PART 1 | Citation and commencement |
| 1. This Order is the Guns, Explosives and Weapons Control (Transporting Lower‑risk Explosives — Class Licence) Order 2025 and comes into operation on 1 July 2025. |
2.—(1) In this Order —| “ADR” means the document called the “Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road” Volume II, (Ref: ECE/TRANS/352) applicable as from 1 January 2025, which is published by the United Nations, New York and Geneva, and issued by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, in 2025; |
“authorised by or under the Act”, for a regulated activity involving explosives, means authorised to carry on the regulated activity, without committing an offence under the Act, because of —| (a) | a provision in the Act; | | (b) | a licence or a class licence; or | | (c) | an exemption by or under section 87, 88 or 89 of the Act; |
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“batch”, in relation to an explosive of a particular type, means a quantity of the explosive that —| (a) | is uniform in composition or is manufactured under essentially the same conditions; and | | (b) | is packed in a distinct manner; |
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| “classify”, in relation to any explosive, means assigning the explosive to a class, division and compatibility group in conformity with 2.1.1.4 and 2.1.2 of the UNRTDG Volume I; |
“contracted carrier” —| (a) | means a person (called P) who is a party to a written contract with another person who is not P’s employer, under which P is engaged to convey objects or things on behalf of that other person; and | | (b) | includes an employee of a contracted carrier under paragraph (a); |
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“emergency action plan” means a plan adequate to deal with any spillage, leakage, release, accident or emergency which may arise from transporting a relevant consignment, covering at least all of the following:| (a) | the identification of likely accident scenarios and establishment of the likely impact zones; | | (b) | the notification and activation procedures; | | (c) | the response actions to control and contain the release and to mitigate the impact of the release; | | (d) | the procedures for decontamination and clean‑up of affected areas; | | (e) | the names of personnel with their assigned roles and responsibilities in dealing with the emergency; | | (f) | a list of emergency response equipment, including protective gears, firefighting equipment, oversized drums, emergency containers or tankers, absorbents, neutralising agents, monitoring equipment, clean‑up equipment, etc., made available for dealing with the emergency; |
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“explosives licence” means any of the following licences:| (a) | a licence to manufacture an explosive specified in the licence; | | (b) | a licence to dispose of an explosive specified in the licence; | | (c) | a licence to import or export an explosive specified in the licence; | | (d) | a licence to supply an explosive specified in the licence; | | (e) | a licence to store (not possess) an explosive, and at a place, specified in the licence; | | (f) | a licence to possess (not store) an explosive, and at a place, specified in the licence; | | (g) | a licence to use an explosive specified in the licence; |
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| “explosives licensee” means a holder of an explosives licence; |
“goods vehicle” means any of the following motor vehicles:| (a) | a motor vehicle that is constructed or adapted for use on any road for the carriage of goods, or a trailer so constructed or adapted; | | (b) | a goods‑cum‑passengers vehicle, |
| but excludes any construction equipment, engineering plant, trivan, recovery vehicle and any vehicle used as a mobile canteen or mobile bank; |
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| “goods‑cum‑passengers vehicle” has the meaning given by rule 2(1) of the Road Traffic (Motor Vehicles, Registration and Licensing) Rules (R 5); |
| “HAZMAT driving licence” means the Hazardous Materials Transport Driver Permit issued under the Fire Safety (Petroleum and Flammable Materials) Regulations (Rg 7); |
| “high‑risk explosive” means an explosive that is not a lower‑risk explosive; |
| “holder”, for an explosives licence, means the person to whom the explosives licence is granted; |
“impermissible transport hours” means the following hours (all times inclusive):| (a) | on a working day — between 7 a.m. and 9.30 a.m. and between 5 p.m. and 7.30 p.m.; | | (b) | on a day that is not a working day — between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. and between 12 noon and 2.30 p.m.; |
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“lower‑risk explosive” means any of the following that is not a prohibited explosive:| (a) | any marine flare, fog signal, smoke generator, distress signal or fuse, landing flare, highway fuse, or other pyrotechnic device intended for signalling, prevention of collision at sea, warning, emergency and survival, rescue or similar purposes; | | (b) | any exothermic welding ignitor; | | (c) | any blank ammunition; | | (d) | any explosive substance that is contained in a cartridge power device or aircraft ejection cartridge; | | (e) | any safety cartridge for an industrial fastening tool, such as a nail gun cartridge; | | (f) | any explosive substance contained in any of the following equipment because the explosive substance is designed to activate the equipment:| (i) | an air bag inflator or air bag module for use in a motor vehicle that is of classification code 1.4 UN number 0503; | | (ii) | a seatbelt pretensioner for use in a motor vehicle that is of classification code 1.4 UN Number 0503; | | (iii) | a fire extinguisher of classification code 2.2 UN Number 1044 containing a fire extinguisher cartridge or squib to disperse a fire suppressant; |
| | (g) | any firework (commonly called a sparkler) consisting of a wire or stick not exceeding 400 millimetres in length, which is partially coated with an explosive composition in admixture along only one end and which is designed —| (i) | to be held by hand at the other end; or | | (ii) | to be free‑standing or fixed to a base, |
| provided that if the admixture contains potassium perchlorate, the potassium perchlorate is not more than 3% of all substances making up the admixture; |
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“motor vehicle” means a vehicle that is propelled wholly or partly by a motor or by any means other than human or animal power and is intended or adapted for use on any road, but excludes any of the following:| (a) | a motor vehicle that is constructed to drive itself; | | (b) | a lorry crane; | | (c) | a forklift, scissor lift or boom lift; | | (d) | a motor tractor or track laying vehicle; | | (e) | a motorcycle (with or without a sidecar attached to it); |
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“motorcycle” means a vehicle with less than 4 wheels that —| (a) | is propelled wholly or partly by a motor or by any means other than human or animal power; | | (b) | is used or intended to be used on any road; and | | (c) | does not exceed 400 kilograms in weight when unladen; |
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“other dangerous goods”, in relation to a motor vehicle carrying a relevant consignment of lower‑risk explosives, means any of the following, whether packaged, or carried in bulk packaging or in bulk:| (a) | any substance or article set out in the Third Schedule to the Road Traffic (Expressway Traffic) Rules (R 23); | | (b) | any crude petroleum, liquefied petroleum gas and other naturally occurring hydrocarbon liquid derived from crude petroleum, coal, shale, peat or other bituminous substances; | | (c) | any substance prescribed to be a flammable material for the purposes of the Fire Safety Act 1993; | | (d) | any hazardous substance specified in the Schedule to the Environmental Protection and Management (Hazardous Substances) Regulations (Rg 4); | | (e) | any explosive precursor not mentioned in paragraph (a) or (d); | | (f) | any other explosives not part of the relevant consignment; |
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“public passenger transport vehicle” means a motor vehicle —| (a) | when used to provide regular route services under a public bus services contract entered into with the Land Transport Authority of Singapore; or | | (b) | when authorised for use as a public service vehicle by a licence issued under Part 5 of the Road Traffic Act 1961; |
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“relevant consignment of lower‑risk explosives” means one or more batches of lower‑risk explosives only —| (a) | where the packaging of each batch is labelled in conformity with 3.2 of the UNRTDG Volume I and 5.2.2 of the UNRTDG Volume II; and | | (b) | which is being transported —| (i) | at the same time; and | | (ii) | on one and the same motor vehicle, or on a motor vehicle in the same convoy of not more than 5 motor vehicles; |
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“relevant consignment of specified lower‑risk explosives” means one or more batches of specified lower‑risk explosives (and not other explosives) —| (a) | where the packaging of each batch is labelled in conformity with 3.2 of the UNRTDG Volume I and 5.2.2 of the UNRTDG Volume II; and | | (b) | which is being transported —| (i) | at the same time; and | | (ii) | on one and the same motor vehicle, or on a motor vehicle in the same convoy of not more than 5 motor vehicles; |
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“Singapore journey”, for a motor vehicle, means —| (a) | a journey that starts in Singapore and ends in Singapore; or | | (b) | any part of the journey in Singapore, being a journey that —| (i) | starts in Singapore and ends outside Singapore; or | | (ii) | starts outside Singapore and ends in Singapore, |
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| regardless of the number of places in Singapore the motor vehicle stops en‑route; |
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| “special goods vehicle” means a motor vehicle which is a goods vehicle constructed with safety features to enable the carriage of explosives; |
“specified lower‑risk explosive” means any of the following lower‑risk explosives that is not a prohibited explosive:| (a) | any safety cartridge for an industrial fastening tool, such as a nail gun cartridge; | | (b) | any explosive substance contained in any of the following equipment because the explosive substance is designed to activate the equipment:| (i) | an air bag inflator or air bag module for use in a motor vehicle that is of classification code 1.4 UN number 0503; | | (ii) | a seatbelt pretensioner for use in a motor vehicle that is of classification code 1.4 UN Number 0503; | | (iii) | a fire extinguisher of classification code 2.2 UN Number 1044 containing a fire extinguisher cartridge or squib to disperse a fire suppressant; |
| | (c) | any firework (commonly called a sparkler) consisting of a wire or stick not exceeding 400 millimetres in length, which is partially coated with an explosive composition in admixture along only one end and which is designed —| (i) | to be held by hand at the other end; or | | (ii) | to be free‑standing or fixed to a base, |
| provided that if the admixture contains potassium perchlorate, the potassium perchlorate is not more than 3% of all substances making up the admixture; |
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| “SS586” means the document called the “Singapore Standard 586 - Specification for hazard communication for hazardous chemicals and dangerous goods – Part 1: Transport and storage of dangerous goods” 2021 edition (Ref: ICS 13.300), which is published by Enterprise Singapore, and issued by the Ministry of Manpower, the Singapore Civil Defence Force and the public authority called the National Environment Agency; |
| “suitable”, in relation to a motor vehicle used to transport a relevant consignment of lower‑risk explosives, has the meaning given by sub‑paragraph (2); |
| “transport” means carriage on any motor vehicle (whether or not in the course of a business) by road and includes any operation incidental to the whole course of carriage, such as loading, unloading and storage in transit; |
| “UN Number” means a United Nations serial number that is a 4‑digit number used by the United Nations to identify an explosive; |
| “UNRTDG” means the document called the “Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods — Model Regulations” Volumes I and II, 23rd revised edition (Ref: ST/SG/AC.10/1/Rev.23), which was published by the United Nations, New York and Geneva, and issued by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, in 2023; |
| “working day” means a day other than a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday. |
(2) In this Order, a motor vehicle used to transport a relevant consignment of lower‑risk explosives (whether in a convoy or otherwise) is a suitable motor vehicle for that relevant consignment only if it is a special goods vehicle —| (a) | the construction and design of which satisfies the requirements of Chapter 9.2 of Part 9 of the ADR; | | (b) | of the type that is specified in Chapter 7.5.5.2 of Part 7 of the ADR for a mass of lower‑risk explosive equal to or higher than the mass of the lower‑risk explosive that is actually on board the vehicle; and | | (c) | that has all of the following installed in it when carrying a relevant consignment:| (i) | working equipment on board with the capability of autonomously transmitting information from which the vehicle’s location can be determined by the class licensee while the goods vehicle is on a Singapore journey; | | (ii) | orange‑coloured licence plates that are not obscured from view; | | (iii) | immobilisers. |
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| (3) In this Order, a reference to the mass of an explosive is a reference to the mass of explosive material contained in the explosive exclusive of its packaging. |
| (4) For the purposes of this Order, an individual is adversely affected by alcohol, a drug or an intoxicating substance if the individual’s judgement or capacity is impaired to the extent that the individual may expose the individual’s or another individual’s health or safety to a risk. |
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| Meaning of “defined incident” and other associated terms |
3.—(1) In this Order, “defined incident” means an occurrence associated with the carrying out of a regulated activity involving an explosive where —| (a) | an individual suffers a fatal explosives‑related injury; | | (b) | an individual suffers a serious explosives‑related injury; | | (c) | any premises or conveyance is wholly or partly destroyed; or | | (d) | any premises or conveyance sustains damage or structural failure that adversely affects the structural strength or performance of the premises or conveyance. |
(2) For the purposes of the definition of “defined incident” in sub‑paragraph (1), an individual suffers a fatal explosives‑related injury if —| (a) | he or she suffers an injury as a result of —| (i) | being in any premises or conveyance used in the carrying out of a regulated activity involving an explosive; or | | (ii) | direct contact during a regulated activity with an explosive; |
| | (b) | he or she dies as a result of the injury after sustaining the injury; and | | (c) | the injury did not result from natural causes. |
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(3) For the purposes of the definition of “defined incident” in sub‑paragraph (1), an individual suffers a serious explosives‑related injury if —| (a) | he or she suffers an injury as a result of —| (i) | being in any premises or conveyance used in the carrying out of a regulated activity involving an explosive; or | | (ii) | direct contact during a regulated activity with an explosive; |
| | (b) | the injury is —| (i) | a fracture, other than to a finger, thumb or toe; | | (ii) | any loss of a limb or part of a limb; | | (iii) | dislocation of the shoulder, hip, knee or spine; | | (iv) | loss of sight, whether temporary or permanent; | | (v) | penetrating injury to the eye; | | (vi) | loss of hearing in any one ear, whether temporary or permanent; | | (vii) | any injury leading to the individual’s unconsciousness or the individual requiring resuscitation; | | (viii) | an injury to any internal organ of the individual; or | | (ix) | likely to require hospitalisation for a period that starts no later than the 7th day after the date the individual sustained the injury and exceeds 48 hours after starting; and |
| | (c) | the injury did not result from natural causes. |
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4.—(1) This Order does not extend to an individual who is exempt by or under section 87 or 88 of the Act.| (2) The application of paragraph 5, 6, 7 or 8 to an individual is subject to section 66(1) and (2)(c) of the Act. |
(3) This Order does not apply to or in relation to —| (a) | any high‑risk explosive; | | (b) | any prohibited explosive; or | | (c) | any explosive that is not classified. |
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