The following guide gives an overview of the annual filing requirements that applies to the Singapore private limited companies. Both functioning and non-functioning companies have to comply with these requirements.
PREPARING THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The annual financial statements must be prepared to meet the requirements of the Singapore Financial Reporting Standards.
Prepare these statements for the accounting year according to the financial activities of your company. If there are lots of financial transactions every month, you should ensure your accounting records have been maintained properly on monthly basis.
On the other hand, if only a small number of financial transactions take place, then quarterly or annual bookkeeping is sufficient to meet the regulatory requirements.
Always let a professional and certified accountant prepare these statements. It will help you avoid legal problems that can arise if your accounts do not match the financial transaction records.
Make sure the profit and loss statements show all incomes, the balance sheet, cash flow, and equity change records.
HOW TO FILE ECI OR ESTIMATED CHARGEABLE INCOME?
All registered companies in Singapore are required to declare the ECI and the revenue. These details must be filed using the ECI form and submitted to the IRAS (Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore).
The duly filled form must be filed with this government department within three months after the end of the financial year. The ECI form must be filed even when the estimated income is zero. The company can declare “Nil” income if it has no income.
FINANCIAL STATEMENT AUDIT
After preparing the financial statements, your company may have to go for an audit of those statements under certain conditions. There are three such conditions and you will need auditing of your financial statements if your company meets any two of these conditions:
- The total annual revenue exceeds S$10 million
- The total assets are more than S$10 million
- The number of employees exceeds 50
Companies that are a part of the group are assessed based on a group consolidation.
AGM (ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING)
It is mandatory for a Singapore company to hold an annual general meeting at least once in a year. The general AGM rules include:
- The first AGM of the company must be held within 18 months of incorporation.
- There should not be more than 15 months of gap between two AGMs.
- The accounts must be up to date and no older than six months before the annual general meeting.
- Private companies can stop holding AGMs if all members having voting rights pass a resolution to this effect at the general meeting.
ANNUAL RETURN FILING WITH ACRA
A Singapore company has to file annual return with ACRA within one month of the AGM.
The return must have details of the company officers, its registered address, and particulars of the auditors if their services have been used. There are specific rules that apply to the filing of the company’s account data.
ANNUAL TAX RETURN FILING WITH IRAS
All Singapore companies are required to file their annual tax return before November 30 with IRAS. Taxes in Singapore are calculated for the preceding year transactions.
The financial year profits of the preceding year are declared in the tax return filed in the current year. All company directors are accountable and responsible for complying with these tax return filing requirements.
These rules are statutory requirements. Failure to comply with these rules is an offense and can result in penal actions that can include fines and even prosecution.
