Knowledge Highlights 26 November 2024
ACRA extends deadline for statutory filings and lodging information on register of registrable controllers on BizFile+ portal
On 15 September 2020, the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (“ACRA”) issued an announcement stating the following:
- Business entities that have annual statutory filings such as Annual Returns with due dates from 8 September 2020 to 31 October 2020 will have up to 30 November 2020 to file, with no late filing penalties imposed.
- All other ad hoc statutory filings such as change in company information and personal particulars of company officers with due dates from 8 September 2020 onwards will have up to 30 November 2020 to file, with no late filing penalties imposed.
- The “Update Register of Registrable Controllers” transaction in the BizFile+ portal (“RORC BizFile+ Form”) will continue to be suspended until December 2020. The deadline for companies and limited liability partnerships (“LLPs”) to file Register of Registrable Controllers (“RORC”) information with ACRA will be extended to 31 March 2021.
ACRA also advised that BizFile+ users who need to file select time-sensitive and critical transactions can contact the ACRA helpdesk at 6248 6028 for assistance.
Background
On 11 September 2020, ACRA announced that it was suspending the RORC BizFile+ Form until further notice due to technical issues and further extended the deadline for companies and LLPs to lodge RORC information by one month to 31 October 2020. ACRA also announced that any penalties incurred for statutory filings with due dates between 8 and 13 September 2020 would be waived as some BizFile+ users might have experienced difficulties in lodging other filings on the BizFile+ portal. On 14 September 2020, ACRA further advised that the RORC BizFile+ Form would continue to be suspended and advance notice would be given when the lodging of RORC information resumes and a revised deadline is set.
Requirement to file RORC information with ACRA
The requirement for all companies, foreign companies and LLPs, unless exempted, to lodge information on the RORC with ACRA via BizFile+ was first announced on 23 March 2020 as part of ongoing efforts to uphold Singapore’s reputation as a trusted financial hub, and is in line with international practices. This is in addition to the existing requirements for these entities to maintain an RORC at the registered office address.
Reference materials
The following media releases are available on the ACRA website www.acra.gov.sg:
- Update on BizFile+ - Longer time for filing and no imposition of filing penalties (15 September 2020)
- Update on BizFile+ e-services (14 September 2020)
- Waiver of penalties for statutory filings on ACRA’s BizFile+ portal (11 September 2020)
- Important notice on filing of RORC information (11 September 2020)
