Singapore

Its colonial core centers on the Padang, a cricket field since the 1830s and now flanked by grand buildings such as City Hall, with its 18 Corinthian columns. 

Before you register your business entity in Singapore, keep the following company incorporation information in mind:

Company Name

An important step to kick-start the company registration in Singapore is to think of a suitable company name for your new Singapore company.  This company name must be approved before the process to register a new company in Singapore.

Shareholders

Owner of a company is known as Shareholder.  A Private Limited Company can have between one to 50 shareholders comprising of individuals or entities.  A company is allowed to have 100% of the foreign shareholding.  Shareholders can be directors of the company at the same.

Company Director

Company Directors are typically appointed by the owner of a company, i.e. the shareholders, to manage and run the business.  There is no limit to the number of directors a company can appoint, local and foreign.

In Singapore, there must be at least one local resident director appointed in a Private Limited Company (either a Singapore citizen, a Singapore Permanent Resident, or an individual who holds valid Employment Pass).  This local director (also known as Nominee Director) must be 18 years of age, has a local residential address, not bankruptcy and does not have any criminal record. Directors can be shareholders at the same time.

Company Secretary

A Company Secretary is a qualified resident who will be the main officer-in-charge of the various responsibilities a company is required to adhere to by law, e.g. annual return filing, recording of board resolutions, up keeping of a company’s register.  As stipulated by Singapore’s Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA), it is mandatory that every company must appoint a company secretary within 6 months of its incorporation. A sole director and or shareholder cannot act as the Company Secretary.

Paid-up Capital

The minimum paid-up capital for a Singapore company will be S$1.  The paid-up capital of a company can be increased at any time after the company registration.

Registered Address/ Business Address

A Singapore address will be required as a Registered Address of the company at the point of company registration.  This Singapore address must is accessible and effective for delivering documents to the company and its directors.  It can be either at a residential or commercial address but it cannot be a P.O. Box address.

Note that if the residential address is to be used as your business address, prior approval must be obtained from the respective authority.