Statute Details
- Title: Singapore Tourism (Cess Collection) (Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix 2025) Order 2025
- Act Code: STCCA1972-S600-2025
- Legislation Type: Subsidiary legislation (Order)
- Authorising Act: Singapore Tourism (Cess Collection) Act 1972
- Enacting Formula / Power: Made under section 5 of the Singapore Tourism (Cess Collection) Act 1972
- Commencement: 18 September 2025
- Tourism Event Covered: Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix 2025
- Taxable Period: 2 October 2025 to 5 October 2025 (both dates inclusive)
- Key Provisions: Definitions (s 2); tourism event (s 3); taxable period (s 4); taxable transactions (s 5); hotel operator as “tourism event establishment” (s 6); cess rates (s 7); gross receipts where consideration paid wholly in money (s 8); gross receipts in other cases (s 9)
- Schedule: Specifies premises by Parts 1, 2 and 3 (used as hotels) for different cess rates
What Is This Legislation About?
The Singapore Tourism (Cess Collection) (Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix 2025) Order 2025 (“Order”) is a targeted cess-collection instrument for a specific tourism event: the Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix 2025. In practical terms, it designates a short “taxable period” around the event and imposes a tourism cess on certain hotel accommodation transactions connected with that event.
The Order does not create a new tourism cess regime from scratch. Instead, it operates under the Singapore Tourism (Cess Collection) Act 1972 (“Act”), using the Act’s framework to identify (i) what the relevant tourism event is, (ii) when the taxable period runs, (iii) which transactions are taxable, (iv) who is responsible for making taxable transactions (the hotel operator), and (v) how cess is calculated—particularly how “gross receipts” are determined where payment is not purely in cash.
For practitioners, the key compliance question is: when a hotel operator provides accommodation during the taxable period at specified premises, and the arrangement falls within the Order’s definition of a “taxable transaction connected with the tourism event,” what cess rate applies and how should the hotel compute the gross receipts base?
What Are the Key Provisions?
1. Definitions and scope of “money’s worth” and “accommodation” (Section 2). The Order defines “accommodation” as the use (for any length of time) of a room with a bed or other sleeping facilities. It also defines “money’s worth” to include points, rewards, or similar items earned under member/loyalty programmes that may be used to redeem accommodation. This definition is crucial because the cess base can include transactions where consideration is partly or wholly in money’s worth (e.g., loyalty points), and the Order separately addresses how gross receipts are treated in those cases.
Section 2 also defines “operator” in relation to a hotel as the person responsible for day-to-day operations (either an individual sole proprietor or any corporate/unincorporate body). This aligns with the later provision that the “tourism event establishment” making taxable transactions is the hotel operator (s 6). The Order further clarifies when consideration is “paid in money”—including cash, cheques, vouchers with cash value/discount, card payments, and digital wallet transfers.
2. The tourism event and taxable period (Sections 3 and 4). Section 3 identifies the tourism event as the Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix 2025. Section 4 then fixes the taxable period as 2 October 2025 to 5 October 2025 (inclusive). This is a temporal limitation: cess applies to taxable transactions connected with the event during that window, even though arrangements may be booked or otherwise negotiated outside it (the Order’s focus is on accommodation “provided or to be provided for use at any time during the taxable period”).
3. Taxable transactions and who is liable (Section 5 and Section 6). Section 5(1) sets out the taxable transactions connected with the tourism event on which cess is payable. In summary, a “taxable transaction” includes a legally enforceable arrangement that is wholly or partly for accommodation provided (or to be provided) for use during the taxable period at premises specified in the Schedule (Part 1, 2 or 3), where one party is the operator of the hotel. The provision also includes the termination of such an arrangement (s 5(1)(b)).
Two practical implications follow. First, the cess is triggered not only by the provision of accommodation but also by contractual termination charges and forfeitures that arise from terminating a taxable arrangement. Second, the operator’s contractual role matters: the taxable transaction is framed around arrangements where the operator is one party, which supports the later identification of the operator as the “tourism event establishment” (s 6).
Exemptions / non-taxable arrangements (Section 5(2)). Section 5(2) carves out specific arrangements that are not taxable transactions. The exemption applies where the accommodation is provided (or to be provided) to an individual in connection with an order under sections 15 or 17(3) of the Infectious Diseases Act 1976 relating to an infectious disease, and either (i) one party is the Government or a public-purpose body, or (ii) the premises are designated by a public-purpose body as accommodation for relevant ship crew members. This is a targeted public health carve-out intended to avoid imposing cess on accommodation arrangements made under infectious disease control measures in specified circumstances.
4. Cess rates by Schedule Part (Section 7). Section 7 is the economic core of the Order. It provides that the cess payable is calculated as a percentage of gross receipts derived (or treated as derived) from each taxable transaction concerning premises used as a hotel, with the rate depending on which Schedule Part the premises fall into:
- Part 1 premises: 30% of gross receipts
- Part 2 premises: 20% of gross receipts
- Part 3 premises: 15% of gross receipts
For hotel operators and counsel, the Schedule is therefore not merely descriptive—it directly determines the applicable cess rate. Practitioners should ensure that the hotel’s premises are correctly mapped to the correct Schedule Part, and that internal billing systems can apply the correct rate to the relevant room-night and charge streams.
5. Gross receipts where consideration is wholly in money (Section 8). Section 8 governs the computation of gross receipts for taxable transactions where consideration is paid wholly in money. It also contains an important “avoid doubt” rule (s 8(2)) addressing a scenario where a taxable transaction (T2) relates to another taxable transaction (T1) whose consideration may include money’s worth, but where the consideration for T2 is paid wholly in money and none of the consideration for T1 is forfeited as a result of T2. This prevents disputes about whether termination-related charges should be treated as part of a money-only computation.
Section 8(3) defines gross receipts for the accommodation arrangement (T1) as the consideration paid plus additional payments commonly known as early check-in or late check-out, and sums paid for additional sleeping facilities in the same accommodation. Section 8(4) defines gross receipts for termination-related taxable transactions (T2) as charges paid for termination and deposits forfeited because of the termination.
6. Gross receipts in other cases (Section 9). Section 9 addresses taxable transactions where consideration is not wholly in money, including cases described as complimentary or gifts, cases where consideration is paid in money’s worth (or both money and money’s worth), and cases where the taxable transaction is a consequence of another transaction not connected with the tourism event. It also addresses a specific forfeiture scenario: where the whole of the consideration mentioned in s 9(1)(a)(ii) is forfeited as a result of the taxable transaction.
Section 9(2) introduces a formula-based approach for determining the amount treated as gross receipts for a hotel (H) concerning taxable transactions to which s 9 applies. The formula is TGR ÷ N, where TGR is the total amount of gross receipts for every taxable transaction mentioned in s 8(1) in relation to H (calculated under s 8(3) and (4)), and N is the aggregate number of rooms on each day of the taxable period required to be provided under the taxable transactions in s 9(1)(a), and which were used by guests or were not used due to no-shows.
This mechanism effectively allocates a “gross receipts” value to non-cash or consequential arrangements by reference to the hotel’s cash-based gross receipts and room availability/usage during the taxable period. Section 9(3) provides a further rule where TGR is zero, but the extract provided truncates the remainder of that provision. Practitioners should obtain the full text to confirm the fallback computation method in that scenario.
How Is This Legislation Structured?
The Order is structured as a short instrument with an enacting formula followed by nine substantive provisions and a Schedule. The provisions proceed in a logical sequence: (i) citation and commencement (s 1), (ii) definitions (s 2), (iii) identification of the tourism event (s 3), (iv) fixing the taxable period (s 4), (v) identifying taxable transactions and exemptions (s 5), (vi) identifying the responsible “tourism event establishment” (s 6), (vii) setting cess rates (s 7), and (viii) specifying how to compute gross receipts in two main scenarios—consideration wholly in money (s 8) and other cases (s 9). The Schedule then classifies hotel premises into Parts 1, 2 and 3, which correspond to the cess rate tiers.
Who Does This Legislation Apply To?
The Order applies to hotel operators who make legally enforceable arrangements for accommodation connected with the Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix 2025 during the taxable period (2–5 October 2025). Liability is tied to the operator’s role as a party to the arrangement and to the accommodation being provided (or to be provided) at premises specified in the Schedule and used as a hotel.
It also applies to the treatment of termination of such arrangements, meaning deposits forfeited and termination charges can fall within the cess base. The Order’s infectious disease carve-out means that certain accommodation arrangements made under specified Infectious Diseases Act orders—particularly involving Government/public-purpose bodies or designated facilities for ship crew—are excluded from being taxable transactions.
Why Is This Legislation Important?
This Order is important because it operationalises a targeted tourism cess for a major event and directly affects hotel pricing, invoicing, and accounting. The cess rates (30%/20%/15%) are substantial, and the base is “gross receipts” rather than profit. For counsel advising hotels, the key is to ensure correct classification of premises under the Schedule and correct gross receipts computation across different payment structures (cash, card, digital wallet, loyalty points, complimentary arrangements, and termination charges).
From an enforcement and compliance perspective, the inclusion of termination arrangements means that hotels must track not only room charges but also cancellation policies, forfeited deposits, and termination-related fees. The gross receipts provisions (ss 8 and 9) also indicate that hotels cannot assume that non-cash consideration (e.g., loyalty points) is outside the cess base; instead, the Order provides a method to treat such transactions as having a gross receipts value.
Finally, the infectious disease exemption highlights that the cess regime is not absolute. Where accommodation is provided under public health orders and within specified public-purpose contexts, the transaction may be non-taxable. Practitioners should therefore document the basis for any reliance on the exemption, including the relevant Infectious Diseases Act order and the public-purpose designation facts.
Related Legislation
- Singapore Tourism (Cess Collection) Act 1972
- Hotels Act 1954 (definition of “hotel”)
- Infectious Diseases Act 1976 (sections 15 and 17(3) referenced for exemptions; definition of “infectious disease”)
- Legislation timeline / amendments (to confirm the current version as at the relevant date)
Source Documents
This article provides an overview of the Singapore Tourism (Cess Collection) (Formula 1 Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix 2025) Order 2025 for legal research and educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult the official text for authoritative provisions.