When the circuit breaker was imposed and owners of non-essential businesses wondered how they were going to make money, you breathed a sigh of relief because you’ve always operated your mini-golf set business from home.

You never knew why people wanted a mini-golf set specifically for when they were pooping, but hey, it brought in the dollar bills.

But then you were scrolling through the Goody Feed app and came across this headline:

Uh-oh. 

Can I still sell my mini-golf set to those who desperately need to improve their golf swing while pooping?

Sadly, the answer is probably not.

Home-Based Businesses 

Contrary to what many people think, you can actually run a home-based business.

The Home Office Scheme or the Home-Based Small Scale Business Scheme, according to HDB, allows for certain types of home-based businesses to run. This includes:

• Baking on a small scale
• Hairdressing, beauty, manicure, or pedicure services
• Simple factory work on a work rate basis
• Private tuition for not more than 3 students at a time
• Sewing services
• Work as a freelance artist, journalist, photographer, or writer

But with the tight circuit breaker measures, many owners of such businesses are wondering if they can continue to operate during this critical period.

The authorities gave an answer, but it’s a little deceiving if you don’t read into it.

Can Operate As Long As It Doesn’t Break Circuit Breaker Measures

As my colleague mentioned, it all started when Malay newspaper Berita Harian reported that some food-based home businesses wondered if they can continue to fulfill orders for the coming Hari Raya celebrations.

In response, the Trade and Industry Ministry, Environment and Water Resources Ministry, Housing Board and Urban Redevelopment Authority said, uh, kind of.

“During the circuit breaker period, home-based businesses in public and private housing can operate only if all the criteria in the Ministry of Health’s guidelines and the latest provision under the COVID-19 (Temporary Measures) Act 2020 are met.

“If the nature of the home-based business does not meet the stipulated regulations, it will need to cease operations. This includes home-based food and beverage businesses.”

What exactly are these regulations? According to HDB, here are the three rules home-based businesses must abide by to continue operating during the circuit breaker period:

• The business operates solely online, without requiring yourself to leave the residential premise
• The business does not require customers to self-collect the goods or require third-party delivery services to deliver goods
• Staff (if any) can work from their own respective homes

Business Owner: So I can continue to sell branded shoes online as long as I don’t deliver it myself, don’t deliver it through a third-party delivery service, or ask customers to collect it themselves.

Basically, if you’re a home-based business that doesn’t depend on delivering physical products to your customers, like online tuition or freelance writing, then you can continue to run during the CB.

But if your whole business is centred around physical products, then, you’ll have to cease operations.

And yes, that includes any business, no matter how much we like them.

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FB Live Auctions & Carousell Sellers Would Be Affected

Many Singaporeans clearly enjoy buying products from stores that are about to close down to sell them at exorbitant prices on Carousell.

Like that one seller who listed a frozen Fillet-O-Fish for the reasonable price of $70,000 after McDonald’s announced they were closing all their stores.

Unfortunately, unless your Fillet-O-Fish can develop sentience and take a bus to your customer’s house, you’ll have to cease such operations.

And the same goes for live auctions on Facebook.

I mean, sure, you can bid to your heart’s content for that shiny new electronic item you don’t actually need, but it’s against the law to collect it or have it delivered during the circuit breaker.

Reader: Doesn’t this affect almost everyone on Carousell and many home-based businesses on FB live auctions?

The sad answer is yes, it does.

No matter what platform you list your items on, be it a third-party website like Carousell or your own, you will have to cease operations for now because there’s just no way to get your product to the customer without breaking the rules.

If you’re one of the lucky few who can operate your business online without any physical products, then you’re still in the clear.

But, at least for the time being, it seems people will have to go without frozen Fillet-O-Fishes, Bubble Tea Buffets, and poop without playing mini-golf.