How Much Does a Company Secretary Cost in Singapore? What a Fair Package Includes

Short answer: What you pay for a company secretary in Singapore depends on what the package actually covers. At Raffles Corporate Services, the Annual Corporate Package for a private company is S$600 a year, which already includes the S$60 ACRA annual return fee, a named secretary, statutory registers, AGM documents and filing reminders. Registered office and non-routine changes are priced separately.

Raffles Corporate Services works with a panel of experienced Singapore law firms who offer cost-effective and efficient legal service and advice. This article is general information only and is not legal advice.

What does a company secretary legally have to do?

A company secretary keeps the company compliant with the Companies Act: maintaining registers, preparing meeting documents and making sure ACRA filings go in on time. The role is mandatory, so the cost is a fixed overhead of running a company, not an optional extra.

Section 171 of the Companies Act 1967 requires every company to have at least one secretary, appointed within six months of incorporation. ACRA’s guidance states that the secretary must be a natural person, a Singapore citizen, permanent resident or someone who meets the local residency rules, and cannot be the same person as the sole director. If the post stays empty for more than six months, the director may face a fine of up to S$1,000.

In practice, the secretary’s work falls into three buckets:

• Records: the register of members, register of directors and secretaries, minute books, the register of registrable controllers, and the registers of nominee directors and nominee shareholders.
• Annual compliance: preparing the AGM notice or written resolutions and filing the annual return under Section 197 of the Companies Act within seven months of the financial year end.
• Changes during the year: appointing or removing directors, share transfers and allotments, changes of address or business activity, each of which generally has to be lodged with ACRA within 14 days.

For a fuller description of the duties, see our guide to the company secretary’s appointment and duties under Section 171.

What should an annual corporate secretarial package include?

A fair annual package should cover everything the law requires every year, so that a company with no changes pays nothing beyond the package price. If the annual return fee, AGM documents or the named secretary are charged separately, the headline price is not the real price.

Here is what the Raffles Corporate Services Annual Corporate Package (S$600 a year for a private company limited by shares) covers, and why each item matters:

Clients also get a personalised WhatsApp group with a dedicated team, and access to the Raffles Suite software tools at no extra cost. For a public company, the equivalent package is S$850 a year, covering up to 10 members, with S$100 for each additional 10 members or part thereof.

What government fees do you pay on top?

For a company with no changes in the year, the only routine ACRA fee is the S$60 annual return fee, and that is already inside the Raffles Corporate Services package. Other ACRA fees arise only when something happens, such as an extension of time or a late filing.

The figures below are taken from ACRA’s published service and transaction fees for companies and its penalty framework for late annual returns.

The late penalties are worth keeping in mind when comparing prices. One late annual return wipes out any saving from a cheaper secretary. Our article on what filing your annual return late actually costs walks through the escalation in more detail.

Which corporate secretarial services cost extra?

Anything that changes the company, rather than simply keeping it compliant, is usually billed per transaction. Expect to pay separately for resolutions, share movements, extraordinary general meetings and extensions of time.

Raffles Corporate Services publishes its non-routine fees. Existing clients pay the lower rate:

For companies that expect many changes in a year, the Annual Corporate Package Add On at S$750 a year covers custom preparation of up to five directors’ resolutions in writing, up to five members’ resolutions in writing, up to five share sale instruments and up to three shareholders’ agreements, plus a monthly online review if needed. Most companies do not need it.

What drives the price of a company secretary up or down?

Price is driven mainly by how much changes in your company each year, who your shareholders and directors are, and whether you need extra services bundled in, such as a registered office or a nominee director.

Number of changes

A company that only holds its AGM and files its annual return costs the least. Fundraising rounds, frequent share transfers and board changes add per-transaction fees or justify the Add On.

Who the owners are

Since the Corporate Service Providers Act 2024 came into force on 9 June 2025, registered corporate service providers have to carry out customer due diligence and meet anti-money laundering obligations. That is why compliance check fees apply where required: S$80 for work pass holders, S$250 for non-resident entities and S$400 for non-resident individuals. Remote transactions involving foreign parties may also need a video call.

Number of members

A public company with many members takes more work to maintain. The public company package starts at S$850 a year for up to 10 members.

Bundled services

A registered office adds S$200 a year. If no director is ordinarily resident in Singapore, a nominee director starts from S$2,000 a year with a S$3,000 refundable deposit.

What are the red flags in a very cheap company secretary package?

A very low headline price usually means work has been moved out of the package and into extra charges, or that the work is not being done properly. Check for these warning signs before you sign:

• The S$60 ACRA annual return fee is excluded, or the annual return is billed as an extra.
• AGM notices and resolutions are charged per document.
• No named secretary, or a secretary who is not a real individual you can contact.
• Statutory registers, including the register of registrable controllers, are “available on request” rather than maintained.
• No filing reminders, leaving deadline risk with you.
• A registered office price that looks too good, combined with mail handling charges per letter.
• No customer due diligence at all. A provider that skips identity checks may not be a registered corporate service provider, which is a risk for you.
• Long lock-in periods or high fees to transfer records to a new secretary.

If your current provider shows several of these signs, see how to switch your corporate secretary and what the handover involves.

How do you compare company secretary quotes properly?

Compare the total cost of a normal year, not the headline package price. Ask each provider to price the same scenario.

1. List what your company will need in a typical year: AGM, annual return, any director or shareholder changes, registered office.
2. Ask whether the ACRA annual return fee is included.
3. Ask for the per-item price of resolutions, share transfers and extensions of time.
4. Confirm who the named secretary is and how quickly they respond.
5. Check whether compliance check fees apply to your shareholders or directors.
6. Add the numbers and compare the totals.

If your needs are growing, our article on when to upgrade from a basic to a full-service corporate secretarial package may help.

Frequently asked questions

Can a director act as the company secretary?

Yes, a director can also be the secretary, unless that person is the sole director. ACRA’s rules do not allow the sole director to be the secretary as well, so a one-director company needs a second person or a corporate service provider.

Is the S$60 annual return fee included in the S$600 package?

Yes. The Raffles Corporate Services Annual Corporate Package includes the S$60 payable to ACRA for filing the annual return.

Can I buy a registered office address without the secretarial package?

No. Raffles Corporate Services provides the Registered Office Package at S$200 a year only together with the Annual Corporate Package. It includes a digital mailbox and online document storage in Raffles Vault.

What does a company secretary cost if my company is dormant?

The secretarial obligations continue while the company exists, so the annual package still applies. A dormant company still has to file its annual return, although it may be exempt from preparing financial statements if it meets the conditions in Section 201A of the Companies Act.

What happens if I do not appoint a secretary within six months?

The company breaches Section 171 and the director may be fined up to S$1,000. It also means nobody is tracking deadlines, which tends to lead to late annual returns and further penalties.

Last reviewed: 4 October 2026. The Editorial Team, Raffles Corporate Services.