Is It Worth Appointing a Company Secretary Singapore?

With the ever-changing rules and tightening regulations of authorities, the role of company secretary Singapore is increasingly becoming more important. A company secretary monitors and handles the statutory obligations of the company. He/she keeps the other stakeholders of the company informed about the compliance requirements. As per the rule, ever Singapore incorporated company must appoint a company secretary within six months from its incorporation.

Accounting & Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) regulates the Singapore companies. The authority is very strict when it comes to law abidance. Every year, ACRA issues summons to a huge number of companies as against non-compliance matters. Ideally, company secretary Singapore is the person that is held responsible for fulfilling the statutory obligations within the specified due dates set by the authority. Plus, he/she carries out the administrative activities of an organization. You can also outsource to professional corporate secretarial services Singapore to promote good governance within your company. Many professional company incorporation services offer corporate secretarial service at an affordable fee.

Singapore Company Secretary: Eligibility Criteria

There is no any stringent law which defines the eligibility criteria for company secretary in Singapore private limited company. The director of a company can also play the role of company secretary unless your company has only one director. Following are the basic conditions which must be met to become a corporate secretary in a private limited company in Singapore.

• A person above 18 years of age.
• The person must be ordinarily resident in Singapore (Singapore Citizen, Permanent Resident, or Bearer of Employment Pass or EntrePass).
• Having sound knowledge of Companies Act is appreciated.

It is worth noting that qualification criteria for company secretary of public companies are stated by the law.

Roles & Responsibilities of Company Secretary Singapore:

It is wrong to assume that the job of the company secretary is clerical in nature. The importance of a company secretary is in no way less than the directors and shareholders. He/she maintains the all administrative activities such as paperwork and procedural matters. The corporate secretary keeps the necessary registers, send out notices, holds AGMs, general meeting, board meetings, maintain minutes and so on. He/she also assists the director in promoting good corporate governance within the organization.

The key roles of a company secretary are stated below:

• Maintain, organize and update registers and minute books of the company.
• Arrange and host company’s AGMs, board meetings, general meetings and note down minutes of the meetings.
• Meet the statutory obligations of the company and ensure compliance issues.
• Monitor the share allotments, issues, transmissions, and transfers.
• Responsible for safe custody and proper usage of the company’s seal.
• Keep the directors informed about the upcoming due date for annual filings.
• Ensure that all official documents such as letters, documents, publications, and notices of the company mention the name and UEN (Unique Entity Number).
• Ensure that all merger and acquisitions, restructuring, etc. are implemented with the company’s best interests in mind.
• Guide and Assist the directors, shareholder, officers and other members of the company.
• Acts as a link between company's management and employees.

Above all, the corporate secretary has a vital role in opening the bank account. When opening the bank account, the applicant is required to submit a Board of Director Resolution approving the opening of the corporate bank account. This document must be jointly signed by the both directors and company secretary. Also, the secretary assists the auditor in drafting the statutory audit of the company.

The efforts and dedication of a company secretary will determine the exactness of the operations of an organization. While a right choice can be a game changer, the wrong choice will jeopardize the activities. Thereby, you must make sure to appoint a good company secretary Singapore for your company. Outsourcing has proven to be a perfect way to get the jobs done. It is worth to invest a few dollars for the sake of streamlining the administrative functions.

Bio:

SBS Consulting is a Singapore-based firm specialized in company secretarial services along with incorporation. The firm also deals in a host of allied business service such as accounting, bookkeeping, XBRL reporting, GST, corporate taxation, payroll, etc.

SBS Consulting is one of the leading corporate services provider in Singapore. It specializes in Company Incorporation, Accounting, Preparation of director's report, Taxation, GST, Payroll, XBRL, IT software development and maintenance, etc.