12. Unauthorised subdivision, development and other works

Terms defined in this Act

• building

  building

  Defined · s 2

  “building” includes any house, hut, shed or roofed enclosure (whether used for the purpose of human habitation or otherwise) and also any wall, fence, platform, staging, gate, post, pillar, paling, frame, hoarding, slip, dock, wharf, pier, jetty, landing-stage or bridge, or any structure or foundation connected to the foregoing;

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• competent authority

  competent authority

  Defined · s 2

  “competent authority”, in relation to this Act or any Part or provision of this Act, means any competent authority appointed under section 5 to be responsible for the operation of this Act or that Part or provision, as the case may be;

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• conservation area

  conservation area

  Defined · s 2

  “conservation area” means an area designated by the Minister in accordance with sections 8 and 9;

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• conservation permission

  conservation permission

  Defined · s 2

  “conservation permission” means permission mentioned in section 12(2);

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• development

  development

  Defined · s 3

  “development” means the carrying out of any building, engineering, mining, earthworks or other operations in, on, over or under land, or the making of any material change in the use of any building or land, and “develop” and “developing” are to be construed accordingly.(2) The following operations or uses of land are not to be deemed for the purposes of this Act to involve development of land:(a)the carrying out of works for the maintenance, improvement or other alteration of a building which do not materially affect the external appearance or the floor area of the building;(b)the carrying out of such minor or preliminary works and such temporary use of land as the competent authority may declare for the purpose of this subsection;(c)the carrying out by any statutory authority of any works on land within the boundaries of a street, being works which are necessary for the maintenance or improvement of the street;(d)the carrying out by any statutory authority of any works for the purpose of laying, inspecting, repairing or renewing any sewers, mains, pipes, cables or other apparatus, including the breaking open of any street or other land for that purpose;(e)the carrying out of any act authorised or required by the Control of Vectors and Pesticides Act 1998;(f)the use of any existing building or land within the curtilage of a dwelling house for any purpose incidental to the enjoyment of the dwelling house as such;(g)the use of any land for the purposes of forestry (including afforestation) and the use for any of those purposes of any building occupied together with land so used;(h)in the case of any building or land which is used for a purpose of any class specified in any rules made under section 61, the use of the building or land or any part thereof for any other purpose within the same class.(3) To avoid doubt, it is declared that for the purposes of this section —(a)the use as 2 or more separate houses of any building previously used as a single house involves a material change in the use of the building and of each part thereof which is so used;(b)the use as a dwelling house of any building not originally constructed for human habitation involves a material change in the use of the building;(c)the use for other purposes of a building or part of a building originally constructed as a dwelling house involves a material change in the use of the building;(d)the use for a purpose specified in the Fourth Schedule of a building or part of a building originally constructed as a dwelling house constitutes development, whether such use commenced before, on or after 15 May 2017;(e)the demolition or reconstruction of or addition to a building constitutes development;(f)the use for the display of advertisements of any external part of a building which is not normally used for that purpose involves a material change in the use of the building;(g)the deposit of refuse or waste materials on land involves a material change in the use of the land even though the land is comprised in a site already used for that purpose, if —(i)the superficial area of the deposit is extended; or(ii)the height of the deposit is extended and exceeds the level of the land adjoining the site;(h)subject to subsection (2)(h), the use of any building or part thereof for any purpose other than that for which the building was originally constructed involves a material change in the use of the building;(i)any decorative, painting, renovation or building works, whether external or internal, to or on a monument in respect of which there is in force a preservation order under the Preservation of Monuments Act 2009 constitutes building operations;(j)the use and operation as 2 or more separate entities of any building or buildings or part of a building which is or are approved or authorised to be used and operated as one single entity for any of the uses specified in the Second Schedule involves a material change in the use of the building or buildings or part of the building; and(k)where a planning permission or conservation permission is cancelled under section 15(4), a planning permission or conservation permission granted for a specified period has lapsed, or a condition of an authorisation under section 21(6) is breached, the continued use of any building or land for any purpose constitutes development from the date of the cancellation, lapsing or breach, as the case may be. Subject to subsections (2) and (3), in this Act, except where the context otherwise requires,

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• dormitory accommodation

  dormitory accommodation

  Defined · s 2

  “dormitory accommodation” includes accommodation occupied, or available for occupation, by 7 (or such other number as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, prescribe in substitution) or more individuals, where rent or other form of consideration is paid or given for the accommodation, whether by an occupant or another person, and whether or not the relationship of landlord and tenant is thereby created, except where the occupants consist only of the following:(a)an individual who is related by blood, marriage or adoption (by virtue of an order of court in Singapore or elsewhere) to all other occupants except an occupant mentioned in paragraph (b) or (c);(b)a domestic worker whose work permit states the premises occupied as the domestic worker’s residential address;(c)an individual engaged to provide care or medical assistance to another occupant;

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• enforcement notice

  enforcement notice

  Defined · s 2

  “enforcement notice” means a notice served under section 28;

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• land

  land

  Defined · s 2

  “land” includes buildings and any estate or interest in or right over land;

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• planning permission

  planning permission

  Defined · s 2

  “planning permission” means permission mentioned in section 12(1);

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• subdivision permission

  subdivision permission

  Defined · s 2

  “subdivision permission” means permission mentioned in section 12(3);

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• works within a conservation area

  works within a conservation area

  Defined · s 2

  “works within a conservation area” means —(a)any development of land within a conservation area; or(b)any decorative, painting, renovation or other works (whether external or internal) to any building within a conservation area which may affect its character or appearance;

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