You can also find out how the Start-up Guide has helped other business owners to take the first step in establishing their venture. If you had chosen to register your business as a company, you must apply to ACRA to voluntarily wind up your company or to strike it off the register. However, certain types of business require approval from certain regulatory authorities before they can be registered. Getting such approval may require an additional 14 working days to 2 months. The business registration process through BizFile is straightforward. Prepare to pay a fee of $300 for Enterprise, $100 for Sole Proprietor, or $100 for Partnership.
- In Singapore, a corporate secretary has important jobs to do for a company.
- Any self-employed Singapore citizen or Permanent Resident, conducting continuous activities for the purpose of gain under the name other than its own, is eligible to register a sole proprietorship.
- You may wish to refer to this ACRA webpage for more information.
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- However, if you already have a Parent company overseas and you want the same name for the Singapore company but it has been taken, you can always file an appeal with supporting evidence to ACRA.
If you choose to use your home address as a business address, you must obtain approval from the Housing Development Board (HDB) or Urban Redevelopment Authority. Singapore is often considered one of the best places to do business, and it continues to be a popular choice for business investors. After all, the process of registering a business in Singapore is relatively easy and fast.
In Singapore’s environment, owning a successful business is not a dream. In a partnership, two or more individuals jointly own a business. Like sole proprietors, there is no legal distinction between individuals and the business. Sole Proprietorship and Exempt Private Limited/Private Limited are the two business types that are the easiest to register in Singapore. Do note that for Sole Proprietorship, only Singaporean citizens are allowed to incorporate such a business. A copy of your company’s constitution must be submitted when applying to incorporate your company.
Singapore is one of Asia’s premier business destinations, with minimal barriers to setting up operations. It boasts attractive investment and trade prospects and a low corporate tax rate, making it a highly appealing global business hub. Doing business in Singapore is as easy as it gets due to the support from the government.
One of the early steps of the company creation is to find a name for the company. The name can be reserved with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) and at the same time submit the future business activity of the entity. The business activities in Singapore are sorted by the Singapore Standard Industrial Classification (SSIC) which attach a code to each different activity. The main drawback for Sole Proprietorship is not being a separate legal entity from the entrepreneur. This means that the business owner will be directly and personally liable for all the obligations undertaken by the Proprietorship during the course of business and all the profits of the company will be treated as personal income.
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Avoidance of Double Taxation treaties, preventing individuals from being taxed by both Singapore and their home country on foreign income or assets. If you intend to apply for charity status, visit the Charity Portal for more information on the naming criteria and other guidelines. Every business needs a name to differentiate itself from other businesses.
This is a residential scheme by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) and the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), which allows you to run an approved small-scale registered business from your home address. If you intend to form a business firm with one or more other partners, you may wish to register as a partnership. A partnership does not have to file its accounts or have them audited. However, if your business name includes descriptive words before or after your name, such as “Home-Baked Cakes by Lim Ah Kao”, you must register your business. To customers and suppliers, a registered business appears more legitimate because information on your business can be searched and verified via ACRA. As a result, your business will find it easier to obtain financing and contracting on credit.
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If you want to keep your personal information private, you can submit an alternate address for a fee of $40. You will still have to submit your residential address for ACRA’s records. Although you could use the same address for both your business and residence, it’s a good idea to have a separate business address and residential address for professional purposes.
You can choose your registered address, whether it is a home office or a co-working space. Your business must also have a registered address in Singapore, which cannot be a PO box. Alternatively, you can become a legal resident in Singapore, allowing you to establish and manage the business on your own without needing another director. However, to make it easier, it is recommended that you engage a registered company incorporation agent with a registered filing agent license to help you.
However, it comes with unlimited liability, meaning there is no legal separation between the individual and the business. Popular for social media influencers, ecommerce, and other online businesses and online stores. You may engage a registered filing agent (e.g. law firm, accounting firm or corporate secretarial firm) to submit an online application on your behalf. If you’re a first time entrepreneur, check out the Start-up Guide which will take you through an overview of the process of registering your small business, and six steps you can take to get started.
Once you have decided on a name for your business or company, you should check if the name has already been registered through BizFile+. The proposed name cannot be identical to one that is registered by existing entities. Learn about the different business structures and find out which one best suits your business. https://www.quick-bookkeeping.net/ If you are thinking of starting a small-scale business from home, here’s a step-by-step guide to help you. Limited liability does not apply to a sole proprietorship or partnership. Going cashless is becoming more common place with contactless interactions seamlessly integrating into our day-to-day activities.
Every Singaporean company must have a registered address, and it cannot be a PO box; it must be a physical location. Foreigners can easily start and run a business in Singapore with minimal restrictions. The Singaporean authorities, however, do require at least one director who is a resident of Singapore, either a citizen or a legal resident. The SSIC refers to the national standard developed by the Singapore Department of Statistics (DOS) to classify all registered firms into the respective industries based on their principal economic activity.
Indeed, requirements related to shareholders and directors are more becoming more stringent. Some key consideration in the company creation includes the director appointment. Indeed, each private limited company in Singapore requires one resident director.
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If you intend to carry on your business as an individual under only your full name, you are exempted from registration. Therefore, before carrying on a business in Singapore, every person must first register their business. Anyone who wants to run a business for profit should register with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA). This will help to keep track of your business and make sure you’re complying with all the necessary regulations. Alternate ways of getting funding for your new business are to engage in crowdfunding, seek out angel investors, and get small business loans from business credit companies.
Step 2: Choose a Business Address
Your business location will be based on an approved physical address. HitPay Payment Solutions, Inc is a technology service provider and provides gateway solutions for payments. We partner with Stripe, Inc. who provides payment https://www.online-accounting.net/ processing services. We do not provide payment processing services or other regulated financial services. Use of our services and platform is subject to our Terms of Service, Acceptable Use Policy and Privacy Policy.
Check our Corporate secretarial services Singapore, Bookkeeping Services Singapore, Accounting services Singapore, and all about Sole Proprietorship Singapore. Carrying on a business after its registration has lapsed is an offence, for which the defaulter will be liable upon conviction to a fine of up to $10,000 or a term of imprisonment of up to 2 years or both. After the period of registration has expired, your https://www.kelleysbookkeeping.com/ registration will have to be renewed. In other cases, the regulatory authority may only get involved in approving your registration after it has been submitted to ACRA. You may wish to refer to this ACRA webpage for more information. Similarly, if you carry on business with one or more other individuals, you would be exempted from registration if the name of the firm is the full name of all the individuals.
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