The company director plays a vital role in the firm’s daily operations and growth. Thus, while appointing a director, you should be very careful regarding the person’s capability and legal matters.
In this article, we have gotten important insights from Chai Chung Hoong, a leading accounting expert in Singapore, to know about the things to know while hiring a company director.
Number of Directors
A private limited company must have at least one director. On the other hand, a public company must have at least three.
In Singapore, the director must be a natural person. In other words, You can’t appoint a corporate entity as your director. However, you can still hire nominee director services, who can send a director to stand in for you if you don’t want to be recognised as the official director.
The Companies Act doesn’t specify the maximum number of directors, but the company constitution could give that itself. For a small company, it could be beneficial to keep the number of directors to a minimum to avoid conflict of interest.
Residency Requirements
At least one company director must be ordinarily resident in Singapore. This means, if your company has multiple directors, only one needs to stay in the city-state.
By ordinary resident, we could mean a:
- Singapore Citizen
- Permanent Resident
- Entrepass Holder
- Employment Pass Holder
What If I Don’t Want to Stay in Singapore?
Well, you still have an option. According to Chai Chung Hoong, you could hire nominee director services.
A nominee director is a person who can formally stand as your company director. But they are only allowed to act on your behalf, and they can’t make autonomous decisions.
However, Chai Chung Hoong also states that you should be very wary about the person you hire as your nominee director. Make sure that they have professionalism, and you can trust them so that they don’t take any actions that could jeopardise your company’s existence.
Eligibility of a Director in Singapore
These are the requirements to check before appointing directors in Singapore:
- The person should be at least 18 years of age.
- For a public limited company or subsidiary of a public limited company, the person can’t exist 70 years old unless reappointed.
- The person shouldn’t be
- an undischarged bankrupt,
- an individual with a disqualification order from the court,
- or convicted of criminal offences related to fraud and dishonesty,
- convicted for three or more offences under the Companies Act within the last five years,
- someone with at least three high court orders made against not complying with the requirements of the act,
- involved in a company that was closed due to actions against national interest and security,
Is the Requirement for Nominee Director and Company Director the Same?
Chai Chung Hoong says that nominee directors are also essentially company directors, at least for the law. Hence, they should fulfil every requirement that other directors do.
But at the same time, you should pay extra attention to the nominee director services. Do your research to find out if they have the experience and proven work history of helping other firms.
Also, it would help to check if the company offers other services, including accounting, secretarial, etc. Even if you don’t take these services, you can ensure that the firm you outsource your director from understands the intricacies of running a business.
Where to Find Good Nominee Director Services?
Well, again, Chai Chung Hoong says that you need to do essential research. Look for company lists and reviews on websites, social media platforms, and other business listing services.
On the other hand, you could consider taking services from AI Accountant. A leading nominee director services provider, the company is known for reliability, affordability, and transparency regarding pricing and communications.
