Corporate secretarial and compliance services

What’s included

• Named company secretary and statutory compliance officer duties
• Minutes, resolutions and statutory register maintenance
• Annual returns, and annual general meetings or the written resolutions that replace them where the law allows
• Changes to directors, shareholders, share capital and constitution
• Company secretarial takeovers from another provider, including due diligence on the existing record

Company secretarial compliance in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and the UAE at a glance (2026)

Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong each require a company secretary, a yearly annual return and a beneficial ownership register, but their deadlines run on different clocks. A UAE mainland company needs neither a company secretary nor an annual return; it renews its trade licence each year and keeps a beneficial owner register.

Item	Singapore	Malaysia	Hong Kong	UAE mainland
Company secretary	Within 6 months of incorporation	Within 30 days of incorporation	From incorporation	Not required for an LLC
Who may act	A resident individual; not the sole director	A resident citizen or permanent resident, SSM-licensed or a prescribed-body member, with an SSM practising certificate	A Hong Kong-resident individual, or a body corporate with a Hong Kong office; not the sole director	Not applicable
AGM (private company)	Within 6 months of year end, unless exempt or dispensed with	Not required	Within 9 months after the accounting reference period, unless dispensed with	General assembly within 4 months of year end
Annual return	7 months after year end; S$60	30 days after the incorporation anniversary; RM150	42 days after the incorporation anniversary; HK$105	None; trade licence renewed yearly
Late annual return	S$300, or S$600 after 3 months	Extra RM50–RM200	HK$870–HK$3,480	Late-renewal fines set by the licensing authority
Accounts filed with registry	Yes, with the annual return, in XBRL, unless exempt	Yes, within 30 days of circulation	No (private company)	Approved by the general assembly
Ownership register threshold	More than 25%, plus nominee registers	20% or more	More than 25%	25% or more
Officer changes reported	Within 14 days	Within 14 days	Within 15 days	Partner and beneficial owner registers within 15 days

UAE free zones set their own company rules on top of the federal beneficial owner and tax rules.

Singapore company secretary, AGM and annual return rules in 2026

Under the Companies Act 1967, as at October 2026, a Singapore company must appoint a resident company secretary within 6 months of incorporation, hold its AGM within 6 months of the year end unless exempt, and file its annual return within 7 months of the year end.

Rule	Requirement
Secretary	Within 6 months of incorporation; the post cannot stay vacant for more than 6 months, or directors face a fine of up to S$1,000
Who may act	An individual who is a citizen, permanent resident or meets the local residency rules, and is not the sole director
Qualifications	None prescribed for a private company, but directors must choose someone with the requisite knowledge and experience; a public company’s secretary needs a section 171(1AA) qualification
AGM	Within 6 months after year end (4 months if listed)
No AGM needed	Accounts sent to all members within 5 months; a dormant, unlisted company with total assets of S$500,000 or less; or all members resolve to dispense with AGMs
Annual return	Within 7 months after year end (5 months if listed), even if dormant; fee S$60
Financial statements	Filed with the annual return in full XBRL, or simplified XBRL if revenue and total assets are each S$500,000 or less; solvent exempt private companies need not file
Extension of time	S$200 per application, ideally at least 14 working days before the deadline; not available online once it has passed
Late annual return	S$300 up to 3 months late, then S$600; up to S$10,000 per charge on conviction
AGM not held	Composition from S$500 per breach; up to S$5,000 per charge on conviction
Disqualification	5 years for a director convicted of 3 or more filing offences within 5 years
Directors’ duties	Maximum fine raised from S$5,000 to S$20,000, with up to 12 months’ imprisonment, from 6 May 2026

The annual return must state whether the company held its AGM, was exempt or dispensed with it.

Which registers must a Singapore company keep, and when are changes lodged?

Members, directors, secretaries and auditors are recorded in ACRA’s electronic registers, which the company updates through Bizfile within 14 days. The company itself keeps registers of registrable controllers, nominee directors and nominee shareholders, and since 16 June 2025 new companies file them with ACRA on incorporation.

Register or change	Kept or filed with	Deadline
Members (private company)	ACRA’s Electronic Register of Members (EROM)	Within 14 days; an allotment takes effect when the EROM is updated
Directors, secretaries, CEOs and auditors	ACRA, through Bizfile	Within 14 days
Registered office, activity, name or constitution	ACRA, through Bizfile	Within 14 days
Registrable controllers (RORC)	Registered office or corporate service provider; Central RORC	Updated within 7 days, filed within 2 business days; yearly notice to each controller
Nominee directors and shareholders (ROND, RONS)	Registered office or corporate service provider; Central ROND and RONS	Nominee informs the company within 30 days; updated within 7 days, filed within 2 business days
Charges	ACRA	Within 30 days of creation (37 days if created outside Singapore)

A late change costs S$50 within 3 months of the deadline and S$200 after that. Late RORC, ROND or RONS filings risk fines of up to S$25,000, and nominee status now appears in the company’s business profile.

Singapore company secretarial checklist, from incorporation to annual return

The Singapore cycle starts on incorporation day and then runs from the financial year end: accounts to members by month 5, AGM by month 6 and annual return by month 7.

1. On incorporation: set up the RORC, ROND and RONS and file them with ACRA the same day.
2. Within 3 months: appoint an auditor, unless the company is audit-exempt.
3. Within 6 months: appoint a resident company secretary who is not the sole director.
4. Within 14 days of a change in officers, office, activity, constitution or shares: lodge it through Bizfile.
5. Within 7 days of a controller or nominee change: update the register, then file it with ACRA within 2 business days.
6. At least once a year: send each registrable controller a notice to confirm their details.
7. Within 3 months of year end: file estimated chargeable income (ECI) with IRAS, unless exempt.
8. Within 5 months: send the financial statements to all members.
9. Within 6 months: hold the AGM, unless exempt or dispensed with.
10. Within 7 months: file the annual return with the financial statements in XBRL.
11. By 30 November: file Form C-S, C-S (Lite) or C with IRAS.

Beneficial ownership registers compared: thresholds, deadlines and penalties

All four markets require a register of the individuals who own or control a company. The threshold is 20% or more in Malaysia, 25% or more in the UAE and more than 25% in Singapore and Hong Kong, and changes must be recorded within 7 to 15 days.

Market	Register	Deadlines	Penalty
Singapore	Registrable controllers, plus nominee directors and shareholders	Private register within 7 days; ACRA within 2 business days	Fines up to S$25,000
Malaysia	Beneficial owners	Recorded within 14 days of notice; lodged with SSM within 14 days and with each annual return	Up to RM20,000, plus up to RM500 a day
Hong Kong	Significant controllers, kept in Hong Kong, with a designated representative	Entries within 7 days	HK$25,000, plus HK$700 a day
UAE	Beneficial owners and partners	Filed within 60 days of licensing; changes within 15 days	AED 5,000–AED 100,000 per violation

Where no one passes the threshold, Singapore records directors with executive control and the CEO, and the UAE records whoever controls by other means, then the senior manager. Tracking holders from 20% upwards gives one ownership chart for all four markets.

Annual compliance calendar for a 31 December year-end company

For a 31 December year end, fixed dates run from 31 March to 30 November of the following year; Malaysian and Hong Kong annual returns follow each company’s incorporation anniversary instead.

By	Singapore	Malaysia	Hong Kong	UAE (mainland LLC)
31 March	ECI to IRAS, unless exempt	None	None	Manager prepares the accounts
30 April	None	None	None	General assembly approves the accounts and appoints the auditor
31 May	Accounts to members (AGM exemption)	None	None	None
30 June	AGM, unless exempt	Accounts circulated to members	None	None
31 July	Annual return with accounts	Form e-C; accounts lodged within 30 days of circulation	None	None
Mid-August	None	None	Profits tax return under the block extension (17 August in 2026)	None
30 September	None	None	AGM, unless dispensed with	Corporate tax return and payment
30 November	Form C-S, C-S (Lite) or C	None	None	None
Anniversary	None	Annual return within 30 days	Annual return within 42 days; Business Registration renewal	Trade licence renewal

A Hong Kong profits tax return filed without a tax representative is due 1 month after issue (issued 1 April in 2026); block extension dates are set each year.

Worked example: Singapore and Hong Kong deadlines for a 31 December 2025 year end

With the same 31 December 2025 year end, a Singapore company’s annual return was due on 31 July 2026, but a Hong Kong company incorporated on 10 March 2020 had to file by 21 April 2026, because Hong Kong counts from the incorporation anniversary.

1. Singapore: accounts sent to all members by 31 May 2026 remove the need for an AGM unless a member asks for one; otherwise the AGM is due by 30 June 2026.
2. Singapore: annual return with XBRL accounts due by 31 July 2026; fee S$60.
3. Singapore: filed on 15 September 2026, within 3 months of the deadline: S$60 + S$300 = S$360. Filed on 10 November 2026, more than 3 months late: S$60 + S$600 = S$660.
4. Singapore: ECI due by 31 March 2026 unless exempt; Form C-S, C-S (Lite) or C by 30 November 2026.
5. Hong Kong: return date 10 March 2026, the incorporation anniversary; 10 March + 42 days = 21 April 2026 to file NAR1 for HK$105.
6. Hong Kong: filed on 1 June 2026, after the 42 days but within 3 months of the return date: HK$870, which is HK$765 more than on time.
7. Hong Kong: profits tax return due by 31 August 2026 on paper or 2 October 2026 if e-filed, under the D-code block extension as extended by the IRD on 14 July 2026, if filed by a tax representative.
8. Hong Kong: AGM due by 30 September 2026, unless replaced by written resolution or dispensed with.

Assumptions: private, unlisted, active companies; no extension of time; government fees only.

How to organise company secretarial compliance across several markets

Meet each market’s own secretary test and filing clock first, then align year ends and ownership records so one calendar and one ownership chart cover the group.

• Secretary: Singapore needs a resident individual who is not the sole director; Malaysia an SSM-licensed or prescribed-body secretary with a practising certificate; Hong Kong a resident individual or a corporate secretary with a Hong Kong office, and again not the sole director.
• Provider: corporate service providers must be registered with ACRA in Singapore and hold a TCSP licence in Hong Kong.
• Year ends: a common year end aligns accounts, AGMs and tax returns, but Malaysian and Hong Kong annual returns still follow each incorporation date.
• Meetings: use Singapore’s 5-month accounts exemption, Hong Kong written resolutions and Malaysia’s no-AGM rule for private companies; UAE mainland LLCs still need a general assembly.
• Changes: map each change to every record it touches, such as Singapore’s EROM, RORC and nominee registers, or the UAE licence, beneficial owner register and FTA record.

Common company secretarial mistakes across the four markets

Most defaults come from applying one market’s clock to another, or from updating one register but not the others.

• Counting Malaysian or Hong Kong annual returns from the year end: both run from the incorporation anniversary.
• Relying on the Singapore AGM exemption without sending the accounts to every member within 5 months.
• Naming the sole director as secretary in Singapore or Hong Kong: neither allows it.
• Leaving a Singapore secretary vacancy open for more than 6 months: directors face a fine of up to S$1,000.
• Updating the RORC without filing it with ACRA within 2 business days.
• Changing a UAE shareholder on the licence only: the beneficial owner register must follow within 15 days and the FTA within 20 business days.

Company secretarial terms explained

These terms appear in registry filings across the four markets.

• Annual return: the yearly filing that confirms a company’s details with ACRA, SSM or the Companies Registry.
• EROM: ACRA’s Electronic Register of Members, the legal record of a Singapore private company’s shareholders.
• Registrable controller: in Singapore, a person with more than 25% of the shares or votes, or significant control.
• ROND and RONS: a Singapore company’s registers of nominee directors and nominee shareholders.
• XBRL: the digital format in which Singapore companies that must file financial statements send them to ACRA.
• Exempt private company: a Singapore private company with no more than 20 members and no corporate beneficial interest holders; if solvent, it need not file accounts.
• Dormant relevant company: a dormant, unlisted Singapore company with total assets of S$500,000 or less, which need not prepare accounts.
• Composition: a sum ACRA accepts to settle an offence without prosecution.