Singapore Tourism Board
Act 1963
2020 REVISED EDITION
This revised edition incorporates all amendments up to and including 1 December 2021 and comes into operation on 31 December 2021
An Act for the establishment of the Singapore Tourism Board and of the Tourism Fund, for the regulation of tourist guides and for matters connected therewith.
[7/2014]
[1 January 1964]
PART 1
PRELIMINARY
Short title
1.  This Act is the Singapore Tourism Board Act 1963.
Interpretation
2.  In this Act —
“associate member” means an associate member of the Board appointed under section 6;
“berth slot” means a specific time on a specific date during which a ship may be berthed at a cruise terminal;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“berthing framework” means the requirements or framework established by the Controller to govern the ability of cruise terminal licensees to allocate or refuse to allocate at their respective cruise terminals any berth slot for any ship (whether or not a cruise ship) calling in Singapore, including any matter relating to —
(a)the prioritisation of berth slots at a cruise terminal, and the re-allocation of berth bookings between different cruise terminals;
(b)the requirements and processes for managing berth bookings;
(c)the rejection of berth bookings from a cruise line that has unpaid fees and charges payable to a cruise terminal licensee where the fees and charges are required to be imposed by the cruise terminal licensee under section 29P;
(d)the grant of any preferential berthing arrangement to any cruise line, and the conditions of the grant; and
(e)the use of facilities, resources or technology (such as a common berth booking system) shared between a cruise terminal licensee and —
(i)any other cruise terminal licensee; or
(ii)any public authority,
and includes any modification made for a particular cruise terminal licensee under section 29I(2)(d);
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“Board” means the Singapore Tourism Board established under section 3;
“business trust” has the meaning given by section 2 of the Business Trusts Act 2004;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“Chairperson” means the Chairperson of the Board;
“Chief Executive” means the Chief Executive of the Board, and includes any individual acting in that capacity;
“committee member” means a member of any committee appointed under section 13(1);
“company” has the meaning given by section 4(1) of the Companies Act 1967;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“Controller” means the Controller of Cruise Administration appointed under section 29(1), and includes (except in section 29(2)) any Deputy Controller appointed under section 29(1);
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“corporation” has the meaning given by section 4(1) of the Companies Act 1967;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“cruise line” means any entity offering the services of and operating one or more cruise ships;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“cruise port services and facilities” means the services and facilities provided at a cruise terminal connected with or incidental to —
(a)the berthing of cruise ships;
(b)the embarkation of passengers and crew onto a cruise ship and their departure from Singapore on board the cruise ship; and
(c)the disembarkation of passengers and crew from a cruise ship and their entry into Singapore from the cruise ship,
including the services and facilities for any of the following:
(d)the provisioning of cruise ships while berthed;
(e)the checking-in and screening of the passengers and crew, and the handling, screening and storage of baggage and cargoes;
(f)the operation of customs, immigration and quarantine checks and control;
(g)the movement of the passengers, crew and other persons on and off cruise ships while berthed;
(h)the operation of security and police services;
(i)the maintenance and refueling of cruise ships while berthed, and waste disposal;
(j)the sale and collection of duty-free items or any other goods;
(k)the parking of vehicles, and other transport related services and facilities;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“cruise ship” means a ship that —
(a)is primarily used to provide voyages for on-board leisure or recreation, any part of which is on the high seas;
(b)has on-board accommodation, dining and other facilities for the purposes of on-board leisure or recreation; and
(c)has any other characteristic that the Minister may by notification in the Gazette declare, including any characteristic relating to or concerning one or more of the following:
(i)the tonnage of the ship;
(ii)the carrying capacity of the ship (whether in relation to passengers, crew or cargo);
(iii)the duration, routes and frequency of voyages undertaken by the ship;
(iv)the ports at which the ship calls on any voyage;
(v)the proportion which the area on the ship for any one or more leisure or recreational activities bears to the area on the ship for any one or more other leisure or recreational activities;
(vi)the primary purpose for which the ship undertakes any of its voyages,
but does not include —
(d)any ferry or similar ship used solely for the transport on the high seas of any or any combination of passengers, vehicles and cargoes; and
(e)any ship where the ship or any voyage undertaken by the ship has any characteristic that the Minister may by notification in the Gazette declare;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“cruise terminal” means any site comprising terminal buildings, berths, connecting roads and pedestrian walkways, and other associated infrastructure, for use principally in connection with —
(a)the berthing of cruise ships;
(b)the embarkation of passengers and crew onto a cruise ship and their departure from Singapore on board the cruise ship; and
(c)the disembarkation of passengers and crew from a cruise ship and their entry into Singapore from the cruise ship;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“cruise terminal licence” means a licence granted under section 29B, and includes a cruise terminal licence which a person is treated as having under section 29C pursuant to an in-principle approval;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“cruise terminal licensee”, in relation to a cruise terminal, means the holder of the cruise terminal licence for that cruise terminal, or the holder of an in-principle approval treated as a cruise terminal licence under section 29C for that cruise terminal;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“financial year” means a period of 12 months beginning on 1 April;
“Fund” means the Tourism Fund established under section 17;
“inspecting officer” means any person appointed as an inspecting officer under section 11(2);
“limited liability partnership” has the meaning given by section 4(1) of the Limited Liability Partnerships Act 2005;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“limited partnership” means a limited partnership registered under the Limited Partnerships Act 2008;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore” means the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore established under the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore Act 1996;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“member” means a member of the Board appointed under section 5;
“operate”, in relation to a cruise terminal, includes managing, maintaining or otherwise exercising control over the operation of, the cruise terminal;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“regulatory action” means —
(a)in relation to a licensee in Part 3A — any action in section 28(1) or (2) that the Board may take against the licensee; and
(b)in relation to a cruise terminal licensee in Part 3AA — any action in section 29G(1)(j) to (m) that the Controller may take against the licensee;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“ship” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“tourism enterprise” means all or any of the following:
(a)any business which, either wholly or in part, provides national or international carriage for passengers;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/01/2023]
(aa)any business which, either wholly or in part, operates any cruise terminal;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
(b)any business which, either wholly or in part, provides or arranges services for visitors to Singapore by way of transport, accommodation, entertainment, wellness activities or events, dining, retail, tours or guides, whether or not such services are provided within or outside Singapore;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/01/2023]
(c)any business which, either wholly or in part, promotes tourism in Singapore or distributes for the purpose of trade or retails tourism-related products;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/01/2023]
(d)any other undertaking intended wholly or in part for the benefit of visitors to Singapore, or for the purpose of drawing visitors to Singapore, including any of the following:
(i)organising or conducting, or otherwise participating in, any convention, exhibition, show, fair or event (whether for business, entertainment, artistic or sporting pursuit, or otherwise);
(ii)managing or maintaining any museum, theme park or other attraction;
(iii)conducting any publicity campaign;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/01/2023]
“tourism-related product” means any product, primarily intended for sale to visitors to Singapore, that —
(a)depicts any scenery or tourist attraction of Singapore;
(b)bears the Merlion symbol, a representation of which is set out in the Schedule; or
(c)has any other characteristic that the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, declare;
[7/2014; 5/2018]
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“trustee-manager”, “unit” and “unitholder” have the meanings given by section 2 of the Business Trusts Act 2004;
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]
“unregistered company” has the meaning given by section 245 of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018.
[Act 28 of 2022 wef 01/04/2023]