SG Singapore Driver
Knowledge base Licensing 7 min read

Probationary licence plate (distinguishing mark)

New Class 2B, 3, 3A, 3C and 3CA drivers must display the prescribed distinguishing mark for 1 year. The New Drivers Rules set placement, a conversion exception, and possible revocation after convictions or compounding on 2 or more occasions for display offences.

P-plate probation distinguishing-mark new-driver New-Drivers-Rules

Primary source: https://sso.agc.gov.sg/SL/RTA1961-R32

A “new driver” means a person who holds a driving licence for less than 1 year from the date of grant of the licence under section 35(6) or 36(2)(a)(ii) of the Act, but not under section 36(2)(a)(i). The period of probation is that 1 year commencing from the date of grant (SSO, Road Traffic (New Drivers) Rules r 2).

The official handbook uses the same idea: new drivers hold a new class of licence for less than 1 year from the date of grant and are under probation for that year (SPF, Basic Theory of Driving). The handbook says a new driver's licence will be revoked at 13 or more demerit points during probation. Rule 3, however, says the Deputy Commissioner of Police may revoke it when the driver receives 13 or more points within 12 months of the grant. At 6 or more points, the driver must be informed in writing of this provision. Before revocation, the driver must receive written notice of the proposed date and an opportunity to show cause within 14 days; the Deputy Commissioner must consider any mitigation before making an order (SSO, Road Traffic (New Drivers) Rules r 3). The separate Driver Improvement Points System article explains the general DIPS thresholds and suspension rules (driver-improvement-points-system).

Who must display the mark

Every new driver granted a licence to drive a Class 2B, 3, 3A, 3C or 3CA motor vehicle, and every new SAF driver issued a certificate for one of those classes, whose probation has not ended or starts on or after 1 September 1994, must display the Schedule's distinguishing mark clearly and conspicuously while riding or driving that class during probation. A separate provision requires new SCDF drivers issued a certificate for one of those classes to display the mark while riding or driving that class during probation (SSO, Road Traffic (New Drivers) Rules r 5(1)–(1A)).

The official handbook calls that mark the Probation Plate and requires it at the front and rear when driving or riding. Its illustration shows an orange triangle centered on a yellow square (SPF, Basic Theory of Driving). The Rules Schedule specifies the mark’s construction: its yellow-green and orange sections use durable fluorescent wide-angle prismatic retroreflective sheeting; the white plate is semi-rigid thermoplastic, thermoformed to the illustrated shape, and has a general thickness of no more than 1 mm. The diagram also specifies openings, rounded corners and dimensions in millimetres (Singapore Statutes Online, Road Traffic (New Drivers) Rules, Schedule).

Placement

A distinguishing mark shall be securely affixed (SSO, Road Traffic (New Drivers) Rules r 5(2)):

  • Class 2B: directly above or below the headlamp, and directly above or below the rear licence plate.
  • Class 3, 3A, 3C or 3CA with front and rear windscreens: at the top right portion of the front windscreen and the top right portion of the rear windscreen, as seen from outside.
  • Those classes with a front windscreen but no rear windscreen: top right of the front windscreen (from outside), and bottom right of the rear, or another rear position if construction requires, without obstructing a rear lamp or another required mark.
  • Those classes with no windscreen: bottom right of the front, as seen from the front, and bottom right of the rear, as seen from the rear. If the vehicle’s construction makes either position impossible, the mark may be placed elsewhere on that same end. It must not obstruct a headlamp or rear lamp, or another mark required at the front or rear.

The handbook’s Class 2B and dual-windscreen placements match those first two bullets (SPF, Basic Theory of Driving).

Exception

Rule 5 does not apply to a new driver who has been granted a licence under section 36(2) of the Act and for a period of 1 year or longer has held a driver’s certificate or licence issued by the competent authority in any country authorising him to drive motor vehicles of the class or description which he would be authorised to drive by the licence applied for (SSO, Road Traffic (New Drivers) Rules r 5(3)).

Offence and 2-occasion revocation

Failing to comply with paragraph (1) or (1A) is an offence (SSO, Road Traffic (New Drivers) Rules r 5(4)). Where no special penalty is provided, the Road Traffic Act's general penalty for an offence under the Act or its rules is, on conviction, a fine of up to $1,000, imprisonment for up to 3 months, or both for a first offence; for a second or subsequent offence, it is a fine of up to $2,000, imprisonment for up to 6 months, or both. These are court maxima, distinct from a composition sum (Singapore Statutes Online, Road Traffic Act 1961, s. 131).

Where a new driver to whom the rule applies has, on 2 or more occasions, been convicted of an offence under this rule or been permitted to compound such an offence, the Deputy Commissioner of Police may revoke the driving licence. For a new SAF or SCDF driver, the Deputy Commissioner may instead recommend to the relevant competent authority that the driver’s certificate or document be revoked (SSO, Road Traffic (New Drivers) Rules r 5(5)–(5A)).

The handbook states: those who fail to display the Probation Plate will be fined; repeat offenders with at least 2 offences of failing to display it during the 1-year probation will have their licence revoked (SPF, Basic Theory of Driving).

Separate statutory restrictions prevent a person from applying for or taking specified tests of competence if, as a new driver, the person committed the offence of failing to display the mark on 2 or more occasions during probation, whether or not charged with or convicted of those offences. The restrictions cover tests for Class 2B, 2A and 2 motorcycles, Class 3, 3A, 3C and 3CA motor vehicles, and Class 4, 4P, 4A, 4AP, 5 and 5P motor vehicles. The Deputy Commissioner of Police may waive any or all of the requirements for the last group (SSO, Road Traffic (Motor Vehicles, Driving Licences) Rules rr. 14–16).

Coverage debt

  • The current SPF penalties page does not identify a specific composition amount for failing to display the plate in its published offence table (SPF, Penalties for Traffic Offences).

Sources