Private Security Industry Act 2007 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 5 · Licensing Procedures
21. Grant and renewal of licence
Feedback & supportLast amended by an amending law of 2019.
An application for a licence must —
licence
“licence” means any of the following licences granted under this Act:(a)a private investigator’s licence;(b)a private investigation agency’s licence;(c)a security officer’s licence;(d)a security agency’s licence; or(e)a security service provider’s licence;
be made to the licensing officer in such form or manner as the licensing officer may require; and
be accompanied by —
such particulars, information and documents as the licensing officer may require; and
the prescribed fee, if any.
An applicant for a licence must, at the licensing officer’s request, provide any further information or evidence, or any trial or demonstration of any security service, or of any equipment to be employed in carrying out any security service, proposed to be provided by the applicant, that the licensing officer may require to decide the application.
licensing officer
“licensing officer”, in relation to any provision in this Act, means any licensing officer appointed under section 4(1) for the purposes of that provision, and includes any assistant licensing officer appointed by such a licensing officer under section 4(2) and subject to the licensing officer’s direction and control;
Upon receipt of an application under subsection (1), the licensing officer may —
grant the licence applied for, with or without conditions; or
refuse the application.
Subject to the provisions of this Act, a person who applies to be licensed, or to renew the person’s licence is eligible to be granted a licence or a renewal of the licence if, and only if —
licensed
“licensed” means licensed as a private investigator, private investigation agency, security officer, security agency or security service provider under this Act;
the applicant has paid the prescribed fees for such licence or its renewal;
where the applicant is an individual, he or she satisfies the licensing officer that he or she has the qualifications and the practical experience (whether in Singapore or elsewhere) prescribed for that licence; and
the applicant satisfies such other requirements as may be prescribed for such licence or its renewal.
Without affecting subsection (4), the licensing officer may refuse to grant a licence, or to renew a licence of a person if, in the licensing officer’s opinion—
where the person who applies to be licensed, or to renew the person’s licence is an individual, the person is not a fit or proper person to hold or to continue to hold the licence;
where the person who applies to be licensed, or to renew the person’s licence is a business entity, an officer of the business entity is not a fit or proper person; or
it is not in the public interest to grant or renew the licence, or the grant or renewal of the licence may pose a threat to national security.
A licence may be renewed upon its expiry, and subsections (1), (2) and (3) apply, with the necessary modifications, to an application for the renewal of a licence.
A person who, in making an application for a licence —
makes any statement or furnishes any particulars, information or document which the person knows to be false or does not believe to be true; or
by the intentional suppression of any material fact, furnishes any information which is misleading in a material particular,shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or to both.
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:
officer
“officer”, in relation to a business entity, means —(a)a director, partner, member of the board of management, chief executive, manager, secretary or other similar officer of a business entity that is a body corporate;(b)a partner of a business entity that is a partnership; or(c)a president, secretary, or any member of the committee of management of a business entity that is an unincorporated association (other than a partnership), or any person holding a position analogous to that of president, secretary or member of a committee,and includes a person who can control or substantially influence the conduct of the affairs of the business entity;
that the person or officer associates with a criminal in a way that indicates involvement in an unlawful activity;
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;
that the person or officer is or was suffering from a mental disorder;
that the person or officer is an undischarged bankrupt or has entered into a composition with the person’s or officer’s debtors.
Subsection (8) does 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.
business entity
“business entity” includes —(a)a sole proprietorship or firm registered under the Business Names Registration Act 2014;(b)a body corporate incorporated under the Companies Act 1967; and(c)a limited liability partnership registered under the Limited Liability Partnerships Act 2005;