It is important to maintain a Register of Registrable Controllers (RORC) as part of corporate compliance requirements if you want to operate a business in Singapore. RORC identifies the legal or individual party that normally owns and manages the business by improving precision.

What is RORC in Singapore?

RORC (Register of Registrable Controllers) is a personal register including information about the registrable controllers of a company, commonly referred to as beneficial owners. It could be an individual or a legal entity that has either:

• Significant interest in the business
  • Control over the business

The main purpose is to identify legal entities that eventually exercise power over a company. RORC is a private register, which means that ordinary shareholders and public members cannot have access to it. However, relevant information can be provided by the ACRA to officers, corporate service providers, and enforcement agencies.

Who Has to Maintain an RORC?

Until the exemption is implemented, the requirement covers:

• Private and public companies in Singapore
  • Foreign businesses registered in Singapore
  • LLPs

Who Is a Registrable Controller?

A business has to identify persons who meet the relevant interest and/or control criteria. Any individual or legal entity can be a controller for a business with share capital, where they hold more than 25% of the shares or have voting rights.

For example, if a company has 3 shareholders, such as 40%, 35%, and 25%, the shareholders holding 40% and 35% would meet the threshold of significant interest. Moreover, ownership percentage does not always determine interest; persons who exercise powers through an arrangement can also be contemplated.

What are the Latest Requirements of RORC in 2026?

The latest changes only concern newly incorporated companies. For businesses registered from 16th June 2025, the RORC would have been set up on the same day as incorporation. These new businesses are also supposed to provide the information to the ACRA through BizFile+ at registration, until they are exempted.

For existing businesses, the RORC has to be maintained at the registered address of the business or the offices of their corporate service providers, and these registers can be maintained physically or electronically.

What Should Be Added in RORC?

The required information for an individual registrable controller should be:

• Full name
  • Address
  • Email
  • Contact
  • Nationality
  • Passport number
  • Date of birth
  • Date of joining
  • Date of leaving, if applicable

Is the RORC the same as the Register of Shareholders?

No. This is a significant element. The members observe and record the registered shareholders of the company, whereas the RORC tends to focus on entities and/or persons that eventually have important control and ownership.

What are The Deadlines For RORC Lodging in Singapore?

The deadlines for RORC lodging depend on whether your company is developing the information on register or just updating the existing records. Any changes must be submitted to the Central RORC of ACRA within 02 working days after the private RORC has been updated following the company registration.

Do Businesses in Singapore Need To Send Notices of Annual RORC?

Yes, businesses in Singapore are supposed to send notices to every controller once a year to verify particular and status of the controller remain the same. Also, there is no fixed date for the annual notice.

The company ought not to ignore the unattended notice from RORC. If a controller does not respond within 30 days, the records should be updated with the most recent data available.

What are the Fines for Non-Compliance of RORC?

Businesses are supposed to take RORC compliance seriously. Under the Companies Act 2024, the maximum penalties for offences involving the Controllers’ Registers, Nominee Shareholders, and Nominee Directors were raised from 5000 SGD to 25000 SGD.

Example

Let us consider a private company registered in Singapore. The company has two shareholders. One has 60% shares and the second has 40% shares. Both shareholders would generally meet the important criteria for interest and be assessed as registrable controllers. This company records the particulars in its private RORC by making the required Central RORC submission with ACRA.

After 6 months, the first shareholder transfers part of the shares to a new investor. Once the company is aware of the relevant change, it should keep updating its private RORC within 07 days and submit the change to the Central RORC of ACRA within 02 working days after updating the private register. This company then sends notices to its controllers to confirm if the information is remained precise during the annual process of verification.

Call to Inquire

We, at FAST ACCOUNTING, can help companies in Singapore by maintaining their statutory obligations, identifying the registrable controllers, handling the requirements of corporate compliance, and completing the updates of the RORC.

If you need assistance in keeping your records of the beneficial ownership register in Singapore precise and up to date, we have a team of experienced professionals who can assist in managing the whole process while keeping the deadlines in mind.