Information on Civil Penalties

Revised Civil Penalty Rates For Unauthorised Works / Use For Non-Conservation Developments

The civil penalty levied will be dependent on the amount of unauthorised retention works based on the 3 bands below (see Table 1). The guiding principle is that the greater the extent of unauthorized works to be retained, the higher the civil penalty levied. It will apply to all development application types.

Unauthorised retention works is measured and defined as the total floor area occupied by the unauthorized retention works. Structures such as car porches and pavilions which are currently exempted from GFA will be counted as part of the unauthorised floor area to be retained for the purposes of computing the civil penalty.

Civil penalty for change of use applications will be classified under Band I. Similarly, for retention cases which can be granted on temporary permission, civil penalty will be levied based on Band I regardless of the extent of unauthorized retention works due to the temporary duration.

For retention cases where URA is of the view that applicants were trying to deceive the authorities (e.g. by concealing works during inspections or submission of false documents), a higher civil penalty of up to 25 times the processing fees or $150,000 (whichever is lower) will be imposed regardless of the extent of retention works. The circumstances and severity of the case will be taken into account when deciding on the actual amount of civil penalty to be imposed.