Singapore Company Registration

Singapore boasts an open and transparent business environment, making it an attractive destination for investors. Here’s an overview of the Singapore company registration regulations and basic requirements.

  1. Before registering a new company in Singapore, you must reserve the name. This involves submitting an application to ensure the proposed name is available and not inappropriate. Approval usually takes 10-15 minutes, and upon approval, the name will be reserved for 60 days.
  2. At least one shareholder
    Registering a company in Singapore requires at least one shareholder. Shareholders can be individuals or other companies. Of course, there can be more than one shareholder. The maximum number of shareholders of a Singaporean company limited by is 50.
    Note: 100% foreign shareholding is allowed, i.e. all shareholders can be foreigners.
  3. At least one new dollar of capital
    You can establish your Singapore company with a capital of one Singapore dollar. Subsequently, you may infuse further capital and formally notify the company registrar to augment the capital investment.

  4. At least one director residing in Singapore.
    Singapore or foreign residents can become directors of a Singapore company if they have at least one Singapore resident director.
    If you do not have a Singaporean national as a director, you can use our nominee director service to meet this requirement. To learn more, please contact us directly.

  5. Singapore Company Secretary

    Singapore companies must appoint a company secretary residing in Singapore. The company secretary is responsible for ensuring that the company complies with its regulatory obligations and documents. When you incorporate a company through us, we will appoint a company secretary for your company.

  6. In Singapore, a registered address is required for the company.

    All legal documents of the company must be kept at this address, and it cannot be a P.O. Box. When you register your company through us, we will provide our address as your initial company registration address.

Next, determining the corporate structure. Here are a few main questions you should consider:

  • Who will be the shareholders of the company and how many shares does each shareholder own? If you open a subsidiary in Singapore, the sole shareholder will be your existing local or foreign company. If you are starting a new business, you and your other partners, if any, will become shareholders.
  • Who will be a director of the company? Who will serve as its Singapore resident director? Do you need our nominee director services?
  • What is the initial share capital of the company? As a general rule, most companies have a small initial registered capital, such as S$100.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Singapore Companies Ordinance requires that the identity and background information of a company’s proposed shareholders and directors must be collected and verified by the incorporated company.

Here’s general guide for the document types needed to fulfill this requirement

  • Copy of passport
  • Singapore Identity Card (if the individual resides in Singapore)
  • Proof of residential address (e.g., driver’s license, recent utility bill, rental agreement, etc.)
  • Professional background description; For example, in the form of a resume
  • Corporate shareholder documents
  • Proof of registration of the company that is a shareholder (i.e. the parent company).
  • An overview of the parent company’s business, including information about its business activities, share capital, shareholders and officers
  • Identify the ownership structure diagram of the parent company’s ultimate beneficial owner (UBO).
  • The parent company’s board resolution authorizes the registration of the subsidiary in Singapore

Get approval for your company name, as required by the Singapore Companies Act. Follow these guidelines for a quick and smooth process.

  • Unique
    The name cannot be identical or substantially similar to the name of an existing business in Singapore.
  • No trademark infringement
    The name must not infringe upon any trademarks or copyrights that do not belong to you.
  • No reservations
    The name cannot be reserved by anyone else or entity; a name can only be reserved by one person at a time
  • Not vulgar
    The name must not be obscene or contain vulgar and explicit language

 

 

Additional Information

  • If the company name complies with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) regulations, it typically receives approved in under an hour.
  • If the name contains certain regulated business terms, such as “finance”, “legal”, “legal”, “broker”, or “school”, it can be submitted to other government agencies for further approval. This can delay the name approval process.
  • Once approved, a name is reserved for you for 120 days. If you do not register the company under that name within that period, the name will be released and can be kept by someone else.

After the name is approved, you need to prepare and submit the following documents to ACRA:

  • Articles of Association
    You can adopt the standard Singapore Articles of Association recommended by ACRA.
  • All company directors agree to serve as directors.
    We will prepare this document for your company.
  • Company Secretary
    With the consent of the company secretary to serve as the company secretary. We will prepare this document for your company.
  • Company Controller’s Declaration
    We will prepare this document based on the information you provide to us.

After the company registration documents are prepared and signed, we will register the company with (ACRA). Then, we will proceed to open a bank account for the registered company.

The Singapore company registration process takes place online, in most cases taking less than an hour.
ACRA will issue the following official documents:

  • Electronic Registration Certificate
    This is the official electronic document confirming the registration of the company in Singapore, displaying the company name, date of incorporation, and the Company Registration Number (UEN).
    By default, ACRA does not issue hard copies of the Certificate of Incorporation; Singapore is not required for any purpose; An electronic certificate is enough.
  • Corporate Profile
    This document outlines the company’s organizational structure.
    Information included in the document comprises the company’s primary business activities, registered address, detailed information about shareholders and directors, as well as the ownership structure.

Singapore Corp Set Up Process

The processing time needs to be at least 3 days to 1 week

  • 1 to 2 working days

    Information Collection

    · Company name

    · Business scope

    · Share structure

    · Registered capital

  • 1 to 2 working days

    Customer background

    Information for the company’s directors and shareholders:
    · Passport
    · Copy of ID card
    · Proof of address

  • 1 to 2 working days

    Customer Signature

    · Letter of intent for company registration

    · Resolutions of Directors and Application for Shares

    · Form 45 (Statement of Directors)

    · Nominee Director Statement

    ·  Articles of Association

  • 1 working day

    Submit Information

    · If there is a problem with the data, it needs to be verified by the government (with a processing time of 2 weeks to 2 months).

    · This is a special case and rarely occurs. If so, we will assist the customer in the verification.

The processing time needs to be at least 3 days to 1 week

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The following are standard naming guidelines:

  • Uniqueness of Business Name: The business name should be unique and identifiable, avoiding similarity to existing business names to prevent confusion or misleading.
  • Characters and symbols: Your business name can contain letters, numbers, punctuation, and spaces. Special symbols and characters are not allowed unless specifically approved.
  • Sensitive Words: Sensitive words cannot be used in business names. For example, terms related to government departments, courts, international organizations, countries, royalty, patents, government, etc. may require special permission to be used in a business name.
  • Trademarks and Copyrights: Business name should adhere to trademark and intellectual property regulations. When selecting a name, avoid infringing on the trademark or intellectual property rights of others.
  • Suggestive Language: Refrain from crafting business names with suggestive or deceptive language to prevent any improper impact on the public.
  • Prohibited names: Singapore Companies Law also stipulates some prohibited names. For example, names containing state secrets, fraudulent, illegal, obscene or offensive language, etc.

Meanwhile, in the specific naming process, it is advisable to consult with us to ensure compliance with legal requirements.