Statute Details
- Title: Judges’ Remuneration (Annual Pensionable Salary) Order
- Act Code: JRA1994-OR1
- Legislative Type: Subsidiary legislation (SL)
- Authorising Act: Judges’ Remuneration Act (Chapter 147, Section 2(1))
- Original Commencement: 1 September 1994
- Current Version: Current version as at 27 March 2026
- Most Recent Amendment (from extract): Amended by S 1058/2020 with effect from 2 January 2021
- Key Provisions: Section 1 (Citation); Section 2 (Annual pensionable salary)
What Is This Legislation About?
The Judges’ Remuneration (Annual Pensionable Salary) Order (“the Order”) is a Singapore subsidiary instrument made under the Judges’ Remuneration Act. Its practical function is straightforward: it sets the annual pensionable salary amounts for specified senior judicial offices. These figures matter because they form the salary base used for pension-related calculations under the broader remuneration and pension framework applicable to judges.
In plain terms, the Order tells the public and the relevant administrative bodies what salary amounts are treated as “pensionable” for each category of judge. This ensures consistency and transparency in how pension entitlements are determined, and it provides a legally defined reference point for the payment and administration of judges’ remuneration and related pension benefits.
Although the Order is short, it is legally significant. Pensionable salary is not merely a payroll concept; it affects long-term financial rights. For practitioners advising on judicial remuneration, pension implications, or administrative compliance, the Order is the authoritative source for the pensionable salary figures currently in force.
What Are the Key Provisions?
Section 1 (Citation) provides the formal short title of the instrument. This is standard legislative drafting: it allows the Order to be cited in legal documents, correspondence, and references without repeating the full title.
Section 2 (Annual pensionable salary) is the core provision. It states that there shall be paid to certain judicial office-holders an annual pensionable salary of specified amounts. The provision is structured as a list of categories, each with a dollar figure. As at the current version reflected in the extract, Section 2 sets the following annual pensionable salary amounts:
(a) Chief Justice: $347,400 per year.
(b) Every Justice of the Court of Appeal: $253,200 per year.
(c) Every Judge of the Appellate Division: $244,200 per year.
(d) Every Judge of the High Court: $234,600 per year.
The extract also shows that the amounts for the Appellate Division and High Court judges were amended by S 1058/2020 with effect from 2 January 2021. The bracketed amendment notes indicate that the pensionable salary figures are subject to periodic revision through subsidiary legislation. For legal practitioners, this is a reminder to always check the effective date of any amendment when advising on pensionable salary for a particular period.
Legal and administrative effect. Section 2 uses mandatory language (“There shall be paid to — … an annual pensionable salary of …”). This indicates that the amounts are not discretionary. They operate as a statutory benchmark for the pensionable salary component of judges’ remuneration. In practice, the relevant administrative authorities (and any systems calculating pension entitlements) must use these legally prescribed figures for the relevant judicial offices.
Scope within the judiciary. The Order does not cover every judicial office in Singapore. It is targeted at the Chief Justice and specified judges within the Court of Appeal, the Appellate Division, and the High Court. The categories reflect the structure of Singapore’s superior courts and the roles that are relevant for pensionable salary under the Judges’ Remuneration Act framework.
How Is This Legislation Structured?
The Order is structured with a minimal set of provisions. Based on the extract, it contains:
Section 1: Citation (how the Order is referred to).
Section 2: Annual pensionable salary (the substantive schedule of pensionable salary amounts for each judicial category).
There are no additional parts or complex internal schedules shown in the extract. The instrument is therefore best understood as a short, legally binding schedule of pensionable salary figures, rather than a broad regulatory code.
Who Does This Legislation Apply To?
The Order applies to specific judicial office-holders whose remuneration is governed by the Judges’ Remuneration Act. Specifically, it covers:
(i) the Chief Justice,
(ii) every Justice of the Court of Appeal,
(iii) every Judge of the Appellate Division, and
(iv) every Judge of the High Court.
For practitioners, the key point is that applicability is determined by office category, not by individual circumstances. If a person holds one of the listed offices, the pensionable salary amount for that office category is the legally prescribed annual figure.
Because the Order is amended from time to time (as shown by the 2021 amendment), the pensionable salary applicable to a particular period may depend on the effective date of the relevant amendment. When advising on pension-related matters, it is therefore important to confirm which version of the Order was in force at the relevant time.
Why Is This Legislation Important?
Although the Order is brief, it has outsized practical importance. Pensionable salary is a long-term financial variable. The legally fixed amounts in Section 2 influence how pension entitlements are computed under the statutory pension framework that sits alongside judges’ remuneration. For judges, their representatives, and legal advisers, the Order provides the authoritative figures that must be used for pensionable salary calculations.
From an administrative and compliance perspective, the Order reduces uncertainty. Instead of relying on informal determinations or internal policy documents, the pensionable salary amounts are set by subsidiary legislation made under an enabling Act. This supports transparency and legal certainty, and it helps ensure that pension administration is consistent with the law.
Finally, the Order illustrates how Singapore manages judicial remuneration and pension-related matters through a structured legislative approach: an enabling Act authorises the making of an Order, and the Order then specifies the pensionable salary amounts. For practitioners, this means that changes to pensionable salary are likely to appear as amendments to this Order (or related instruments), and the effective dates will be critical for any time-sensitive advice.
Related Legislation
- Judges’ Remuneration Act (Chapter 147, Section 2(1))
- Judges’ Remuneration (Annual Pensionable Salary) Order amendments (e.g., S 1058/2020 effective 2 January 2021)
- Timeline / Legislation timeline (for version control and effective-date verification)
Source Documents
This article provides an overview of the Judges’ Remuneration (Annual Pensionable Salary) Order for legal research and educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult the official text for authoritative provisions.