Understanding The Company Act Singapore

By Author: Bryan Wong
Total Articles: 11
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It is extremely important that foreign companies as well as overseas entrepreneurs who want to establish a presence in Singapore try and understand the Company Act in Singapore as well as they can. This is because the Singapore Companies Act is the one that governs all private or public limited companies operating in the country. It clearly lays down what companies can or cannot do. It establishes how the members of a company relate to each other and how the company needs to deal with outsiders. The Singapore Companies Act must be understood if you are serious about the long-term growth of your Singapore based company.

First of all, the act controls how companies get incorporated in Singapore. Hence if you are a foreign company and want to register a business in Singapore, you must follow the guidelines as given by the Singapore Companies Act. The company structure, it’s paid up capital and various other formalities are to be followed exactly the way it has been provided for in the Company Act. It should be noted that the Singapore Companies Act not just provides for how to form a company but also it governs termination ...
... of existing companies if required.

Managers of any company in Singapore must at least know the ongoing compliance requirements as set by the Company Act in Singapore. Although the compliance requirements are quite minimal in Singapore, it is still followed strictly and can attract heavy fines or even imprisonment for the management if the ongoing compliance requirements are not followed properly. It is the Companies Act that states all businesses in the country must appoint a company secretary within six months of its incorporation. The company secretary is legally bound to ensure the company maintains its compliance obligations as per the Companies Act.

Government of Singapore also goes through the existing Company Act and amends it from time to time. This is done to maintain the high standards of governance in the country and also to keep up with the times and new challenges that the country or economy faces. It is important that companies operating in Singapore are always up-to-date with the new amendments as it could affect their operations from compliance requirements to the company structure and other obligations.

About the Author
Bryan Wong is a business analyst in the Asia-Pacific region and in his free time writes business articles. In this article, Bryan talks about company act Singapore and http://www.guidemesingapore.com/faqs/new-company-registration-faqs.