Overview
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Region | Asia-Pacific |
| ISO 3166-1 | SG / SGP |
| Registry | ACRA (companies, LLPs, LPs, foreign branches); IRAS (some sole props); other issuing agencies for non-ACRA entities |
| Last updated | 2026-05-06 |
Identifiers
Collect two identifiers from each business customer in Singapore and submit them as strings on the application body.| API field | Local name | Issuer |
|---|---|---|
businessInfo.taxId | GST Registration Number | IRAS |
businessInfo.businessEntityId | Unique Entity Number (UEN) | ACRA (companies, LLPs, LPs, foreign branches); IRAS (some sole props); other issuing agencies for non-ACRA entities |
Sector regulators
MAS · SGX · IRAS · IMDA · MOM
Legal structures
| Local name | Abbreviation | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Private Company Limited by Shares | Pte Ltd | The dominant SME vehicle; 1–50 non-public shareholders; limited liability; shares are not freely transferable to the public; at least one resident director required (Companies Act s.145). Equivalent to a US LLC. |
| Public Company Limited by Shares | Ltd | Shares may be offered to the public and listed on SGX or remain unlisted; no cap on shareholders; subject to stricter governance and disclosure requirements under the Companies Act. Equivalent to a US C-Corp. |
| Public Company Limited by Guarantee | — | No share capital; members’ liability limited to a guaranteed amount; used exclusively for non-profit purposes such as charities, clubs, and professional bodies. Closest US equivalent: Nonprofit Corporation (501(c)(3)). |
| Variable Capital Company | VCC | Investment fund corporate vehicle under the Variable Capital Companies Act 2018 (effective 2020-01-14); must be managed by a MAS-licensed fund manager; may be structured as an umbrella with sub-funds. Closest US equivalent: Statutory/Business Trust (investment fund vehicle). |
| Limited Liability Partnership | LLP | Separate legal entity under the Limited Liability Partnerships Act 2005; all partners have limited liability for the partnership’s debts while retaining partnership flexibility. Equivalent to a US LLP. |
| Limited Partnership | LP | Registered under the Limited Partnerships Act 2008; requires at least one general partner with unlimited liability and one or more limited partners whose liability is capped at their contribution. Equivalent to a US LP. |
| General Partnership | — | An association of 2–20 persons carrying on business in common for profit; not a separate legal entity; all partners bear unlimited personal liability for partnership debts. Registered with ACRA under the Business Names Registration Act. Equivalent to a US General Partnership (GP). |
| Sole Proprietorship | — | A business owned and operated by a single individual; not a separate legal entity from the owner; the owner bears unlimited personal liability for all business debts. Registered with ACRA under the Business Names Registration Act. Equivalent to a US Sole Proprietorship. |
| Branch of Foreign Company | Branch | A foreign company registered to carry on business in Singapore under Companies Act Part XI; not a separate legal entity from the parent; at least one authorised representative ordinarily resident in Singapore is required. Closest US equivalent: Branch/Rep Office. |
How documents combine
For each evidence area, this table shows whether the listed documents are alternatives (any one of) or a bundle (all required). The artifact-by-artifact lookup follows below.| Evidence area | Documents needed |
|---|---|
| Legal Registration | ACRA Business Profile |
| Constitutive Documents | Constitution of the Company |
| Tax Registration | GST Registration Certificate |
| Governance Records | All required: ACRA Business Profile + Central ROND |
| Signing Authority | Directors’ Resolution |
| Address | Any one of: Lease Agreement · Utility Bill · Bank Statement |
| Good Standing | Certificate of Good Standing |
Documents to collect
The physical documents you’ll collect from your customer, with the evidence area each one proves. One document can prove multiple areas — for example, Brazil’s Cartão CNPJ covers both tax and business-registration proof, so it appears once with both areas listed.| Document | Proves |
|---|---|
| ACRA Business Profile (Bizfile extract) | Legal Registration, Governance Records |
| Constitution of the Company | Constitutive Documents |
| GST Registration Certificate (IRAS) | Tax Registration |
| Central ROND (ACRA) | Governance Records |
| Directors’ Resolution | Signing Authority |
| Lease Agreement | Address |
| Utility Bill (≤90 days old) | Address |
| Bank Statement (≤90 days old) | Address |
| Certificate of Good Standing (ACRA) | Good Standing |
| Sector-Specific License | MAS licence (banks, insurers, capital markets, payment services under PS Act 2019, DPT/VASP), SGX membership (brokers), IMDA licence (telecom) |
Collection notes
- Legal Registration: Confirms UEN, incorporation date, entity type, status, registered address. Downloadable via Bizfile.
- Constitutive Documents: Single document since 2016-01-03 (Companies (Amendment) Act 2014). Pre-2016 companies may hold legacy MoA + AoA pair, deemed a valid constitution.
- Tax Registration: UEN doubles as corporate income tax reference; GST certificate only exists if registered for GST. If below SGD 1M threshold, collect UEN confirmation letter or ACRA profile as tax ID evidence.
- Sector-Specific License: Collect relevant MAS licence certificate for any regulated financial activity; three licence types under PS Act 2019 (Money-Changing, Standard Payment Institution, Major Payment Institution).
- Governance Records: Business Profile lists all current directors. CLLPMA 2024 adds ROND (Register of Nominee Directors) filed with ACRA; existing-company deadline was 2025-12-31.
- Signing Authority: No common seal required since 2016. For foreign-use copies: Apostille issued by Singapore Academy of Law (Hague Apostille Convention, eff. 2021-09-16).
- Address: Conduit universal policy: lease (no time bound) OR utility bill OR bank statement, with utility/bank dated within 90 days. Same evidence satisfies both registered-address and operating-address checks.
- Good Standing: Purchasable via Bizfile. Distinct from the ACRA Business Profile extract. Also available for VCCs via vcc.bizfile.gov.sg.
Person roles
When you submit a person on the application body, set theirrole to one of Conduit’s canonical BusinessPersonRole values. Use this table to map a local corporate-governance title onto the right canonical role.
| Local role | Canonical API role | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Director | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Appointed to manage the company; at least one must be ordinarily resident in Singapore (CA s.145). |
| Managing Director | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Director delegated day-to-day management authority under the Constitution. |
| Nominee Director | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Appointed “by way of business” through a registered CSP (CSP Act 2024, eff. 2025-06-09); nominee status publicly visible on ACRA profile. |
| Authorised Representative | LEGAL_REPRESENTATIVE | Required for foreign branches; legally responsible person resident in Singapore. |
| VCC Manager | LEGAL_REPRESENTATIVE | VCC management company (MAS-licensed) under VCC Act 2018. |
| VCC Director | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Director of a VCC under VCC Act 2018; at least one must be ordinarily resident in Singapore. |
Notes
- UEN is the universal identifier — it doubles as the corporate income tax reference; a separate “tax ID” only exists if the entity is GST-registered. Below the SGD 1M threshold, there is no GST certificate to collect; rely on the ACRA Business Profile for tax ID evidence.
- Pre-2016 companies may still hold a legacy Memorandum and Articles of Association pair rather than a single Constitution — both are legally valid; accept either format.
- Two-wave 2025 reforms are live: CSP Act 2024 (eff. 2025-06-09) requires all nominee-director appointments to flow through a registered CSP; CLLPMA 2024 (eff. 2025-06-16) mandates ROND + RONS central filings. Existing companies had until 2025-12-31 to file ROND/RONS; non-filers face penalties up to SGD 25,000.