On 11 October 2017, Singapore’s Accounting & Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) has immediately adopted the Companies (Transfer of Registration) Regulations 201, which allows eligible foreign companies to relocate their registered offices to Singapore.
The Re-Domiciliation Regulations were issued pursuant to the amendments to the Companies Act (Chapter 50), which introduces the provisions for the retransfer of foreign companies to Singapore, and these re-domiciled foreign corporate entities (FCE) further govern the provisions of the Singapore Company Law.
Certain tax exemptions apply to eligible foreign companies relocating to Singapore which are as follows:
- Relief from exit taxes (a credit in Singapore for taxes paid on deemed income in the corporation’s existing jurisdiction)
- A deduction for expenses incurred prior to re-domiciliation (including expenses related to IP protection, research and development, renovation and refurbishment costs)
- A deduction for trading stocks
- A bad debt deduction
- Relief relating to an impairment loss on financial assets
- Capital allowances for qualifying plant and machinery
- Write-down allowances
