Telecommunications Act 1999

Telecommunications Act 1999 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 to provide for the operation and provision of telecommunication systems and services in Singapore, and for matters connected therewith. [1 December 1999] PART 1 PRELIMINARY Short title 1. This Act is the Telecommunications Act 1999. Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires — “Authority” means the Info‑communications Media Development Authority established by section 3 of the Info‑communications Media Development Authority Act 2016; “broadcasting apparatus” and “broadcasting service” have the meanings given by the Broadcasting Act 1994; “Chief Executive”, in relation to the Authority, means the Chief Executive of the Authority appointed under section 40(2) of the Info‑communications Media Development Authority Act 2016, and includes any individual acting in that capacity; “code of practice” means a code of practice issued or approved under section 23 or 30; “common property” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Building (Strata Management) Act 2004; [Act 12 of 2020 wef 01/10/2025] “earthworks” includes — (a) any act of excavating earth, rock or other material (by whatever means) in connection with — (i) any works for or relating to the construction, reconstruction, extension, renovation, alteration, demolition or repair of any building, road, railway, bridge, viaduct, flyover, sewer or sewage works; (ii) any works for or relating to the laying, inspecting, repairing or renewing of any mains, pipes, cables, fittings or other apparatuses; (iii) any soil investigation works; or (iv) such other works as are usually undertaken by a person carrying on business as a contractor in the construction industry or as a professional civil or structural engineer; (b) any act of boring, dredging, jacking, levelling, piling or tunnelling on or under any premises or street by any mechanical means; and (c) the driving or sinking of any earth rod, casing or tube into the ground; “equipment” includes any appliance, apparatus or accessory used or intended to be used for telecommunications, including (to avoid doubt) any such appliance, apparatus or accessory capable of being used for the operation of any broadcasting service; “Hertzian or radio waves” means electromagnetic waves of frequencies not exceeding 1,000 terahertz propagated in space without any artificial guide; “Housing and Development Board” means the Housing and Development Board established by section 3 of the Housing and Development Act 1959; “installation or plant used for telecommunications” includes all buildings, lands, structures, machinery, equipment, cables, poles and lines used or intended for use in connection with telecommunications; “message” means any sign, signal, writing, image, sound, intelligence or information of any nature transmitted by telecommunications; “owner” — (a) in relation to any premises comprised in a strata title plan under the Land Titles (Strata) Act 1967, means — (i) in the case of a lot, the person who is registered as the subsidiary proprietor of the lot under that Act; (ii) in the case of a common property, the management corporation having control of that common property, or the person receiving any rent or charge for the maintenance and management of that common property; and (iii) in the case of a limited common property as defined in section 2(1) of the Building (Strata Management) Act 2004, the subsidiary management corporation established by the Building (Strata Management) Act 2004 having control of that limited common property, or the person receiving any rent or charge for the maintenance and management of that limited common property; [Act 12 of 2020 wef 01/10/2025] (b) in relation to a building in a housing estate of the Housing and Development Board (called a HDB housing estate), means — (i) in the case of a flat, any owner of the flat as defined in section 2(1) of the Housing and Development Act 1959; (ii) in the case of the building’s common property in a HDB housing estate that is controlled, managed and maintained by a Town Council, that Town Council; and (iii) in the case of the building’s common property in a HDB housing estate that is not controlled, managed and maintained by a Town Council, the Housing and Development Board; (c) in relation to a subdivided building other than a subdivided building mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b), means — (i) in the case of a lot, the person who is registered under the Land Titles Act 1993 as the proprietor of the fee simple, estate in perpetuity or leasehold estate of that lot; and (ii) in the case of the subdivided building’s common property, every person who is registered under the Land Titles Act 1993 as the proprietor of the fee simple, estate in perpetuity or leasehold estate of a lot in that building, or the person receiving any rent or charge for the maintenance and management of the common property; (d) in relation to any premises which are not subdivided, means any person who is registered under the Land Titles Act 1993 as the proprietor of the fee simple, estate in perpetuity or leasehold estate of those premises; and (e) in relation to any other premises or building, means the person for the time being receiving the rent of the premises or building, whether on the person’s own account or as agent, trustee or receiver, or who would receive such rent if the premises or building were let to a tenant, and includes the person whose name is entered in the Valuation List prepared under section 10 of the Property Tax Act 1960 as the owner of the premises or building, or a mortgagee in possession; “premises” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Building Control Act 1989; “public telecommunication licensee” means a person designated by the Authority under section 8; “public telecommunication licensee’s installation or plant” means any installation or plant used for telecommunications belonging to or used by a public telecommunication licensee; “radio-communication” means any telecommunication by means of Hertzian or radio waves; “radio-communication service” means any service for radio‑communications; “radio-communication system” means any system used or intended to be used for radio‑communications; “repealed Act” means the Telecommunication Authority of Singapore Act (Cap. 323, 1993 Revised Edition) repealed by the Info‑communications Development Authority of Singapore Act (Cap. 137A, 2000 Revised Edition); “securities”, in relation to a company (including a VCC), includes shares, debentures, bonds and other securities of the company, whether or not constituting a charge on the assets of the company; [S 26/2022 wef 13/01/2022] “shares” includes stock; “standard of performance” means a standard of performance issued or approved under section 30; “street” includes any way, road, lane, path, passage or open space, whether a thoroughfare or not, over which the public have a right of way and also the roadway and footway over any public bridge and includes any road, footway or passage, used or intended to be used as a means of access to 2 or more holdings, whether the public has a right of way thereover or not; “TAS” means the Telecommunication Authority of Singapore reconstituted by the repealed Act; “telecommunication cable” means any cable of a telecommunication system belonging to or under the management or control of a telecommunication system licensee; “telecommunication cable detection work” means any work of detecting or locating any underground telecommunication cable; “telecommunication cable detection worker” means any person whose trade or occupation requires or includes the personal performance by him or her of telecommunication cable detection work; “telecommunication cable detection work licence” means a licence granted under section 34; “telecommunication licensee” means a person to whom a licence has been granted under section 5 or 7; “telecommunication line” means a wire or cable used for telecommunications with any casing, coating, tube or pipe enclosing the same and any appliance and apparatus connected therewith for the purpose of fixing or insulating the same; “telecommunication service” means any service for telecommunications, including the leasing of a telecommunication cable, but excludes any broadcasting service; “telecommunication system” means any system used or intended to be used for telecommunications, including (to avoid doubt) any such system capable of being used for the operation of any broadcasting service; “telecommunication system licensee” means a person licensed under section 5 to operate a telecommunication system; “telecommunications” means a transmission, emission or reception of signs, signals, writing, images, sounds or intelligence of any nature by wire, radio, optical or other electromagnetic systems whether or not such signs, signals, writing, images, sounds or intelligence have been subjected to re‑arrangement, computation or other processes by any means in the course of their transmission, emission or reception; “Town Council” means a Town Council established by section 4 of the Town Councils Act 1988; “VCC” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the VCC Act; [S 26/2022 wef 13/01/2022] “VCC Act” means the Variable Capital Companies Act 2018; [S 26/2022 wef 13/01/2022] “vessel” includes any ship, boat, air‑cushioned vehicle or floating rig or platform used in any form of operations at sea or any other description of vessel. [10/2005; 19/2011; 22/2016; 30/2016; 4/2021]