Singapore Representative Office Registration Process
A representative office is the smartest choice a foreign company can do if it is only interested in exploring potential opportunities in Singapore and the region before committing any large scale investments. A Singapore representative office is viewed only as a liaison office and as such has no legal status, unlike a subsidiary or a branch office. It is not allowed to conduct any business activities of profit yielding nature. Since finance and related industries are not a liberalized sector, the approval process for representative office of such organizations can be complicated. However, for all other sectors, the approval process of a representative office is fairly straightforward and simple provided that the foreign company is an established entity and the scope of planned activities falls within the scope of a representative office.
For the registration of a Singapore representative office, the application form must be complete and the supporting documents must be attached before submitting with the Singapore authorities. It takes more or less 5 working days to process the registration application after the application is filed.
Below are the required documents to be filed when registering a representative office in Singapore:
- Completed application
- Copy of the parent Company’s Certificate of Incorporation
- Copy of the parent company’s latest annual report and audited accounts
- Duly endorsed undertaking to abide by the Terms and Conditions governing the representative offices in Singapore
In the event that the annual report and audited accounts are not available, such as when example when the parent company is relatively new, the needed information may be self-declared and support your application with supporting details like company brochures, contracts, website, etc. Remember to have all documents in the English language and those not in English must have an official English translation.
You will not have any problems with the approval of your application provided you have satisfied the documents required by the authorities and that your intended activities are within the scope of allowed activities. In some instances, additional information may be asked by the authorities in order to further clarify some matters pertaining to your application.
As a usual practice, a professional service firm in Singapore is being hired by a foreign company to assist in the setting up of a representative office in Singapore. This professional firm shall perform activities such as;
- Assisting in the completion of the application in accordance with the guidelines and requirements of the approving authorities;
- Filing of the necessary registration paperwork with authorities
- Acting as the contact point for any clarifications needed by the authorities
- Filing of the employment pass application for the staff member from the head office who will be relocating to Singapore upon the approval of the representative office registration
Rikvin has successfully assisted local and foreign entrepreneurs start a Singapore company. Our success rate is phenomenal, most of our enterprise clients have entrusted us, with the routine management tasks such as `book keeping and secretarial services and we continue to impress them beyond our promise. Rikvin has also successfully helped hundreds of foreign entrepreneurs register a Singapore representative office.
Our phones are answered during business hours by specialists and not by an answering machine. We appreciate the value of your time and understand that a person cannot be replaced by technology. This is especially true when it comes to making important business decisions. If you are interested in learning more about Rikvin’s Services kindly email us at info@rikvin.com or give us a call at +65 64838887.
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