A Singapore company has a clear, well-defined cycle of obligations, owed mainly to two bodies: ACRA, the corporate regulator, and IRAS, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore. Singapore's system is efficient but exact, and it expects filings to be made on time. Cosmos tracks every deadline. This article sets out the main obligations.

Every Singapore company must file an annual return with ACRA. The annual return confirms the company's particulars, its officers, shareholders, registered office and share capital, and is filed each year within the period ACRA sets. It keeps the official record current.

A Singapore company must prepare financial statements for each financial year, and either hold an annual general meeting to lay them before the shareholders or, where the company qualifies, dispense with the meeting under the rules that allow it. The financial statements must be prepared to Singapore standards, and many companies file them with ACRA in a structured digital format. Cosmos prepares the financial statements and manages the meeting and filing.

Not every Singapore company must have its accounts audited. Singapore exempts a company that qualifies as a "small company", broadly a private company that meets size criteria across measures such as revenue, assets and number of employees. A company that does not qualify must appoint an auditor and have its accounts audited. Cosmos confirms whether your company is exempt, and arranges the audit where one is required; see Audit and assurance.

A Singapore company is subject to corporate tax on its income, administered by IRAS. There are two main filings each year. The first is the estimated chargeable income, an early estimate of the company's taxable income, due within a set period after the financial year ends. The second is the annual corporate tax return itself. Singapore also offers tax exemptions and reliefs, including schemes aimed at newer and smaller companies, which Cosmos will take into account. Cosmos handles the registration and filing; for tax planning and opinions, Cosmos will involve a qualified tax adviser.

Goods and services tax, or GST, is Singapore's tax on the supply of goods and services. A company must register for GST once its taxable turnover passes the registration threshold, and it may register voluntarily below that. A GST-registered company charges GST, files regular GST returns, and accounts for what is due. Cosmos advises whether and when registration applies, and handles the returns.

A Singapore company must keep a qualified company secretary in place at all times, and must maintain its register of registrable controllers, the record of who ultimately owns or controls the company, keeping it current as ownership changes. Cosmos maintains both for the companies it administers.

Singapore enforces its requirements firmly. Late filings to ACRA and IRAS carry penalties, and persistent default can lead to enforcement against the company and its directors, and ultimately to the company being struck off. Directors carry personal responsibility for the company's filings. As everywhere, a company whose deadlines are tracked has nothing to fear here; a company whose are not does.

Cosmos records every deadline that applies to your Singapore company, the annual return, the financial statements and meeting, the estimated chargeable income, the corporate tax return, GST returns, and tracks them all. Well before each one, you receive a clear reminder of what is due and what is needed from you. Where a filing needs an accountant or auditor, Cosmos handles it or arranges it in good time.