Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act 1990 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 4 · Countering Foreign Influence: General*
16D. Restrictions on responsible officers’ nationality
Feedback & supportLast amended by an amending law of 2019.
This section applies to and in relation to every religious group only from a date declared by the Minister by order in the Gazette.
religious group
“religious group” includes —(a)any company or other body corporate incorporated under the Companies Act 1967 or any other written law for the purpose of promoting any religion, religious worship or dealing with religious affairs or practising, conducting, teaching or propagating any religious belief; and(b)any body of persons, whether or not registered as a society under the Societies Act 1966, whose object is the promotion of any religion, religious worship or the practice, conduct, teaching or propagating of any religious belief.
Subject to this Act, a religious group in Singapore —
must not appoint or re-appoint as a responsible officer of the religious group, an individual who is not a citizen of Singapore and not a Singapore permanent resident; and
must not permit an individual who is not a citizen of Singapore and not a Singapore permanent resident to act as a responsible officer of the religious group,except in accordance with the approval of the Minister granted after taking into account the circumstances for the religious observance or practices of the religious group and its community bonding among the people of Singapore.
Where a competent authority is satisfied that a religious group in Singapore has, in contravention of subsection (2) —
appointed or re-appointed as a responsible officer of the religious group, an individual who is not a citizen of Singapore and not a Singapore permanent resident; or
permitted an individual who is not a citizen of Singapore and not a Singapore permanent resident to act as a responsible officer of the religious group,the competent authority may, by written notice to the religious group, direct the religious group to remove the responsible officer from his office or employment within the period specified in the notice, and the religious group must comply with that direction.
A competent authority is not required to give any person notice of, or consult any person on, the competent authority’s intention to direct under subsection (3) a religious group to remove an individual from his office or employment.
If a religious group which is directed, or the individual required to be removed in a direction, under subsection (3) is aggrieved by the direction, the religious group or the individual (as the case may be) may, within 14 days after the notice under subsection (3) of the direction is given to the religious group or individual (as the case may be), appeal against the direction to the Minister.
Unless otherwise ordered by the Minister, the direction of the competent authority appealed against must be complied with until the determination of the appeal.
The Minister’s decision on an appeal is final.
Subject to this Act, in the event that for any reason (such as by resignation, death or otherwise), a responsible officer of a religious group ceases to be either a citizen of Singapore or a Singapore permanent resident, the religious group must give written notice of that event to the competent authority, within 30 days after the religious group first becomes aware of that event.
An order under subsection (1) cannot be revoked by another such order.