A resident director must be on the board of directors of all Singaporean businesses that are established throughout the process of company registration, including on the day of incorporation, in order to ensure conformity with Singapore’s Companies Act. For legal reasons, this rule is in force.
Having a Singaporean address and not being disqualified from serving as a director are two of the requirements for a person to be deemed a local resident director under Singaporean law. So What is a Nominee Director and Why Might I Need to Use One?
Only Singapore citizens, Singapore permanent residents, or holders of an Entrepass work visa may occupy the position of local ordinarily resident director when a firm is first established in Singapore. There are no other people who satisfy these criteria.
In order for an Employment Pass (EP) visaholder with a Singaporean address to become a director of a Singaporean business, the new entity must be formed and the firm’s corporate bank account created. Even if the visa holder has a residence in the area, this requirement applies.
In order to sponsor an EP visa applicant, a company must already be in operation before the applicant may be sponsored. If an EP person is already a director of another Singapore business and wants to take on a secondary directorship, they must first obtain a valid Letter of Consent (LOC) before being eligible to serve as a director. The Ministry of Manpower also has a role to play in determining whether an EP person is eligible to serve as a director.
The Ministry of Manpower has provided further guidelines for directors, which may be accessed here.
Is it possible that your company may benefit from having a Nominee Director?
For S$500 for three months, S$800 for six months, and S$1,500 for a year, we provide a Nominee Director service to companies. According to Singaporean legislation, this is aimed to help our clients satisfy ACRA’s local director statutory compliance requirements.
Singapore citizens, permanent residents, or entrepass holders are not familiar with many non-Singaporean business owners and entrepreneurs. A local nominee director service is often used by those in management or shareholders who are willing to support their company in any way they can.
Such a service must be used in accordance with Section IXA of the Singapore Companies Act. After the company is registered, this is the next stage.
For non-executive directors, the title “Nominee” is used to signify that they have no authority to make decisions on behalf of the firm. In order to meet Singapore’s legal and regulatory requirements, the Nominee Director is only provided to help in the process. As a consequence, the Nominee Director does not take any additional direct involvement or risks in the company’s operations. This is because it is only meant to be used for that specific task.
Non-executive directors are nevertheless obligated to adhere to a general obligation in Singapore to ensure that the company is still compliant, even if the director role is non-executive. A general requirement and an inherent responsibility to potential dangers remain in the name of the nominated director. As with a corporation secretary, this is a similar job. With our Nominee Director Services, we make sure that our Nominee Directors are protected by the necessary insurances, such as the Deed of Indemnity and the Director’s and Officer Liability Insurance needs.
Every company’s use of the Nominee Local Director position requires the inclusion of these clauses in the terms of use:
- Taking advantage of our complete package for the role of Corporate Secretary in conjunction with each other.
- At least one extra director who is capable of making choices and taking responsibility for the organisation. I don’t know whether this filmmaker has ever worked in the US.
- Accounting and tax packages start at $1,200 per year, and a refundable $2,000 Singapore dollar security deposit is required.
As a foreign business owner in Singapore, this is the best option for you since it saves you money on company registration, GST payments, and shareholder risks.
