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Execute a Writ of Possession

You or your representatives must be present at the premises to be repossessed on the date and time stated in your appointment letter. Find out what to expect.

On the day of possession

If you are the party who applied for a Writ of Possession (the execution creditor) against another party (the execution debtor), you will be informed of the date and time on which the Writ of Possession will be executed by an appointment letter from the Sheriff’s Office or Bailiffs Section.

On the day of possession, you must:

(For General Division of the High Court cases) Be present at the Supreme Court building on the day and time stated in the appointment letter.
(For District Court and Magistrate's Court cases) Be present at the State Courts building on the day and time stated in the appointment letter.
Be punctual for the appointment.
- If you are late, your appointment may be cancelled without further notice.
(If requested by the Sheriff or the bailiff) Provide transport to the place of execution and back to their office or to their next destination.

Note

What you will need

You will need to bring along the following documents on the day of property possession:

The appointment letter.
The official receipt to confirm that you have paid the deposit as requested by the bailiff.
The letter of authorisation and indemnity signed by you.
- A sample of the letter of authorisation and indemnity will be provided together with the appointment letter.
- If you are authorising a representative to attend on your behalf, your representative must bring along the letter of authorisation and indemnity signed by you.
- If you are representing a business entity, your letter of authorisation should bear your firm's or company's stamp.

You will have to hand the documents over to the Sheriff or bailiff assigned to your case (as indicated in the appointment letter).

What to expect

Depending on the circumstances, the execution of the Writ of Possession may or may not be successful at the first attempt.

On the date and time indicated in the Notice of Eviction, the Sheriff or the bailiff will enter the premises and take possession of the property.

After the Sheriff or the bailiff has taken possession of the premises, the occupier or the tenant must seek your permission if they wish to re-enter the premises.

Refer to the following for the execution process for the respective courts:

For District Court and Magistrate's Court cases

For District Court and Magistrate's Court cases, the execution is deemed unsuccessful if the premises are not accessible or if the execution debtor refuses or resists the execution of the Writ of Possession. In general, the bailiff will not exercise their power of forced entry onto the premises on the first attempt at execution.

If execution of the Writ of Possession was not successful on the first attempt and if you wish to request for another appointment to execute the Writ of Possession, you will have to apply for a fresh date by filing the Request for Date to be Appointed for Execution (Form 89, Rules of Court) and pay the required fees where applicable for a new appointment date to be issued.

The bailiff may exercise their powers of forced entry onto the premises on the second or subsequent attempts. In practice, forced entry is only conducted with the assistance of a professional locksmith.

For High Court (General Division) cases

For General Division of the High Court cases, the Sheriff or bailiff may exercise their power of forced entry onto the premises on the first attempt at execution. A locksmith may be engaged to enter the premises.

The Sheriff or the bailiff has absolute discretion whether to exercise their power of forced entry depending on the circumstances of the execution.

If necessary, you will be required to engage the services of a locksmith on your own and at your own cost.

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