SINGAPORE — Over 3,900 businesses and individuals have sought temporary relief from their contractual obligations due to Covid-19, five weeks after a new law allowing them to do so came into effect, said Senior Minister of State for Law Edwin Tong in Parliament on Thursday (June 4).

Under the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) Act, businesses or individuals may give notice to the other contracting party that they are unable to fulfil their legal obligations due to the pandemic and the other party cannot take legal action such as terminating a business’ lease, or repossessing goods used for work.

Mr Tong was responding to a question by Mr Liang Eng Hwa, Member of Parliament for Holland-Bukit Timah Group Representation Constituency, who was asking for the number of reliefs sought since the law came into effect.

The breakdown of relief sought is as follows: 

• Hire-purchase or conditional sales agreements: 2,107

• Leases and licences of non-residential property:1,254

• Event and tourism-related contracts: 250

• Construction-related contracts: 213

• Certain types of loans for small- and medium-sized enterprises: 97

• Property-related contracts (such as option-to-purchase agreements, sales and purchase agreements, or agreements for the lease of residential properties): 22

Hire-purchase or conditional sales agreements include the sale of a commercial vehicle, a plant, machinery or fixed asset located in Singapore used for manufacturing, production or other business purposes.

Property contracts have been covered under the law since May 13.