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Council for Estate Agencies

Disciplinary proceedings (Serious disciplinary breaches)

Real estate salespersons and estate agents who have committed any disciplinary breaches may be subject to CEA’s disciplinary action.

Last updated 15 August 2025

Real estate salespersons (RES) and estate agents (EA) who have committed any disciplinary breaches may be subject to disciplinary action by the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) under the Letter of Censure (LOC) disciplinary framework or disciplinary proceedings before a CEA Disciplinary Committee (DC).

Note: 

Disciplinary breaches refer to breaches of the Estate Agents Act or its subsidiary legislation that are not statutory offences e.g., breaches of the Code of Ethics and Professional Client Care, Code of Practice for Estate Agents, or the Estate Agents (Prevention of Money Laundering, Proliferation Financing and Terrorism Financing) Regulations 2021.

Generally, we will refer serious disciplinary breaches to the DC while less serious disciplinary breaches may be dealt with through the LOC disciplinary framework.

This page sets out information on disciplinary cases referred to a DC.

CEA Disciplinary Committee (DC) 

A DC comprises at least three persons, who are nominated from the CEA Disciplinary Panel comprising practising solicitors, architects, engineers, or individuals from the real estate agency industry amongst others.

If a Respondent in a disciplinary case objects to the appointment of any DC member, he/ she should immediately lodge his objection with the Secretary to the Disciplinary Panel.

The DC may take the following actions, as the case may be, after a disciplinary hearing:

  • Revoke or suspend a registration or licence

  • Attach or vary conditions to a registration or licence

  • Impose a financial penalty not exceeding $100,000 (per breach) against RESs and not exceeding $200,000 (per breach) against EAs for breaches involving anti-money laundering, proliferation financing and terrorism financing, and a financial penalty not exceeding $100,000 (per case) against RESs and not exceeding $200,000 (per case) against EAs for other disciplinary breaches

  • Admonish or reprimand the RES or EA in writing

Note:

The maximum financial penalties for breaches involving anti-money laundering, proliferation financing and terrorism financing were increased to a ‘per breach’ basis following the operationalisation of the Anti-Money Laundering and Other Matters (Estate Agents and Developers) Act 2025 on 1 July 2025. The increased maximum financial penalties will apply to breaches committed on or after 1 July 2025.

Legal representation 

A Respondent to disciplinary proceedings may be represented by a solicitor. If the Respondent has instructed a solicitor to represent him/ her, the solicitor shall lodge or receive the necessary disciplinary proceedings documents on the Respondent's behalf. The proceedings are not open to the public.

General procedure for disciplinary proceedings

Step 1: Commencement of disciplinary proceedings and filing of documents 

We may commence disciplinary proceedings against a Respondent by lodging a Statement of Case and the Charge(s) with the Secretary to the Disciplinary Panel.

The Secretary will then arrange for the Respondent to be served with the Charge(s) and Statement of Case. If the Respondent is an RES, the Key Executive Officer (KEO) of his/ her EA will be notified of the proceedings.

A Respondent may, within 14 days of being served with the Charge(s) and Statement of Case, either:

  1. File an Admission to the Charge(s); or

  2. File a Defence.

The Respondent files an Admission if he/ she wishes to admit to the Charge against him/ her and plead guilty. If he/ she wishes to dispute the Charge and claim trial, a Defence may be filed.

Where the Respondent files a Defence, CEA may file a Reply within the next 14 days. If a Reply is filed, the Respondent may file a Rejoinder within 14 days of service of the Reply.

The Respondent shall state the material facts that he/ she relies upon in the Defence or Rejoinder (if any), and may also attach to the Defence or Rejoinder the documents that he/ she wishes to rely upon.


Note:

It is an offence under the Estate Agents (Disciplinary Proceedings) Regulations 2011 to disclose any information, document or evidence filed or produced in connection with disciplinary proceedings, to any other person, knowing that the information, document or evidence was filed or produced in connection with such proceedings. Such disclosure is not an offence only if it falls within the exemptions provided at Regulation 17(2) of the Estate Agents (Disciplinary Proceedings) Regulations 2011.

Step 2: Pre-Hearing Conference, trial, or Plead Guilty Hearing

The DC may issue directions in respect of a trial or hearing. This may be done by calling for a Pre-Hearing Conference (PHC).

Trial 
Where the Respondent disputes the Charge(s), a trial will be fixed for the DC to hear the evidence involved in the case (e.g., through witnesses called to the proceedings) and determine the Respondent’s liability. After the trial, if the DC determines that the Respondent is liable, the DC will convict him or her of the Charge(s) and determine the disciplinary action that should be imposed on the Respondent. The Respondent's conviction and sentencing may take place in a hearing or across different hearings.

Plead Guilty Hearing 

Where the Respondent admits to the Charge(s), there is no need for a trial to be fixed. Instead, a hearing will be fixed for the DC to convict the Respondent and determine the sentence that should be imposed on the Respondent. 

If the Respondent requires an interpreter, he/ she shall arrange for a properly qualified interpreter to be present at the hearing at his/ her own cost. The name, business address, email address, contact number, and qualification of the interpreter shall be notified in writing as soon as practicable to the Secretary to the Disciplinary Panel, and in any event no later than 14 days after the first PHC or issuance of any pre-hearing directions.

The Respondent will be notified of the plead guilty hearing or trial date(s). Following the plead guilty hearing or trial, the DC will make orders or impose the sentence as it considers appropriate. If a Respondent is dissatisfied with a DC’s decision, the Respondent may file an appeal to the Ministry of National Development’s Appeals Board, within 14 days of being notified of the DC’s decision.

Costs

If any order is made against the Respondent, the DC may also order him/ her to pay fixed costs to CEA. We will typically seek costs based on the framework1 as shown in the table below:


  
 

Base cost (Applies to all cases) 

Variable cost for pre-hearing conference and trial/ hearing (in addition to base cost)  

Pre-hearing conference (PHC) cost 

Trial/ hearing cost 

Uncontested case 

 $2,000 

$2,000 per PHC or part thereof (from the 2nd PHC onwards) 

Not applicable. 

Contested case2 

 $2,000 

$2,000 per PHC or part thereof (from the 3rd PHC onwards) 

$3,000 per day of trial/ hearing3, or part thereof

Note: 

  1. This framework applies for all cases filed on or after 21 February 2020. CEA may, in its discretion, seek less costs where appropriate.

  2. The matter will be considered a contested case where there is a trial or a Newton hearing. A Newton hearing is a trial-type procedure which is conducted where the Respondent does not deny that he is guilty of the Charge(s) but is contesting other facts which would affect the sentence to be imposed by the DC. Where the Respondent denies that he committed the Charge(s), a trial will be conducted instead. An uncontested matter does not involve a Newton hearing or a trial.

  3. Types of hearings for a contested case include trials, Newton hearings, conviction hearings or sentencing hearings.

Example 1 (Uncontested case)

An admission was filed by the Respondent and either one or no PHC was conducted. The DC ordered for penalties to be imposed on the Respondent. CEA will seek costs of $2,000.

Example 2 (Uncontested case)

The Respondent informed the DC that he intended to claim trial. Two PHCs were conducted for directions to be given for trial and other administrative matters. After the PHCs, the Respondent decided to admit to the charges. Hence, no trial was conducted. The DC ordered for penalties to be imposed on the Respondent. CEA will seek costs of $4,000 (comprising $2,000 base cost and $2,000 PHC cost (for the 2nd PHC)).

Example 3 (Contested case)

The Respondent informed the DC that he intends to claim trial.

  1. One PHC was conducted for directions to be given by the DC for trial. After the PHC, 2 days of trial took place. After the trial, 1 hearing took place during which the Respondent was convicted and the DC ordered for penalties to be imposed on the Respondent at the same hearing. CEA will typically seek costs of $11,000 (comprising $2,000 base cost, $3,000 trial cost (1st day), $3,000 trial cost (2nd day) and $3,000 (1 day hearing)).

  2. Three PHCs were conducted for directions to be given by the DC for trial. After the PHCs, 2 days of trial took place. After the trial, 2 hearings were conducted. The respondent was convicted at the 1st hearing and the DC ordered for penalties to be imposed on the Respondent at the 2nd hearing. CEA will typically seek costs of $16,000 (comprising $2,000 base cost, $2,000 PHC cost (for the 3rd PHC), $3,000 trial cost (1st day), $3,000 trial cost (2nd day), $3,000 (conviction hearing) and $3,000 (sentencing hearing)).

The Respondent will be able to make submissions on the amount of costs which should be imposed. After hearing parties' submissions, the DC will inform parties of its decision, including the sentence and the costs imposed.

Financial penalties and costs imposed by the DC may be paid by submitting a crossed account payee cheque drawn in favor of the "Council for Estate Agencies". The following should be written at the back of the cheque:

  1. "Attn: Secretary to the Disciplinary Panel"

  2. Disciplinary Case number

Payment can also be made by interbank transfer (QR code) which will be provided by CEA.

Lodgement of documents with the Secretary to the Disciplinary Panel 

Documents may be lodged with the Secretary to the Disciplinary Panel by submitting the Original together with 5 copies (i.e., in total a set of 6 per document) at the following address:

"Attn: Secretary to the Disciplinary Panel".
Council for Estate Agencies
480 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh
#13-01 HDB Hub East Wing
Singapore 310480

Legislation 

Further information on the disciplinary proceedings before a DC may be found in the Estate Agents (Disciplinary Proceedings) Regulations 2011 and Estate Agents Act 2010.

You may also refer to CEA's Regulatory and Enforcement Guide which provides an overview on CEA's regulatory framework, including proceedings before a DC.

Past disciplinary cases

You may refer to our past disciplinary cases.