Statute Details
- Title: Appraisers Act 1906
- Full Title: An Act to provide for the licensing of appraisers
- Act Code: AA1906
- Type: Act
- Current Version: 2020 Revised Edition (incorporating amendments up to 1 December 2021), in operation from 31 December 2021
- Last Amended (noted in extract): Act 4 of 2021 (with subsequent 2020 RevEd status)
- Key Provisions (from extract):
- Section 6: Empowers the Comptroller of Property Tax to grant licences; sets notification, fee payment, and fee-prescription mechanism
- Section 7: Licence form/content requirements; annual expiry and renewal; offence for unlicensed practice
- Section 10: Refusal and cancellation powers (including after conviction and failure to account/pay over)
- Section 11: Court judgments establishing certain misconduct grounds for cancellation
- Section 13: Minister’s regulation-making power
What Is This Legislation About?
The Appraisers Act 1906 is a licensing statute aimed at regulating the business of “appraisers” in Singapore. In plain terms, it requires persons who carry out property valuation or appraisal work for reward to be licensed, and it gives the relevant authority power to grant, refuse, renew, and cancel licences. The Act also creates offences for operating without a licence and provides mechanisms to remove appraisers who have been found, by court processes, to have engaged in serious misconduct.
The Act’s regulatory focus is not on setting valuation standards or prescribing methodologies. Instead, it concentrates on licensing and integrity. It treats licensing as a gatekeeping tool: only those who meet the licensing requirements and who do not fall into disqualifying conduct should be permitted to continue appraising work for fees.
Although the Act is over a century old, it has been revised and amended, including through the 2020 Revised Edition and later amendments. The current structure remains relatively compact, with core provisions on (i) who is an appraiser, (ii) the requirement to hold a licence, (iii) the licensing process and fees, (iv) renewal and expiry, and (v) enforcement through refusal/cancellation and criminal offences.
What Are the Key Provisions?
1. Who counts as an “appraiser” (Section 2). The Act defines an appraiser broadly. Any person who values or appraises estates or immovable property—such as lands, tenements, hereditaments, and interests in possession, reversion, remainder, or contingency—in return for hire, gain, fee, reward, or valuable consideration is deemed to be carrying on the business of an appraiser. This definition is important for practitioners because it captures not only formal valuation reports but also any appraisal activity performed for consideration in relation to relevant property interests.
2. Licensing requirement (Section 4) and licence form (Section 4 and Section 7). Section 4 provides the central rule: every appraiser must take out a licence in Form A in the Schedule. Section 7 then specifies what every licence must state. In particular, the licence must set out: (a) the true name and place of abode of the licensee; (b) the true date or time of granting the licence; and (c) the principal place of business where the licensed trade or business is carried on. For lawyers, these content requirements matter when assessing whether a person’s purported licence is validly issued and properly documented.
3. Licensing power, notification, and fees (Section 6). The Comptroller of Property Tax is empowered to grant licences. The Act also requires that licences be granted under the hand of the Comptroller and that the issue of licences be notified as soon as possible in the Gazette. Fees are a further condition: the person taking out or renewing a licence must pay the prescribed fee to the Comptroller, and crucially, no licence may be granted or renewed until the fee has first been paid. The Minister may prescribe fees by order in the Gazette and may set different fees for different classes of licences. This structure creates a clear procedural dependency: payment is a prerequisite to issuance/renewal, and the fee regime is administered through Gazette orders.
4. Licence expiry, renewal, and the offence for unlicensed practice (Section 7). Licences expire on 31 December and must be renewed annually at least 10 days before expiry. Section 7 also addresses unlicensed conduct. It provides that a person who continues to carry on the licensed trade or business after expiry without renewing, and a person who carries on a trade or business required by the Act to be licensed without taking out a licence, commits an offence. The penalty stated in the extract is a fine not exceeding $2,000 on conviction. Practically, this means that even if a person previously held a licence, failure to renew in time can trigger criminal liability if the person continues to operate.
5. Refusal and cancellation (Section 10). The Comptroller may refuse an application for a licence or to renew, and may cancel a licence of a person who has been convicted of an offence under the Act. The Comptroller may also cancel where the licensee has failed to account for or pay over any money or property that has come into the licensee’s possession or control as a licensed person. This is a significant integrity provision: it links licensing status to fiduciary-like responsibilities in handling money or property connected to the licensed activity.
6. “Evidence of misconduct” and court judgments as cancellation grounds (Section 11). Section 11 provides that certain court judgments—civil or criminal—can ground cancellation. The judgment must have the effect of finding that the licensed person: (a) is liable or responsible for money or property in their possession or control as a licensed person under circumstances amounting to a breach of trust or duty; or (b) has paid or agreed to pay to an employer any part of charges or expenses by way of return commission where the employer is accountable to another person for proceeds of sale. These are serious allegations with clear ethical dimensions: breach of trust/duty and improper commission arrangements. For practitioners, the key point is evidential: the Act treats the existence and effect of a court judgment as a statutory basis for cancellation, reducing the need for the Comptroller to re-litigate the underlying misconduct.
7. Trial forum and regulatory powers (Sections 12 and 13). Offences punishable under the Act may be tried by a District Court. The Minister has power to make regulations necessary or convenient to carrying out the Act. While the extract does not list specific regulations, this provision signals that operational details—such as procedural requirements, forms, or administrative matters—may be implemented via subsidiary legislation.
How Is This Legislation Structured?
The Appraisers Act 1906 is structured as a short licensing framework with a defined set of sections:
Section 1 sets the short title. Section 2 defines “appraiser” and establishes the scope of who is captured by the Act. Sections 3 and 5 are repealed in the current version. Section 4 imposes the licensing requirement. Section 6 sets out the Comptroller’s licensing powers, including Gazette notification and fee payment prerequisites. Section 7 governs licence content, expiry, renewal timing, and offences for operating without a licence or after expiry. Sections 8 and 9 are repealed. Section 10 provides refusal and cancellation powers. Section 11 creates statutory grounds for cancellation based on court judgments evidencing misconduct. Section 12 addresses the trial forum for offences. Section 13 empowers the Minister to make regulations. The Schedule contains the licence form (Form A) and other ancillary material.
Who Does This Legislation Apply To?
The Act applies to persons who carry on the business of appraising relevant property interests in return for consideration. The definition in Section 2 is broad and functional: if a person values or appraises estates or immovable property (including specified interests) for fees or reward, they are deemed to be an appraiser within the meaning of the Act. This can include individuals and potentially businesses acting through persons who perform the appraisal work for reward.
It also applies to licensed persons in the sense that their licence status is subject to renewal requirements and integrity-based cancellation grounds. The enforcement provisions—offences for unlicensed practice and cancellation/refusal powers—apply to those who operate without a licence, fail to renew, or are convicted of offences under the Act or suffer court findings that meet the misconduct criteria in Section 11.
Why Is This Legislation Important?
For legal practitioners, the Appraisers Act 1906 is important because it creates a statutory compliance obligation for a specific professional activity—property appraisal for reward. In disputes involving valuations, property transactions, or allegations of improper conduct, the existence (or absence) of a valid licence can become a relevant fact. The Act’s licensing requirement and renewal rules mean that an appraiser’s operational status may be challenged, particularly where work was carried out after expiry or without a licence.
From an enforcement perspective, the Act provides the Comptroller of Property Tax with meaningful administrative powers to protect the integrity of the licensing regime. Cancellation can follow conviction for offences under the Act, and it can also follow failure to account or pay over money or property held in the capacity of a licensed person. Additionally, Section 11’s “evidence of misconduct” mechanism allows court judgments to serve as statutory grounds for cancellation, which can streamline regulatory action after litigation outcomes.
Practically, the Act also affects how counsel should advise clients who engage appraisers. Where a client relies on appraisal reports or appraisal services, counsel may need to consider whether the appraiser held a licence at the relevant time, whether it was renewed before expiry, and whether any subsequent cancellation or refusal issues have arisen. While the Act does not expressly state evidential consequences for unlicensed appraisal work, the licensing framework can still be relevant to credibility, compliance, and potential exposure to regulatory or criminal issues.
Related Legislation
- Appraisers Act 1906 (including the 2020 Revised Edition and amendments up to 1 December 2021)
Source Documents
This article provides an overview of the Appraisers Act 1906 for legal research and educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult the official text for authoritative provisions.