Who needs to apply to be a Registered Corporate Service Provider (CSP)?

The Corporate Service Providers (CSP) Act will come into effect on 9 June 2025. Businesses that provide corporate services will have up to 9 December 2025 to complete your registration as a registered CSP. Thereafter, only CSPs registered with ACRA will be allowed to provide these corporate services, whether in Singapore or overseas:
  • Forming business entities;
  • Acting or arranging for persons to act as directors or nominee shareholders;
  • Transacting with ACRA on behalf of other persons or as a secretary of a company by way of business;
  • Providing a registered office or a business address for business entities; or
  • Carrying out transactions for customers for any of the designated activities relating to the provision of accounting services.

Arranging for Another Person to Act

You must be a registered CSP if you arrange for another person to act in a particular capacity. Here are some examples: 
  • If you provide a customer with a shortlist of three proposed company directors and allow the customer to select one of them to act for their company. 
  • If you act as an intermediary by introducing persons to act as directors to customers and you bill those customers for doing so.

Designated Accounting Services

You must be a registered CSP if you engage in a designated activity (e.g. preparing completion accounts for real estate transactions) while providing accounting services (e.g. outsourced accounting services) to the same customer.

“Designated activity” means the preparation to carry out or the carrying out of transactions for a customer on any of the following activities:
  • Buying or selling of real estate;
  • Management of customer money, securities or other assets;
  • Management of bank, savings or securities accounts; 
  • Organisation of contributions for the creation, operation or management of corporations;
  • Creation, operation or management of legal persons or legal arrangements, or buying and selling business entities. 
“Accounting service” refers to financial accounting service, internal audit service, management accounting service or taxation service.

A public accounting entity registered under the Accountants Act would be deemed a registered CSP and would not need to submit a fresh application for registration, unless you need to conduct transactions via Bizfile on behalf of another person. 

Address Services

You must be a registered CSP if you provide address services to a customer that is a company, partnership or similar legal person such as:
  • Registered office address as required under the Companies Act 1967; 
  • Business address without a fixed physical space (e.g. as a shared office provider);
  • Correspondence address through which a customer can be contacted but is not physically present at;
  • Virtual office services for customers that are not physically present at the address.
You do not need to register if you are:
  • A landlord who leases out a dedicated physical unit/space to a business which uses it as their registered office, business or correspondence address. In such situations, there should be a tenancy agreement that sets out the terms of the landlord-tenant relationship, such as the address of the specific unit that is leased, the lease term, stamp duty obligations, etc.
  • An individual providing services as a company director or secretary for your employer.
  • An intermediary referring customers to registered CSPs.
For detailed information on specific activities and requirements, please refer to the Guidelines for Registered CSPs (PDF, 1.1MB).

How to Register as a registered Corporate Service Provider (CSP)?

You can apply to be a registered CSP via Bizfile. Your application will undergo a fit and proper assessment. You will need to pay an application fee of $400 when you submit your application for registration.

For existing Registered Filing Agents (RFAs), there is no need to apply to be a registered CSP.  You will automatically be treated as a registered Corporate Service Provider (CSP). Your CSP registration will retain the same validity period as your existing RFA registration. No application is needed, and no fees are payable.   During this period, you can continue to perform filing services for your customers.  However, do update ACRA on the types of corporate services you provide via the General Lodgement eService on Bizfile, and select > Corporate Service Provider > Update corporate service provider information.

Existing persons providing the prescribed corporate services and are not registered as registered filing agents must complete your registration as a registered CSP within 6 months from 9 June 2025, i.e. by 9 December 2025. Failing to do so and continuing your business without registering with ACRA may result in a fine of up to $50,000 if convicted.

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