Mobile Phones and Driving in Singapore: Current Rules and a Major 2026 Change
Our Rules and Regulations category covers a wide mix of legal requirements, and few of them are changing as fast as this one right now. Mobile phone use behind the wheel is already tightly regulated in Singapore, and a Bill passed in Parliament in August 2026 will tighten it even further once it takes effect. Here is exactly where the law stands today, and what is coming.
The Current Law: Section 65B of the Road Traffic Act
Right now, an offence under Section 65B requires three things to all be true at once:
- You are holding a mobile communication device in your hand.
- You are operating one of its functions, such as calling, texting, scrolling, or checking a notification.
- Your vehicle is in motion.
If all three apply, you can face a fine of up to $1,000, up to 6 months in jail, or both, for a first offence. Repeat offenders face steeper penalties: a fine of up to $2,000, up to 12 months in jail, or both, along with demerit points and a real risk of disqualification. These are the rules currently in force, and the ones you will still be tested on for the BTT or FTT until the new law commences.
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What Is Still Allowed
The law has never banned phones from a moving vehicle entirely. Using a phone that is properly mounted on a dashboard or windscreen holder, for hands free navigation, remains permitted. The issue has always been holding the device while actively using its functions, not the presence of a phone in the car.
The Change: Holding Alone Will Be Enough Once the Law Takes Effect
On 7 July 2026, the Ministry of Home Affairs introduced the Road Traffic (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill in Parliament for its First Reading. It had its Second Reading on 4 August 2026, when Parliament passed the Bill, and the President assented to it on 24 August 2026. One of its central changes targets exactly the weak point in the old law: proving active use.
Previously, Traffic Police officers needed to observe and establish that a driver was genuinely doing something on the phone, texting, calling, or browsing, not just holding it. This made enforcement harder in practice, since a driver could often claim they were about to put the phone down, or were not actually using any function.
Under the passed amendment, that requirement is removed entirely. Simply holding a mobile communication device in your hand while the vehicle is moving will be enough to constitute an offence, regardless of whether you were calling, texting, checking a notification, or doing nothing at all with it. The government's stated reasoning is straightforward: holding a phone reduces the likelihood that a driver is fully focused on the road, so removing the need to prove active use makes the law both safer and easier to enforce.
What the Penalties Look Like
This new, simpler "holding" offence carries 12 demerit points, with a composition fine of $400 for light vehicles and $500 for heavy vehicles. This sits alongside the existing, more serious penalties for active use, which remain a matter for court prosecution with fines up to $1,000 or $2,000 and possible jail time, depending on whether it is a first or repeat offence.
Those 12 points matter even more because of the demerit system changes starting on 1 January 2027. Probationary drivers will have their licence revoked at 12 points, and full licence holders will be suspended at 18 points. If the new holding offence takes effect at 12 points, a single offence could cost a new driver their licence, and put a full licence holder two thirds of the way to suspension. Our guide to the 2027 demerit points changes explains the new thresholds in full.
What Stays the Same
Even under the new law, phones mounted on a proper holder for hands free navigation remain permitted. The target of this amendment is handling the device, not having one in the vehicle at all.
Where Things Stand Right Now
As of this update, the Act has been passed by Parliament and assented to by the President, but it is not yet in force. It only comes into legal effect on a date the Minister announces in the Gazette, which is standard practice for Singapore legislation and gives agencies and drivers time to prepare. The Ministry has said it plans for early 2027, but no exact date has been confirmed. Until that date is announced, the current Section 65B rules (all three conditions required) remain the ones enforced, and the ones you will be tested on for the BTT or FTT.
That said, drivers should treat the new rule as effectively already in place. Once commencement is announced, there is typically little lead time, and Traffic Police have signalled plans to lean more heavily on cameras with video analytics to detect phone use automatically.
The Safest Habit, Regardless of Which Version of the Law Applies
Whichever stage the law is at when you are reading this, the practical takeaway is the same: treat your phone as something you do not touch at all once your vehicle is moving. Mount it before you set off if you need navigation, and leave it there. A habit built around the strictest possible version of the rule never puts you at risk, no matter which version of the law is in force when you are actually on the road.
Read the Latest From Our Blog
Phone offences are only one part of a tougher road safety regime arriving in 2027. Our latest guide, Singapore Demerit Points 2027: Suspension Threshold Drops to 18 Points, shows how the new limits could affect your licence.
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