Corporate Secretary Requirements Singapore

The Singapore Companies Act mandates that every Singapore incorporated company is required to appoint at least one local company secretary. The company secretary will handle ongoing statutory compliance matters and other issues related to corporate governance. This appointment is required by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority [ACRA]. A registered company in Singapore must appoint one within 6 months of incorporation.

Paul Hype Page & Co can act as the named company secretary for your company to comply with the Companies Act. If we do so, one of our qualified secretaries will act as the named secretary for the company.

A Singapore company secretary is tasked with assisting the directors and other senior managers with the management of their respective workloads. Company secretary services include a range of duties intended to assist the directors, board members, and shareholders of the company. The company secretary ensures the company in Singapore complies with all necessary legal requirements. The secretary oversees the filing of annual returns, the registration of members, share transfers, board resolutions and other decisions of the board, and share certificates. Understand the needs of yearly company’s ACRA Compliance and how yearly tax filing requirement 

List of Duties of a Singapore Company Secretary

• Record directors’ resolutions in writing, especially those pertaining to matters such as opening of bank accounts, registration of an office, interim dividends, and loans
• Apply for necessary extensions to hold the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the company
• Maintain the minutes at the company’s AGM; this may also apply to other meetings such as board meetings, shareholder meetings, and committee meetings.
• Submit statutory returns to the Registrar of Companies
• Update statutory records
• Monitor the filing deadlines of the statutory returns with ACRA
• Attend to auditors
• Conduct general corporate secretarial consultation
• Change company name if necessary
• Change principal activities if necessary
• Change articles of the MAA if necessary
• File financial report in XBRL format with ACRA

For all official documents, a company seal must be used for certification.

Frequently Asked Questions

1) Is a company secretary a necessary requirement for both public and private companies? What are the required professional qualifications for this position?

Answer:

Section 171 of the Companies Act requires a company to appoint a company secretary. The position of secretary must not be left vacant for more than 6 months at any one time. Private limited companies need not appoint a professionally qualified secretary. However, a secretary must nevertheless be appointed. Only public companies must appoint a professionally qualified secretary.

Examples of professionally qualified secretaries include lawyers, accountants, and chartered secretaries. It should be noted that merely having ties to an accounting or a law firm does not automatically make one a professionally qualified secretary.

2) Can anyone in the company other than the company director or secretary apply for the striking off of the company?

Answer:

The directors and company secretary are the only people who may apply for striking off because they are the company officers.