Business Reporting For Singapore Companies With ACRA

7 min read|Last Updated: March 7, 2024|

The regulations set by ACRA require all Singapore companies to submit their business reporting. They need to stay compliant with two authorities: namely the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) and the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS).

ACRA

ACRA has an online filing system called Bizfile and it includes:

  • Presentation of financial statements at AGM (due within 6 months of FYE)
  • Annual General Meeting (AGM) due within 6 months of FYE
  • Filing Annual Returns (AR) due within 1 month from date of AGM

IRAS

Additionally, IRAS, as the statutory board overseeing tax matters, mandates:

  • Tax filing due 30 November

Now, let’s understand why your business reporting matters.

1. Foreign Director’s Visa Risk:

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) holds the authority to revoke a foreign director’s visa, such as the Employment Pass (EP), if their company fails to comply continuously with ACRA’s mandatory regulations. This non-compliance can lead to serious consequences, including potential deportation of the foreign director from Singapore. Additionally, MOM can demand payment of penalties incurred due to the company’s non-compliance, further impacting the foreign director’s status and ability to work in Singapore.

2. Reputation Management:

Non-compliance with ACRA’s regulations can tarnish the company’s reputation and credibility in the business community. Other entities, including banks, potential clients, and suppliers, often conduct background checks on companies before engaging in any business transactions. Delayed in annual return submissions and penalties for non-compliance serve as red flags during these checks, potentially leading to distrust among stakeholders and hindering business opportunities.

Overview of the Business Reporting in Singapore

Let’s examine the timeline of your complete business reporting in Singapore.

If the company incorporated on 1 January 2021, the typical timeline would appear as follows:

1 January 2021: Incorporation
31 March 2021: Deadline for appointment of auditors unless exempted
30 June 2021: Deadline for appointment of company secretary
31 December 2021: Financial year end of company
31 March 2022: Deadline for submission of estimated chargeable income
30 June 2022: Deadline for AGM
31 July 2022: Deadline for AR
30 November 2022: Filing of tax return form C/C-S

3 Key Areas that we provide

  • Financial Year Optimization: We advise a strategic 11-month financial year to enhance tax efficiency.
  • Proactive Reminders: Our automated notification systems ensure timely reminders before Financial Year Ends (FYE), guaranteeing no missed deadlines.
  • Streamlined Filings: We simplify the compliance process by consolidating all essential documents, including financial statements, Annual General Meetings (AGMs), Annual Returns (ARs), and tax filings, into a single preparation phase. This allows you to dedicate only a few days to compliance tasks, leaving the remaining 360 days for your core business operations.

Your timeline with us, at Paul Hype Page:

  • 1 January 2021: Incorporation, including the appointment of a company secretary and auditor unless exempted.
  • 30 November 2021: Optimal financial year end for tax efficiency.
  • 1 December 2021: Our expert accountants dedicate 2 to 4 weeks to prepare financial statements, AGMs, ARs, and tax filings.
  • 1 January 2022: All prepared documents await your approval and signature.

Rest assured, our team will handle all necessary filings promptly and efficiently.

Annual General Meeting

For the first annual filing , the company must hold an annual general meeting. Here are the descriptions of the AGM requirements, Audited/Unaudited Accounts and Public/Listed Company

Requirement Descriptions
Annual General Meeting (AGM)
  • The first AGM must be within 18 months after incorporation.
  • Subsequent AGMs must be in every calendar year, with an interval not exceeding 15 months.
Audited/Unaudited Accounts
  • The Annual Return must file with the Registrar within one month after the AGM
Public/Listed Company
  • For a public company listed or quoted on a securities exchange in Singapore:
  • Reporting for accounts shall not be more than 4 months before the AGM.

Things to take note for AGM

  1. New companies in Singapore must hold their initial AGM after 18 months from the date of registration.

    Following this, both active and dormant companies are required to conduct the AGM once every fiscal year. If a business requires an extension of time to hold its AGMs, it can approach ACRA with an application for Extension of Time (EOT) under Section 175 or Section 201 of the Companies Act.

  2. AGMs are permitted to be held at any location, provided that a majority of the company’s shareholders are in attendance.

    However, if the company possesses a corporate shareholder, exceeds 20 shareholders, and records a sales turnover of at least S$5 million annually, an independent auditor’s report becomes mandatory.

Requirements for filing annual return of the company using BizFile+

Business owners must declare the date of AGM to ACRA while filing the annual return of the company using BizFile.

Some requirements of this rule are as follows:

  • Businesses must prepare financial statements towards the end of each financial year.
  • Circulate of the AGM resolutions which shareholders must approve on paper
  • Send the financial statement and other related documents, including the statement and the report of directors to members and the shareholders

Filing Annual Returns

According to Sections 175, 197, and 201 of the Companies Act, it is mandatory for companies to submit their annual returns to ACRA within 1 month from the date of AGM.

When submitting annual returns, you have to provide the following information:

  • Company’s full name and registration number
  • Registered address
  • Principal activities
  • Company type (i.e. private company, public company, small exempt private company)
  • Summary of issued and paid-up share capital
  • Registered charges
  • Information of directors, company secretary, auditors, and shareholders
  • Date of AGM and the financial period
  • Financial statements, if applicable

Filing Financial Statements with ACRA

Another key aspect of business reporting for Singapore companies is the financial statements. A company have to file its financial statements in XBRL format during the filing of annual returns, if the company either:

  • Is insolvent (has more total liabilities than total assets)
  • Has a corporate shareholder for the financial year

You can reach out to us to do the filing of Financial Statements with ACRA.

We can setup and prepare these for you

  • Accounting system
  • Chart of accounts
  • Monthly cash and bank reconciliation statements
  • Monthly/quarterly/annual management financial reports and monthly/quarterly GST returns
  • Compile statutory financial statements in accordance with financial reporting standards
  • Financial statements in XBRL format for ACRA filing

Moving on to the audit requirements for business reporting in Singapore.

Under the current regulations set by ACRA in Singapore, companies have to undergo auditing unless they are exempted. Previously, exemption from audit was primarily based on the company being classified as an exempt private company with an annual revenue of $5 million or less.

However, there is a transition underway towards a new framework based on the concept of a “small company” to determine eligibility for exemption from statutory audit. Indeed, It’s important to note that under this new framework, a company no longer needs to be classified specifically as an exempt private company to qualify for audit exemption.

A company qualifies as a small company if:

  1. It is a private company in the financial year in question; and
  2. It meets at least 2 of 3 following criteria for immediate past two consecutive financial years:
    – total annual revenue ≤ $10m;
    – total assets ≤ $10m;
    – no. of employees ≤ 50.

Corporate Tax Filling

Corporate tax filing is a crucial aspect for Singapore companies in business reporting, with a deadline of 30 November each year. Completing this filing for the preceding financial year is imperative, as tax authorities impose a flat rate of 17% on chargeable income, regardless of whether the company is local or foreign.

To fulfill this requirement, companies must submit two main forms to the IRAS.

  • ECI form: This form must be submitted within three months from the company’s financial year end, unless the company fulfills certain conditions under administrative concession or if it’s among certain entities exempt from filing ECI.
  • Form C-S or Form C: Companies must submit this form by 30 November of each year, except for dormant companies for which the IRAS has waived the filing requirement.

Furthermore, failure to comply with these requirements may result in penalties. ACRA imposes a fine of S$300 for non-compliance, while IRAS may also penalize the estimated tax payable.

In conclusion

Considering the consequences of non-compliance for business reporting, which are the revoking of visas and impact on business reputation, it is not worth it to skip out on this. Doing it alone, the process might be tough. Engage a service provider for all the corporate secretarial work because they usually simplify the deadlines for you. Make one payment, once a year, and get all the paperwork and filings done on time.

STAY COMPLIANT WITH THE RIGHT COMPANY SECRETARY IN SINGAPORE

Come to our office or get in touch virtually for a consultation on your company registration, and other corporate services for business reporting today.

FAQs

Singapore LLP need to file annual returns?2021-07-15T00:34:31+08:00

Singapore LLPs are not required to submit AR to ACRA but are required to submit an Annual Declaration to ACRA stating whether the LLP is able or unable to pay its debts.

Singapore LLP need to hold AGM? What about minutes and resolutions?2021-07-15T00:34:03+08:00

Singapore LLP Act does not prescribe requirements to hold Annual General Meetings. You have to refer to the LLP legislation on whether partnership’s resolutions are required to be filed or reported for specific instances (such as winding up). By and large, the LLP Act does not prescribe detailed requirements for different types of resolutions as the LLP is a “business” structure. Please seek professional advice from your Paul Hype Page & Co, ACRA Certified Public Accounting Firm.

Must a Singapore Company renew company’s registration yearly?2021-07-15T00:33:36+08:00

A Singapore company’s registration need not renewed yearly as per the business entity rather is required to submit Singapore Company Annual Return on a yearly basis.

Singapore dormant company need to submit audited accounts?2021-07-15T00:32:58+08:00

Singapore dormant company need not submit audited accounts, if your company does not have any accounting transactions for that financial year other than the exceptions set out in section 205B(3) of the Companies Act, eg. maintenance of registered office. If you are not sure whether there was any accounting transaction for your company, please seek professional advice from your Paul Hype Page & Co, ACRA Certified Public Accounting Firm.

What is the information that I need to provide when I file the annual return?2020-11-17T17:18:13+08:00

You need to provide the following information when you file the annual return:

  • Company details
  • Shares
  • Financial Statements
  • Date of Annual General Meeting (if applicable)
Which companies are required to file an annual return with ACRA?2020-11-17T17:17:36+08:00

All companies that are incorporated in Singapore are required to file annual returns with ACRA as per the Companies Act. 

How many company officers needed to sign off on the documents submitted with the annual returns?2020-11-17T17:17:50+08:00

It depends on the size of your company. If your company has only 1 director, then this director is the only person who needs to acknowledge on documents submitted with the annual returns; if your company has more than 1 director, your company will need at least 2 directors to acknowledge on documents submitted with the annual returns 

What happens if I file the annual returns after the deadline?2020-11-17T17:18:23+08:00

Your company will be fined for S$300 late lodgement fee should you submit the annual returns after the deadline. 

What is Form C?2020-06-23T13:17:47+08:00

A company must declare its income by completing the Income Tax Form for companies. This is known as Form C and must be completed each year.

IRAS will send the first Form C to a newly incorporated company in the second year following the year of incorporation.

Thereafter, Form C for subsequent YAs will be sent to your company in March or April every year.

You may need to request for the first Form C to be sent to you earlier, that is, in the year immediately after the year of incorporation (instead of the second year following the year of incorporation) under certain circumstances.

Note that income is assessed on a preceding year basis. This means that the basis period for any YA generally refers to the financial year ending in the year preceding the YA.

Example 1

Your company is incorporated on July 1, 2007, and its financial year end is June 30.

If your company’s first set of accounts covered the period from the date of incorporation (July 1, 2007) to June 30, 2008, your accounts will be for YA 2009. You do not need to request for Form C for YA 2008.

Example 2

Your company is incorporated on July 1, 2007 and its financial year end is December 31.

If your company’s first set of accounts covered the period from the date of incorporation (July 1, 2007) to December 31, 2007, your accounts will be for YA 2008. In this case, you have to request for Form C for YA 2008.

  • Form C can be requested via the form titled “Request for Form C for Newly Incorporated Companies or Companies Granted Waiver to Submit Form C/Change of Particulars (36KB)”.
  • If a company’s first set of accounts covered the period from the date of incorporation to December 31 of a particular year, accounts will be for the YA after the December 31 which ends the period. There is no need to request for Form C for the YA before it.

Accounts for a given period are to be submitted with the Form C. Form C will be sent to a company in March or April. When filing Form C for a YA, separate tax computations must be submitted for each of two YAs if accounts cover a period of more than 12 months. Income must also be apportioned for each period, and a letter stating that tax computations for the two YAs are enclosed must be attached.

Why must Singapore have Tax exemptions on International air travel and shipping Income?2020-06-23T13:17:28+08:00

The countries to which these tax exemptions apply are heavily involved in shipping and air routes to and from Singapore. Therefore, these exemptions encourage the people of these countries to continue to engage with and conduct business activities in Singapore.

How to claim for tax exemption?2020-06-23T13:16:53+08:00

You are required to make a declaration in your income tax returns by giving the nature and amount of the foreign-sourced income that was remitted to Singapore. You are also required to complete the Declaration Form for Foreign-Sourced Income Received in Singapore From 22 Jan 2009 to 21 Jan 2010 (60KB) for submission to IRAS. Although you have to state the use of the foreign income in the declaration form, the usage of such foreign income will not affect the claim for tax exemption.

Share This Story, Choose Your Platform!

Related Business Articles

Undecided or got questions

Got other questions?

Drop us a message on WhatsApp or connect with us through our contact form.

Join the discussions

Go to Top