To facilitate a more efficient and user-friendly Change of Use process for business operators, URA launched a revised Change of Use lodgment scheme for shophouse units in June 2020. Previously, lodgment applications that can be granted instant approval for selected uses within the 1st storey could only be made for a list of pre-identified shophouses. With the revised scheme, there is a new set of criteria to determine if a shophouse is eligible for lodgment, and an expanded list of lodgable uses.

The revised lodgment criteria are as follows:

• Master Plan Zoning: Commercial, Commercial & Residential, or White
• Storey: 1st storey of shophouses
• Approved Use: Commercial use on permanent approval
• Proposed Use: Gym, pet shop, laundromat (e.g. coin-operated laundry), commercial school, community use, or office (note: office use is not eligible at locations that require activity-generating uses at the 1st storey)

Lodgment applications under this revised scheme cannot be made for monuments or conserved shophouses within Historic Conservation Areas (HCA)¹, or for sites with special planning controls such as retail caps. Planning applications should be made for such cases for further evaluation.

More details on the revised lodgment scheme can be found in this circular dated 1 June 2020.

Navigating the Change of Use eAdvisor 3.0

The Change of Use eAdvisor has been refreshed to allow users to navigate and find information more easily. To find out if a Change of Use proposal for a particular shophouse is eligible for lodgment, visit the ‘Allowable Use for Shophouses’ layer under the ‘Property Use and Approval’ tab on URA SPACE. Please refer to the steps in the following screenshots (click to enlarge):

¹ The Historic Conservation Areas are Chinatown (Kreta Ayer, Telok Ayer, Bukit Pasoh, Tanjong Pagar), Little India, Kampong Glam, Boat Quay, Blair Plain, Emerald Hill and Cairnhill. Their respective boundaries can be found on the URA website under Historic Districts and Residential Historic Districts.