Types of Addresses Registered with ACRA

1. Business Address (For sole-proprietorships, partnerships, and LPs)

A Business Address is the place where you carry out your business. All sole-proprietorships, partnerships and limited partnerships in Singapore must provide a business address when registering with ACRA. The business address will be made publicly available in ACRA search directory on www.bizfile.gov to allow the public to easily locate your business. Before registering a particular premise as a business address, you should check that the law allows you to carry out your business there.

Under the Home Office Scheme, you may use your residential address as the business address. This scheme applies to both HDB and private properties. You will need to seek prior approval from HDB or URA respectively.

Do note that A P.O. Box address cannot be used for a business address. A P.O. Box are traditionally used by individuals to receive mail in areas where mail may not be delivered directly to their homes. People also use P.O. boxes for security, privacy, the need for quicker delivery, and to maintain a permanent mailing address. You may not use the PO Box “street address” option as your physical residence or place of business in Legal documents.

2. Registered Office Address (For companies and LLPs)

All companies and limited liability partnerships must provide a registered office address during incorporation. The registered office address refers to the place where all communications and notices to the company or LLP may be addressed, and the place where the company’s or LLP’s register and records are kept.

A registered office must be operational and accessible to the public during normal office hours, but need not be where the company or LLP conducts its activities (e.g. registered office address is in Raffles Place, but the factory is in Tuas). A P.O. Box address cannot be used for a business address.

3. Residential & Alternate Address

All business owners and position holders such as Company secretaries and Company directors must provide their residential address to ACRA at the point of registration. These addresses are made publicly available within business profiles that the public can purchase to find out more about an entity. However, business owners and position holders have the option of registering an additional alternate address. The alternate address will be displayed in the business profile for public information instead of their residential address. The alternate address must be an address where he or she can be contacted and must be within the same jurisdiction as the residential address. This service cost $40. The P.O. Box cannot be used as an alternate address.

Whenever there is a change in your business address or registered office address, you must inform ACRA within 14 days by filing a transaction in ACRA’s online filing portal.