Sole Proprietorship or Private Limited Company: Which is Better?

Before you conduct business with a company or perhaps form a partnership, it’s always a good idea to perform due diligence. You can start with the basic credentials like the company registration number, before proceeding to the intricate details like its statutory compliance standing, legal background, and credit history. The resultant information that you uncover should give you a clear picture of not only the company’s registration details, but also its overall business integrity. 

This article provides a detailed guideline on how to check a registered company in Singapore. With just a company name, a quick search process could potentially give you the corresponding Singapore business registration number, as well as the company and its essential history. 

How Can You Know More About A Company In Singapore?

There are two primary approaches you could use here. If you’re the busy type, you could simply hire a third-party investigator to conduct the research on your behalf. Or, you could alternatively choose to do it yourself by searching for the company’s information from various digital directories- starting with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority. 

As the official statutory body for incorporating and regulating corporations, ACRA happens to keep a record of the compliance histories of all company registration numbers in Singapore. 

You can uncover details from the company such as its precise Singapore registration number, and as well as its annual return filing dates, AGM meeting dates, and the submission periods for its financial statements. All this is accessible remotely and for free via ACRA’s official web portal, ACRA BizFile. 

How To Check Registered Company In Singapore: A Step-By-Step Guide

• To check, start by making your way to ACRA and its BizFile website. While it’s mostly used for business registration and compliance filing, the portal also offers free access to its database of company registration numbers. 
• Right at the top of the page, you’ll find a search field for checking registered entities and public accountants in SG. This is where you should type in the name of the company or business entity you’re interested in. 
• As soon as you hit the “Search” button, the system will display a CAPTCHA challenge to verify that you’re human. So, you can fill in the form and proceed. 
• Once you’re done, ACRA and its system will eventually display the basic information connected to your company of interest.

In the end, you get to view details such as: 

• The Company Registration Number (UEN), Name, Industry, and Singapore Address: This should check out with the company’s physical business premises and types of activities. 
• Business Entity Status: This unveils the company’s legal existence status, as well as the state of its operations. A “Live” status here means the company is still running its operations. 
• Compliance Rating: This provides insights into the company’s compliance history. You get to find out when the business entity last filed its financial statements and annual returns. Additionally, the system displays the dates of the company’s previous and upcoming AGM meetings. 

Over To You

Now, let’s face it. This whole thing, when you come to think of it, is a double-edged sword. While ACRA Singapore and its directory is great for checking a registered company in Singapore, it doesn’t discriminate. A quick search should reveal even your company’s details — including its Singapore business registration number, compliance rating, business status, etc. 

So, talk to our Singapore corporate experts today, and let us help you protect your company’s reputation by maintaining a clean compliance record.