond, guarantee or other form of security, to secure compliance by the licensee with any matter mentioned in subsection (1)(a)(i) to (v) or for the purpose of meeting any financial penalty arising out of any proceedings with a view to regulatory action started or likely to start against the licensee, or both;
subject to subsection (8), forfeit the whole or part of any performance bond, guarantee or other form of security furnished under paragraph (c) or section 12;
direct the licensee to do, or refrain from doing, such things as specified in the direction, and within such period as specified in the direction (if specified), to rectify a contravention or non‑compliance;
shorten (for not longer than such period for a licence of such term as may be prescribed) the term of the licence without any compensation and without refund of any licence fee or renewal fee;
direct the licensee to pay, within a period specified in a direction, a financial penalty of such amount as the Chief Licensing Officer thinks fit, being —
not more than $5,000 for each contravention or non‑compliance mentioned in subsection (1) that is the subject; or
in any other case, not more than $5,000.
(3)
Before exercising any power under subsection (1) or (2), the Chief Licensing Officer must give written notice to the licensee concerned —
stating that the Chief Licensing Officer intends to take regulatory action against the licensee under this section;
specifying the type of action in subsection (1) or (2) the Chief Licensing Officer proposes to take, and each instance of non‑compliance that is the subject of the action; and
specifying the time (being not less than 14 days after the service of the notice on the licensee) within which written representations may be made to the Chief Licensing Officer with respect to the proposed action.
(4)
The Chief Licensing Officer may, after considering any written representation under subsection (3)(c), decide to take such regulatory action in subsection (1) or (2) as the Chief Licensing Officer considers appropriate.
(5)
Where the Chief Licensing Officer has made any decision under subsection (4) against any licensee, the Chief Licensing Officer must serve on the licensee concerned a notice of the decision.
(6)
Subject to section 43, a decision to revoke a licence, or to impose a regulatory action in subsection (2), which is specified in the notice given under subsection (5) is to take effect from the date on which that notice is given, or on such other date as may be specified in the notice.
(7)
The revocation, or shortening of the term, of any licence or the issuing of any direction under this section does not prejudice the enforcement by any person of any right or claim against the licensee or former licensee, or by the licensee or former licensee of any right or claim against any person.
(8)
Where any financial penalty is imposed on a licensee under subsection (2)(g) for contravening or not complying with any matter mentioned in subsection (1)(a)(i) to (v), any performance bond, guarantee or other form of security given by the licensee to secure compliance by the licensee with that matter mentioned in subsection (1)(a)(i) to (v) must not be forfeited by the Chief Licensing Officer for that contravention except to the extent to pay the financial penalty.
(9)
A licensee who fails to pay any amount of a financial penalty imposed under subsection (2)(g) within the period specified for payment by the Chief Licensing Officer under that subsection is liable to pay interest at the same rate as for a judgment debt on the unpaid amount.
(10)
Despite subsection (8), any financial penalty imposed on a licensee under subsection (2)(g) and any interest payable under subsection (9) is recoverable as a debt due to the Government, and the licensee’s liability to pay is not affected by the licensee’s licence ceasing, for any reason, to be in force.
(11)
In any proceedings under this section in relation to the conviction of a licensee or any person for a criminal offence, the Chief Licensing Officer is to accept the licensee’s or person’s conviction as final and conclusive.
(12)
For the purposes of subsection (1)(d), a company is unable to pay its debts if it is a company which is deemed to be so unable under section 254(2) of the Companies Act (Cap. 50).