Free Trade Zones Act 1966

• Jurisdiction: Singapore
• Coming into Force: 31 May 2014
• Act Number: (Original Enactment: Act 30 of 1966)
• Enactment Date: 01 September 1969
• Record Number: Cap. 114
• Published date: 31 May 2014

Free Trade Zones Act

(CHAPTER 114)

(Original Enactment: Act 30 of 1966)

REVISED EDITION 2014

(31st May 2014)

An Act to provide for the establishment of free trade zones in Singapore and for matters incidental thereto.

[1st September 1969]

PART I PRELIMINARY Short title 1. This Act may be cited as the Free Trade Zones Act. Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires — “authority” means any statutory body or department of the Government or company which has been appointed under section 3(2) to administer, maintain and operate any free trade zone which has been so declared under section 3(1); “Committee” means the Free Trade Zone Advisory Committee appointed under section 4; “Director-General” means the Director-General of Customs appointed under section 4(1) of the Customs Act (Cap. 70); “customs duty” means any customs duty or excise tax imposed under the Customs Act; “customs territory” means Singapore and the territorial waters of Singapore but excluding any free trade zone; “dutiable goods” means any goods subject to the payment of customs duty on entry into customs territory or manufactured in Singapore including any free trade zone and on which customs duty has not been paid and includes goods manufactured in a free trade zone from materials of a class dutiable on entry into customs territory for consumption within the customs territory; “free trade zone” means any area declared to be a free trade zone under section 3(1); “goods” includes animals, birds, fish, plants and all kinds of movable property; “manufacture”, with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, means the process of converting materials into a new product or article, whether or not by power-operated machinery, whereby a change in tariff classification has been effected; except that the Director-General may, in his discretion, determine that the result of any manufacture is not a new product or article and a change in tariff classification has not been effected; “officer of customs”, “proper officer of customs” and “senior officer of customs” have the same meanings as in the Customs Act. [11/97; 33/2000; 4/2003] Declaration of free trade zones and appointment of authority 3.—(1) The Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, declare any area in Singapore to be a free trade zone and every such notification shall define the limits of that free trade zone. (2) The Minister may appoint any statutory body or department of the Government or company as the authority to administer, maintain and operate any free trade zone which has been so declared under subsection (1). Appointment of Free Trade Zone Advisory Committee 4. The Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint a Free Trade Zone Advisory Committee to advise him on all matters connected with free trade zones.

PART II OPERATIONS PERMITTED WITHIN FREE TRADE ZONE Dealing with or disposal of goods in free trade zone 5.—(1) Goods of any description, except such as are specifically and absolutely prohibited by any written law, may be brought into a free trade zone. (2) Goods in a free trade zone may — (a) be removed from the free trade zone, destroyed, or sent into customs territory or into another free trade zone in the original package or otherwise; and (b) unless otherwise directed by the authority, be stored, sold, exhibited, broken up, repacked, assembled, distributed, sorted, graded, cleaned, mixed, or otherwise manipulated, or be manufactured in accordance with the provisions of this Act, except that when any goods of a class dutiable on entry into customs territory whether in their original condition or after manufacture or as part or ingredient of any goods manufactured in a free trade zone are sent from a free trade zone into the customs territory, the goods shall be subject to the provisions of the Customs Act (Cap. 70) and any regulations made under that Act. (3) Goods, except such as are prescribed under subsection (4), which have been brought into a free trade zone from customs territory shall be deemed to be exported for the purpose of drawback under the Customs Act. (4) Subsection (2)(b) shall not apply to such goods as may be prescribed from time to time by the Minister by notification in the Gazette, save that such prescribed goods may be stored in a free trade zone for the purpose of transhipment or survey and repacking before removal into customs territory, and that such survey and repacking shall not be carried out except with the prior permission of a senior officer of customs and shall be subject to such conditions as he may think fit to impose. Manipulation or manufacture in free trade zone 6.—(1) Any person who intends to assemble, mix or otherwise manipulate any goods or to carry out such manufacture as is permitted under section 10(1) for entry into customs territory, where either the manufactured goods or the materials used in the manufacture of the goods are dutiable, shall give the Director-General notice in writing of his intention and obtain his prior written permission to do so. (2) Permission under subsection (1) shall be granted or withheld as the Director-General in his discretion shall think fit; except that, if permission is granted, such manipulation or manufacture shall be carried out under customs supervision. (3) Subject to subsection (4), any manipulation or manufacture permitted under this section shall be subject to the regulations made under this Act and to such conditions as the Director-General may think fit to impose. (4) The Director-General may, in his discretion, give an allowance for recoverable and irrecoverable waste, but if recoverable waste is sent into customs territory, it shall be dutiable in its condition and quantity and at its weight at the time of entry. Calculation of duty 7.—(1) The rate of customs duty and the valuation, if any, applicable to any goods subject to customs duty shall be — (a) in the case of goods lawfully brought into or manufactured in a free trade zone — (i) if there has been no manipulation or manufacture effecting a change in tariff classification, the rate and valuation in force on the day on which the goods are sent into customs territory; (ii) if the goods are used in the manufacture of any product which is not of a class dutiable on entry into customs territory, the rate and valuation in force on the day on which the goods are removed for manufacture; and (iii) if the goods are manufactured from materials which are not subject to customs duty, the rate and valuation in force on the day on which the entry of the manufactured goods into customs territory is authorised by the proper officer of customs; and (b) in the case of uncustomed goods, the rate and valuation in force on the day on which the goods became uncustomed goods, if known, or the rate and valuation in force on the day of seizure, whichever is the higher. (2) The rate of exchange to be used for determining the equivalent in Singapore currency of any foreign currency shall be the current selling rate in Singapore as last notified before the time the goods are removed for the purpose of manufacture or entry into customs territory. (3) The valuation applicable to any goods subject to customs duty shall be ascertained in accordance with the Customs Act (Cap. 70). [11/97] Retail trade 8. No retail trade shall be conducted within a free trade zone unless authorised in writing by the authority and subject to such conditions as the authority may impose. Written permission required for use or consumption of dutiable goods 9.—(1) Subject to sections 5, 6, 8 and 10, no dutiable goods shall, without the written permission of a senior officer of customs not below the rank of Assistant Director-General of Customs, be used or consumed in a free trade zone. [4/2003] (2) Subject to subsection (3), any person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be punished — (a) on the first conviction with a fine of not less than 10 times the amount of the customs duty or tax or $5,000 whichever is the lesser amount, and of not more than 20 times the amount of the customs duty or tax or $5,000 whichever is the greater amount; and (b) on a second or subsequent conviction with such fine as prescribed in paragraph (a) and with imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years. (3) When the amount of customs duty or tax referred to in subsection (2)(a) cannot be ascertained, the penalty may amount to a fine not exceeding $5,000. Manufacture 10.—(1) No manufacture shall be carried out in a free trade zone without the approval of the Minister, and such approval shall be published in the Gazette. (2) The Minister may make regulations governing manufacture within a free trade zone.

PART III RESPONSIBILITIES AND FUNCTIONS OF AUTHORITY Authority to provide facilities 11.—(1) The Minister shall require the authority to provide and maintain in the free trade zone such facilities as he may consider necessary for the proper and efficient functioning of the free trade zone. (2) The Minister shall give to the authority such directions as are necessary to ensure compliance with the provisions of this Act and for the purpose of protecting the revenue, and the authority shall comply with those directions. (3) The authority shall permit customs offices to be established in a free trade zone and shall provide adequate facilities for officers of customs whose duties require their presence within or at the perimeter of the zone. (4) The authority shall provide adequate enclosures to segregate the free trade zone from customs territory for the protection of the revenue, together with suitable provisions for the movements of persons, conveyances, vessels and goods into and from the free trade zone. Authority may permit erection of private buildings, etc. 12.—(1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), the authority may permit any person to erect such buildings and other structures within the free trade zone as may be required. (2) Such permission shall not constitute a vested right as against the authority or the Government. (3) Such ...