Statute Details
- Title: Newspaper and Printing Presses (Exemption) Order 2016
- Act Code: NPPA1974-S69-2016
- Legislation Type: Subsidiary Legislation (SL)
- Authorising Act: Newspaper and Printing Presses Act (Chapter 206)
- Enacting Authority: Minister for Communications and Information
- Legal Basis: Powers conferred by section 44(1)(b) of the Newspaper and Printing Presses Act
- Citation: No. S 69
- Deemed Commencement: Deemed to have come into operation on 8 June 2015
- Date Made: 15 February 2016
- Status: Current version as at 27 Mar 2026
- Key Provisions: Section 1 (Citation and commencement); Section 2 (Definitions); Section 3 (Exemption); Section 4 (Revocation)
What Is This Legislation About?
The Newspaper and Printing Presses (Exemption) Order 2016 is a targeted regulatory instrument made under Singapore’s Newspaper and Printing Presses Act (Chapter 206). In plain terms, it creates a narrow exemption from a specific statutory requirement in the Act—namely, the operation of section 21 of the Act—in relation to a particular business activity carried out by SATS Ltd.
The exemption is designed around a practical commercial workflow: SATS Ltd. prints certain newspapers within premises in Singapore, but only for a specific purpose—to supply printed copies to passengers of private aircraft leaving Singapore. The Order recognises that this printing activity is functionally linked to aircraft operations and passenger services, rather than a general newspaper publishing or mass distribution model.
Importantly, the exemption is not open-ended. It is subject to strict quantitative and distribution limits, reporting obligations to the Registrar, and a “no intentional or material deviation” condition. The Order also clarifies what counts as a newspaper “published outside Singapore” for the purpose of the exemption.
What Are the Key Provisions?
1. Citation and commencement (Section 1)
Section 1 provides the formal name and citation of the Order and states that it is deemed to have come into operation on 8 June 2015. This “deemed commencement” language is legally significant: it means the exemption’s effect applies from that earlier date, even though the Order was made later (15 February 2016). For compliance and potential disputes, practitioners should treat the exemption as having been available (subject to conditions) from 8 June 2015.
2. Definitions (Section 2)
Section 2 defines two terms used in the exemption framework:
- “offshore newspaper” is given the same meaning as in section 23(7) of the Act.
- “private aircraft” means an aircraft hired as a whole for private use.
These definitions matter because the exemption is expressly limited to newspapers “not being an offshore newspaper”. If a newspaper falls within the Act’s definition of an offshore newspaper, the exemption in this Order would not apply (and other regulatory requirements may be triggered).
3. The exemption from section 21 (Section 3)
Section 3 is the core operative provision. It states that section 21 of the Act does not apply to SATS Ltd. in respect of specified printing activities in Singapore. The exemption is structured as follows:
(a) Scope of the printing activity
Under Section 3(1), the exemption covers printing within any premises in Singapore owned or occupied by SATS Ltd. of any newspaper (excluding offshore newspapers) that is:
- published outside Singapore; and
- transmitted electronically to SATS Ltd. by PressReader for the purpose of printing and distribution to passengers of a private aircraft leaving Singapore.
This is a tightly drawn pathway: the newspaper must be (i) non-offshore, (ii) published outside Singapore, and (iii) delivered to SATS Ltd. electronically by PressReader, after which SATS Ltd. prints it for passenger distribution on departing private aircraft.
(b) Quantitative and distribution limits (Section 3(2)(a) and (b))
The exemption is conditional. The most important compliance constraints are:
- Copy cap: SATS Ltd. must not print in Singapore more than 299 copies of each issue of the newspaper. This is an issue-by-issue limit, not a general monthly or quarterly cap.
- Distribution restriction: the printed copies of each issue must be distributed only within and to the passengers of a private aircraft leaving Singapore.
Practically, these conditions require operational controls: SATS Ltd. must ensure that printing volumes are tracked per issue and that any distribution is confined to the relevant aircraft and passenger group. Any spillover—such as distributing copies to persons on the ground, to other aircraft, or for general retail—would risk breaching the exemption.
(c) Reporting obligation to the Registrar (Section 3(2)(c))
SATS Ltd. must submit to the Registrar, within 14 days after the end of each quarter of each year, the newspaper’s title and the number of copies of each issue printed in that quarter. This is a recurring compliance deliverable.
For practitioners advising SATS Ltd. or similarly situated entities, the reporting requirement raises several practical issues: what records must be maintained to support the counts, how “issue” is identified (especially where newspapers may have multiple editions), and how to ensure timely submission within the 14-day window after each quarter.
(d) “No intentional or material deviation” condition (Section 3(2)(d))
Even if a deviation occurs, the exemption is preserved only if the deviation is not intentional or material. This condition introduces a qualitative standard. It suggests that minor, inadvertent discrepancies may be defensible, but intentional departures or deviations that could affect regulatory objectives would likely jeopardise the exemption.
(e) Clarification of “published outside Singapore” (Section 3(3))
Section 3(3) provides a functional test: a newspaper is “published outside Singapore” if its contents and editorial policy are determined outside Singapore. This is crucial because “publication” can be ambiguous in practice—e.g., where printing occurs in Singapore but editorial control is elsewhere. The Order resolves this by focusing on editorial determination rather than physical printing location.
4. Revocation (Section 4)
Section 4 revokes the earlier Newspaper and Printing Presses (Exemption) Order 2009 (G.N. No. S 598/2009). Revocation indicates that the 2016 Order replaces the 2009 exemption regime for the relevant subject matter. Practitioners should therefore treat the 2016 Order as the operative exemption instrument (subject to its own conditions and commencement terms), rather than relying on the 2009 Order.
How Is This Legislation Structured?
The Order is concise and follows a standard subsidiary legislation structure:
- Section 1: Citation and commencement (including deemed commencement).
- Section 2: Definitions (importing meaning from the parent Act and defining “private aircraft”).
- Section 3: Exemption (the operative provisions, including scope, conditions, reporting, and interpretive clarification).
- Section 4: Revocation of the earlier 2009 exemption order.
Notably, the Order does not contain “Parts” or extensive sub-structures; it is essentially a single exemption package with conditions and a replacement clause.
Who Does This Legislation Apply To?
Although the Order is made under the Newspaper and Printing Presses Act, its exemption is person-specific. It applies to SATS Ltd. only, and only for the particular printing activity described in Section 3(1). Other entities that print newspapers in Singapore would not automatically benefit from this exemption.
Additionally, the exemption is limited by subject-matter and operational context: it applies only to newspapers (excluding offshore newspapers) that are published outside Singapore, transmitted electronically to SATS Ltd. by PressReader, and printed for distribution to passengers of a private aircraft leaving Singapore. If any element is missing—e.g., the newspaper is an offshore newspaper, the distribution is not limited to departing private aircraft passengers, or the printing exceeds 299 copies per issue—the exemption would not apply.
Why Is This Legislation Important?
This Order is important because it illustrates how Singapore regulates newspaper printing and distribution through a licensing or regulatory framework in the parent Act, while still allowing narrowly tailored exemptions for specific commercial realities. For practitioners, the key takeaway is that exemptions are often conditional and operationally enforceable, not merely formal.
From a compliance perspective, the Order’s practical impact is concentrated in three areas: (1) volume control (the 299-copy cap per issue), (2) distribution boundaries (only within and to passengers of departing private aircraft), and (3) quarterly reporting to the Registrar within a strict timeline. These requirements mean that internal record-keeping, audit trails, and operational procedures must be designed to demonstrate ongoing compliance.
From a legal risk perspective, the “no intentional or material deviation” clause is a reminder that even where a breach is not deliberate, the materiality of the deviation could still undermine reliance on the exemption. Practitioners should therefore advise clients to treat the conditions as enforceable compliance benchmarks and to implement controls that prevent both intentional and significant inadvertent departures.
Related Legislation
- Newspaper and Printing Presses Act (Chapter 206) (including section 21 and the definition framework for “offshore newspaper” in section 23(7))
- Newspaper and Printing Presses (Exemption) Order 2009 (G.N. No. S 598/2009) — revoked by Section 4 of this Order
Source Documents
This article provides an overview of the Newspaper and Printing Presses (Exemption) Order 2016 for legal research and educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult the official text for authoritative provisions.