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Apply for an exclusion order

You may apply for an exclusion order to exclude another party from their place of residence if they fail to comply with a special direction made against them.

What is an exclusion order

You may consider applying for an exclusion order if another party fails to comply with a special direction made against them.

An exclusion order is an order made by the court for a party to be kept out of from their place of residence (the contravening party).

If the party fails to comply with the exclusion order without a reasonable excuse, they will have committed an offence and may be fined or imprisoned upon conviction.

Instead of a fine or imprisonment, the court also has the discretion to make a community order against the party or, alternatively, punish the party for contempt of court.

How an exclusion order is decided

In deciding whether it is just and equitable for an exclusion order to be made, the Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals (CDRT) must consider the following:

The impact of the order on the party.
The impact of the order on any person who, at the time of the making of the order, resides in the party's place of residence.
The impact of the order on any other person who can reasonably be expected to be affected by the order.
Any other matters as the court deem fit.

Before you apply

Before you apply, you should consider whether the contravening party has failed to comply with the terms of the special direction made against them.

If you think they failed to comply with the special direction, you will need to prepare evidence to support your case.

Note

Key facts

Refer to the following to find out how to apply for an exclusion order.

If you are applying for an exclusion order, you are the applicant.

The other party is the respondent.

When to serve	Within 14 days after the date your application was made.
Filing fee	$100
How to file	Through the Community Justice and Tribunals System (CJTS).

What you will need

You should prepare the following before you apply:

A copy of the special direction which is the subject of the application.
The sequence of incidents in chronological order.
- You will need to provide the date, time and details of each incident where the respondent did not comply with the CDRT order or special direction in CJTS.
- You may refer to the sample information for filing guide (PDF, 315 KB) for instructions.
A soft copy of the evidence to be provided in support of your application in PDF format.
- You will need to upload evidence to prove each incident mentioned via CJTS. Refer to Prepare evidence for a neighbour dispute claim for instructions on filing evidence.
A soft copy of other supporting documents in PDF format.
- All supporting documents submitted must be in the English language. Otherwise, a certified translation for the documents must be provided.

How to file and serve

You will need to follow these steps.

Step	Result
1. Apply for an exclusion order	Your application for an exclusion order is filed in CJTS.
2. Serve documents on the other party	The respondent is notified of your intention to apply for an exclusion order.
3. File a declaration of service	The CDRT receives proof that you have served the application for exclusion order on the respondent.

Log in to CJTS. Under the Online Applications tab, select Application for Exclusion Order and follow the instructions to fill in the required information.

Choose your preferred PTC (for matters commenced before 1 April 2022) or case conference (for matters commenced on or after 1 April 2022) date and time.

Print a copy of the Application for Exclusion Order and the Notice of Pre-trial or Case Conference. You will have to serve the documents with a copy of all evidence filed in CJTS in support of the application within 14 days after the date the application was filed.

When: within 14 days of the date of filing the Application for Exclusion Order.

You will have to serve a copy of the following on the respondent:

Your Application for Exclusion Order.
The Notice of Pre-trial or Case Conference.
The evidence you submitted to the CDRT.

You can serve the documents through one of the following ways:

Service method	What it is
Personal service	Delivering hard copies of the documents personally to the respondent.
Registered post	Sending hard copies of the documents in an envelope to the last known residential or registered address of the respondent.
CJTS	Submitting soft copies of the documents to the respondent through CJTS.
Others	Delivering the documents by any means as directed by the CDRT.

When: within 8 days of the date of serving the documents on the respondent.

You must file a declaration of service (DOS) with proof of service after serving the Application for Exclusion Order on the respondent.

Example

Log in to CJTS. Under the Online Applications tab, select Declaration of Service and follow the instructions.

For detailed instructions, refer to the CJTS user guide for filing neighbour disputes (PDF, 3015 KB)

After you file

If the respondent does not agree to your Application for Exclusion Order, they may file a Reply with supporting evidence in CJTS and serve a copy on you within 14 days after being served with the application.

Both you and the respondent must attend the PTC on the date and time specified in the Notice of Pre-trial or Case Conference. If both parties are unable to settle their dispute at the PTC, the court may schedule a date for a hearing for the case.

The court will decide on whether to make an exclusion order at the hearing. If an exclusion order is made, the court may direct that the applicant serve a copy of the exclusion order on the respondent.

You will need to bring along the following documents for your PTC or case conference or hearing:

Your personal identification documents
- (For Singapore citizens or permanent residents) National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) or passport.
- (For foreign citizens) Passport and employment pass.
A set of the documents uploaded onto CJTS.
- The Notice of Pre-trial or Case Conference.
- The Notice of Hearing (if applicable).
- (For the plaintiff (for matters commenced before 1 April 2022) or claimant (for matters commenced on or after 1 April 2022)) The Application for Exclusion Order and all supporting evidence.
- (For the respondent) The reply and all supporting evidence.

If the respondent does not comply

If the respondent does not comply with the exclusion order, you may take any of the following actions under the Community Disputes Resolution Act (CDRA):

File a Magistrate’s Complaint to privately prosecute them for breach of the exclusion order.
Start contempt of court proceedings against them.

Need help?

The information here is for general guidance as the courts do not provide legal advice. If you need further help, you may want to get independent legal advice.

Find out more