SINGAPORE - An online portal that will cut the red tape in transferring property titles from one person to another is expected to be completed in 2026.
The Digital Conveyancing Portal was announced by Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, and Second Minister for Law Edwin Tong in 2021.
Tech Mahindra has been appointed to develop the online platform over three phases, said Mr Tong at the Global Navigation Satellite Systems Innovation Challenge award ceremony on Thursday at Gillman Barracks.
The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) aims to fully digitise the current paper-based conveyancing process for both private and public properties.
The first phase will include the Option to Purchase stage for developer sale, resale and sub-sale transactions. This is expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2024.
Phase two will include the pre-completion and completion stages for developer sale transactions.
The last phase will cover the pre-completion and completion stages for resale and sub-sale transactions.
The current process is long-drawn, with transactions taking eight to 12 weeks to complete.
The latest studies found that some 70 per cent of documents handled in the process are still in hard copy, and more than 17 stakeholders are involved to complete a transaction.
Mr Tong said: “This is probably too long for us to take effect on what ought to be a fairly straightforward transaction in most cases.”
With the portal, SLA will streamline those processes – from integrating digital services such as e-payments and submission of documents to checking for updates.
Parties that are not buyers and sellers will also benefit from the new digital portal by reducing the time and effort spent on administrative processes, said Mr Tong.
The digital portal was proposed in 2019, but SLA had to engage stakeholders – including the Housing Board, Urban Redevelopment Authority, Central Provident Fund Board and Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore – to ensure that the online platform meets the industry’s needs.
Beyond the public sector stakeholders, law firms, property developers and agencies, and financial institutions were also involved.
“SLA will continue to engage the different stakeholders,” Mr Tong said, adding that feedback will be considered to meet the needs of each of the stakeholders.
