FAQ on Registration of Criminals (Amendment) Bill

8/12/2019 FAQ on Registration of Criminals (Amendment) Bill

1/6

1.What is the purpose of amending the Registration of Criminals Act?

The Registration of Criminals Act is amended to allow the record of a conviction kept in the Register ofCriminals for a less serious crime to be considered as spent if the person stays clean after a specified

period. The purpose is to help such deserving ex-offenders put their past behind them and re-integrate

into the society.

2.When will the Registration of Criminals (Amendment) Act 2005 come into operation?

The Registration of Criminals (Amendment) Act 2005 came into operation on 17 Oct 2005.

3. What is the definition of criminal record?

Under the RCA, Police keeps records in the Register of Criminals of persons convicted of any crime

specified in the First and Second Schedules of the Act. Particulars such as the photograph, finger

impressions, and conviction records are recorded. It is a record for life. The Register of Criminals is very

useful in Police investigations, especially in the identification of suspects. The courts also make use of

these criminal records when sentencing repeat offenders.

4.What are the criteria for a persons criminal record to be rendered spent?

Under the Registration of Criminals Act, there are stipulated criteria to ensure that the need to provide a

second chance to ex-offenders is balanced with the security of the rest of society. These criteria are listed

in the new section 7B and 7C of the Registration of Criminals Act.

First, the person must satisfy a crime-free period. This is a period of 5 years starting from either the date of

sentence (for cases where no term of imprisonment is imposed) or the date of release from legal custody.

During the 5 years, the person must not be convicted of another crime, or be unlawfully at large for a crime.

He must not be detained or placed under police supervision under the Criminal Law (Temporary

Provisions) Act, and he must not be subject to supervision or admitted to a drug rehabilitation centre or

other centre for drug or inhalant abuse.

Secondly, the person must not be disqualified from having his record spent on any of the grounds insection 7C , which are that

ahis conviction was for any offence specified in the Third Schedule;

b the sentence imposed on him for that conviction included-

i a term of imprisonment exceeding 3 months; or

ii a fine exceeding $2000;

c that conviction was for a crime committed within 5 years after he had been released from-

i an approved institution under the Misuse of Drugs Act; or

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONSRegistration of Criminals (Amendment) Bill


2/6

ii an approved centre under the Intoxicating Substances Act;

d he has been detained or subject to police supervision under the Criminal Law (Temporary

Provisions) Act anytime before that conviction;

e from the time being, he has a warrant of arrest for any offence issued against him which is

outstanding ;

f he has more than one criminal conviction in the register kept by the Police, whether or not

those convictions arise from the same particular occasions; or

g he has had any previous record in the criminal register being rendered spent

5.A person was sentenced to a fine by the court. However, he was imprisoned in default of

the payment for the fine. Is this counted as term of imprisonment?

Imprisonment in default is not regarded as a term of imprisonment for the purposes of determining the

starting date of the crime-free period. In other words, if a person is imprisoned because he is unable to paya fine, his crime-free period still commences from the date of sentence.

6.What are the registrable offences which if a person is charged with and convicted by the

court, will give rise to criminal records kept in the register by the Police?

Registrable offences are offences listed in the First and Second Schedules of the Registration of Criminals

Act, such as murder, kidnapping, rape, theft, cheating, trespass, mischief, forgery, counterfeiting, and

offences under Acts such as the Misuse of Drugs Act, Prevention of Corruption Act, Women s Charter and

so on.

First Schedule

Second Schedule

7. What are the offences specified in the Third Schedule?

The Third Schedule lists out the offences for which a criminal record cannot be spent, such as drug

trafficking, rioting, culpable homicide, causing grievous hurt, sexual offences, gang-robbery, and so on.

Third Schedule

8.Is the record of an offence not found in the First and Second Schedules of the

Registration of Criminals Act considered as a criminal record?

A record of an offence not included in the Schedules of the RCA (i.e. a non-registrable offence) will not be

considered a criminal record. The term criminal record is defined as records of convictions for offences

registered under the Registration of Criminals Act.
http://www.spf.gov.sg/faq/doc/first_schedule.pdfhttp://www.spf.gov.sg/faq/doc/first_schedule.pdfhttp://www.spf.gov.sg/faq/doc/second_schedule.pdfhttp://www.spf.gov.sg/faq/doc/second_schedule.pdfhttp://www.spf.gov.sg/faq/doc/third_schedule.pdfhttp://www.spf.gov.sg/faq/doc/third_schedule.pdfhttp://www.spf.gov.sg/faq/doc/third_schedule.pdfhttp://www.spf.gov.sg/faq/doc/second_schedule.pdfhttp://www.spf.gov.sg/faq/doc/first_schedule.pdf


3/6

9. What is the effect of a spent record?

A person with a spent record is deemed to have no such record and may lawfully not disclose the spent

record for all purposes, except in the case of:

i any investigation by a person authorised under the law;ii any prosecution against the person for any offence;

iii any proceedings before a court; and

ivany appointment to an office or employment in a profession for which the person may be

disqualified under written law by reason of that conviction.

10.

If a persons criminal record is spent, does it mean that he can answer no whenasked if he has a criminal record in an employment application?

A person who has a criminal record that is rendered spent can say no when asked if he has a criminal

record in an employment application.

11.If a persons criminal record is spent, does it mean that he can answer no when

asked if he has ever been convicted in a court of law in an employment application?

A persons criminal record that is rendered spent does not change the fact that he had been convicted

before. Hence the person has to answer yes when asked if he has ever been convicted in a court of law.

12.Does a person need to apply to the Police for his record to be rendered spent? How

would a person know whether his criminal record has been rendered spent?

There is no need for a person to apply to the Police for his record to be rendered spent. Those who qualify

will automatically have their criminal record rendered spent.

Persons who wish to know whether their criminal records have been marked as spent can make an

appointment via the hotline 6557 5700 to meet the counter staff of the Police Records Office located at

Police Cantonment Complex, in order for the Police to ascertain their identities and safeguard the

confidential information.

On 28 Apr 2006, an electronic portal will be launched by the Police to enable ex-offenders who qualified

for their records to be marked as spent the convenience of round the clock accessibility to confirm their

spent record status on-line. They can access the electronic portal through the internet websites:

http://www.spf.gov.sg or http://www.ecitizen.gov.sg, using their NRIC numbers as the login ID and

SingPass(Singapore Personal Access) as the authentication password. More information on SingPass

can be found in the SingPass website athttp://www.ecitizen.gov.sg/singpass/index.htm.

Persons who have no internet access or wish to clarify the contents of the information on the electronic

portal may call the inquiry hotline at 6557 5700 during office hours.
http://www.spf.gov.sg/http://www.ecitizen.gov.sg/http://www.ecitizen.gov.sg/singpass/index.htmhttp://www.ecitizen.gov.sg/singpass/index.htmhttp://www.ecitizen.gov.sg/singpass/index.htmhttp://www.ecitizen.gov.sg/http://www.spf.gov.sg/


4/6

13.

How would a foreigner know whether his criminal record has been rendered spent?

Foreigners who qualify will automatically have their criminal record rendered spent. Those who wish to

know whether their records have been spent can write in to the Police at the following address fornecessary procedures.

Address:

Head Criminal Records

Criminal Investigation Department

391 New Bridge Road, Block C

Police Cantonment Complex

Singapore 088762.

14.What will happen to a persons registrable particulars such as fingerprints,

photographs and body samples records if his criminal record is rendered spent?

A criminal record that has been rendered spent is not erased from the Register of Criminals. Thus the

registrable particulars collected as part of that criminal record will still remain in the Register of Criminals

kept by the Police but the record will be marked as spent.

15.Will pending cases against me during or after the 5-year crime-free period affect my

chances of my criminal record of a previous conviction being rendered spent?

A criminal record becomes spent when a person satisfies a crime-free period of 5 years. If, during the 5-

year period, the person is convicted in court of another registrable offence, or if he is unlawfully at large

in respect of a registrable offence, his record will not become spent. In addition, if a person has an

outstanding warrant of arrest, he will be disqualified from having his record spent as long as the warrant

remains outstanding. However, if the person has satisfied the crime-free period, his record will become

spent and any subsequent conviction or warrant of arrest will not revive the earlier record.

16. Will a person who had previously been placed on probation be eligible for his criminal

record to be rendered spent?

A probation is not considered a conviction and thus not a criminal record. A person who was placed on

probation for committing an offence does not have a criminal record relating to that offence. His

probation also does not disqualify him from having a subsequent record of a conviction for another

offence rendered spent.


5/6

17.Are there exceptions where the criminal records are relevant even when spent?

The criminal records that can become spent are those of minor offences. However, there may be some

sensitive professions or appointments from which a person may be disqualified by reason of his pastconvictions. Certain laws, such as the Medical Registration Act and others, already stipulate that a

person convicted of certain offences, such as those involving dishonesty, be disqualified from either

joining the profession or being appointed to certain posts within the profession.

This amendment to the Registration of Criminals Act will not displace any of the existing requirements in

the law for the various professions. In other words, the criteria for joining or being appointed to these

professions or positions is determined by the specific laws relating to those professions or appointments.

18.Can a persons criminal record be rendered spent if he has just missed the criteria

by a few days or by a few hundred dollars? Is there an appeal channel?

A person who is disqualified by the conditions stated in section 7C of the Registration of Criminals Act

can apply to the Commissioner of Police under section 7D of the RCA for their criminal records to be

rendered spent.

19.

How would a persons spent criminal records affect his ability to engage in

activities overseas, for example, employment, immigration, studies, adoption? Is it

legal for the person to declare that he has no criminal record to the foreigngovernment authorities, that is, will he be liable for committing an offence?

The Registration of Criminals Act is a domestic law which applies within Singapore. If a person is

employed by an employer in Singapore under Singapore law but posted overseas, the RCA applies, and

he may lawfully not disclose a spent record when asked about his criminal record. However, if the

matter is not governed by Singapore law, then the answer will depend on the law in the relevant foreign

country.

20. What is the Home Team doing to educate the public and employers on giving ex-offenders a second chance?

The Home Team will engage employers to encourage them to ask about criminal records instead of

previous convictions in their employment questionnaires, if they require information about the criminal

history of potential employees.

21.Will the public be in danger (compromise on public safety) because ex-offenders

are getting their records spent, for this may mean that there is no prior knowledge

of their criminal past and hence l ittle room for taking precautions against them re-

offending in future?


6/6

While the government is committed to giving ex-offenders a second chance, public safety remains the

key concern. This is why only records of less serious crimes are allowed to be rendered spent. These

are very minor crimes such as shop theft where public safety would not be compromised even with the

implementation of the policy to render these records spent. Criminal records of serious crimes such as

culpable homicide and drug trafficking will not qualify to be rendered spent.

22. Why cant the government take a more liberal approach by expunging the criminal

record of minor offences?

There is a need to strike a balance between the interest of ex-offenders and the interest of employers

and the concerns of society. As this is a new initiative, the government has decided to adopt a more

cautious approach by providing for records to be spent instead of expunged. The scheme will be

regularly reviewed and the expunging of criminal records can be considered in the future.

Documents

FAQ on Registration of Criminals (Amendment) Bill