Travel Agents Act 1975

Travel Agents Act 1975 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 licensing of travel agents and for the regulation of their operation and for purposes connected therewith. [1 December 1976] PART 1 PRELIMINARY Short title 1. This Act is the Travel Agents Act 1975. Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires — “Board” means the Singapore Tourism Board established under section 3 of the Singapore Tourism Board Act 1963; “code of conduct” means a code of conduct mentioned in section 28(1)(g)(ii); “licence” means a licence granted or renewed under section 7; “licensee” means any person who holds a licence; “regulations” means regulations made under this Act; “relevant individual”, in relation to an applicant for a licence or to a licensee, means — (a) where the applicant or licensee is an individual, the applicant or licensee, as the case may be; (b) where the applicant or licensee is a partnership, a partner of the partnership; (c) where the applicant or licensee is an unincorporated association, a member of the governing body of the unincorporated association; and (d) where the applicant or licensee is a company or other body corporate, any director of the company or officer holding a similar managerial or executive position in the body corporate; “supply”, in relation to a travel product, includes the sale, or arranging for the provision, of the travel product; “tour” means a visit to one or more places or points of interest, whether in Singapore or elsewhere, in which the participant or participants in the visit is or are, for any part of the visit, accompanied by an individual who is not a participant of the visit; “travel product” means any goods or services described in section 4(1). [47/2017] Application 3.—(1) Nothing in this Act is to be construed as requiring any of the following persons to hold a licence for the purpose of performing that person’s functions, exercising that person’s powers or carrying out that person’s duties as any of the following persons: (a) any executor or administrator; (b) any trustee; (c) any liquidator or official receiver; (d) any trustee in bankruptcy of a bankrupt estate; (e) any trustee under — (i) a composition or scheme of arrangement; (ii) a deed of arrangement; or (iii) a deed of assignment; (f) any donee of a lasting power of attorney — (i) which is granted under the Mental Capacity Act 2008; (ii) under which the donor confers on the donee authority to make decisions in relation to the donor for the purposes of this Act; and (iii) the donor of which, after the creation of the lasting power of attorney, lacks capacity within the meaning of the Mental Capacity Act 2008; (g) any deputy who is appointed or deemed to be appointed for an individual by the court under the Mental Capacity Act 2008, and who is conferred power to make decisions in relation to that individual for the purposes of this Act. [16/2016] (2) Despite anything in subsection (1), it is not lawful for any of the persons mentioned in that subsection in whom is vested the management of the business of any travel agent to carry on that business at any time after the expiration of 3 months from the date on which the management of that business was so vested, unless that person holds a licence. (3) Nothing in this Act is to be construed as relieving any person from the obligation to take out a licence under any written law for the performance of any function, the exercise of any power or the carrying out of any duty for which a licence must have been required if this Act had not been passed or to pay the fee payable in respect of any such licence. (4) Nothing in this Act is to be construed as requiring the Official Assignee performing his or her duties as the trustee in bankruptcy of the property of a bankrupt to hold a licence. (5) This Act does not apply to the Government, or a body established by or under a public Act for a public purpose. [47/2017] Business of travel agent 4.—(1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), a person carries on the business of a travel agent if the person carries on, or advertises or holds himself, herself or itself out as carrying on, a business of any one or more of the following: (a) supplying any person a right to travel on any conveyance; (b) supplying any person — (i) a right to travel on any conveyance to; and (ii) a right of accommodation at a hotel or similar boarding premises at, one or more places, whether in Singapore or elsewhere; (c) purchasing, or reserving, for resale to any person a right to travel on any conveyance; (d) supplying any tour (whether or not organised by the person) to any other person; (e) any other similar activity that may be prescribed. [47/2017] (2) An individual who is employed by a licensee or who is an agent of a licensee does not carry on the business of a travel agent by reason only of carrying on in the course of the individual’s employment or agency (as the case may be) any activity mentioned in subsection (1). [47/2017] (3) However, a person does not carry on the business of a travel agent if — (a) for the activity mentioned in subsection (1)(a), the person carries on the activity only in respect of a conveyance the person owns; (b) for the activity mentioned in subsection (1)(a) or (c), the person carries on the activity only in respect of a conveyance — (i) used for a regular route service within the meaning of the Bus Services Industry Act 2015; (ii) used for a community bus service or courtesy bus service, within the meaning of the Bus Services Industry Act 2015, and that travels only within Singapore; or (iii) used for a train service within the meaning of the Public Transport Council Act 1987; (c) for the activity mentioned in subsection (1)(b), the person carries on the activity only in respect of — (i) a conveyance the person owns; and (ii) a hotel or similar boarding premises the person owns or operates; or (d) for the activity mentioned in subsection (1)(d), the person carries on the activity only in respect of any place or point of interest that the person owns or operates. [47/2017] Board responsible for administration of this Act 5. The Board is responsible for the administration of this Act and may authorise any of its officers to exercise any of the powers conferred upon and perform any of the functions imposed upon the Board by this Act on its behalf.