Singapore legislation
Section 12
Section 12
Registers
(1)
The Registrar is, subject to this Act, to keep such registers as the Registrar considers necessary in such form as he or she thinks fit.
(2)
Any person may, on payment of the prescribed fee —
[Deleted by Act 24 of 2025 wef 06/05/2026](b)subject to subsection (2AA), require a copy of the notice of incorporation of a company, any certificate issued under this Act, any document or extract from any document kept by the Registrar to be given or certified by the Registrar;
have access to any register of directors, chief executive officers, secretaries or auditors of a company kept by the Registrar under section 173(1) by obtaining a copy of or an extract from it; or
have access to the electronic register of members of a private company kept by the Registrar under section 196A by obtaining a copy of or an extract from it.
(2AA)
2AA
A certificate of confirmation of incorporation mentioned in section 17(9) or 19(7) may only be issued to the company upon an application made in accordance with those provisions.
(2AB)
2AB
Subsection (2)(b) does not apply to any document prescribed as an excluded document for the purposes of this subsection.
(2AC)
2AC
Where a document is submitted on or after the date of commencement of section 28 of the ACRA (Registry and Regulatory Enhancements) Act 2024 using a form on the electronic transaction system, the references to the document in subsection (2)(b) exclude the following entries in the form:
a means of notification provided by a person for the purposes of section 28A(1)(b) of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority Act 2004;
an individual’s date of birth obtained under this Act or section 28(1A) of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority Act 2004;
any other prescribed information.
(2A)
Subsection (2)(b) and (d) does not apply to such exempt private company that is wholly owned by the Government as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, specify where the Minister considers that it would not be in the public interest for —
[Deleted by Act 24 of 2025 wef 06/05/2026](b)any certificate or copy of or extract from any document relating to any such company to be given or certified to any member of the public.
(2B)
Despite the cancellation of any notification mentioned in subsection (2A) in respect of a company, subsection (2)(b) and (d) does not apply to any document or certificate relating to that company that is filed or lodged with the Registrar, or issued under the Act, before the date of such cancellation, whether or not that company remains an exempt private company wholly owned by the Government, and whether or not it has been wound up.
(2C)
Despite subsection (2), a director, chief executive officer, secretary, auditor or member of a company may, without charge —
[Deleted by Act 24 of 2025 wef 06/05/2026](b)obtain from the Registrar a copy of or an extract from the register of directors, register of chief executive officers, register of secretaries and register of auditors of that company kept by the Registrar under section 173(1).
(2D)
Despite subsection (2), a director, chief executive officer, secretary, auditor or member of a private company may, without charge —
[Deleted by Act 24 of 2025 wef 06/05/2026](b)obtain from the Registrar a copy of or an extract from the register of members of that company kept by the Registrar under section 196A.
(3)
A copy of or an extract from any document (including a copy produced by way of microfilm) filed or lodged with the Registrar using a non‑electronic medium that is certified to be a true copy or extract by the Registrar is in any proceedings admissible in evidence as of equal validity with the original document.
(4)
In any legal proceedings, a certificate issued by the Registrar that a requirement of this Act specified in the certificate —
had or had not been complied with at a date or within a period specified in the certificate; or
had been complied with upon a date specified in the certificate but not before that date,shall be received as prima facie evidence of the matters specified in the certificate.
(5)
If the Registrar is of the opinion that any document submitted to him or her —
contains any matter contrary to law;
by reason of any omission or misdescription has not been duly completed;
does not comply with the requirements of this Act; or
contains any error, alteration or erasure,he or she may refuse to register or receive the document and request that the document be appropriately amended or completed and resubmitted or that a fresh document be submitted in its place.
(6)
If the Registrar is of the opinion that it is no longer necessary or desirable to retain any document lodged, filed or registered with the Registrar and which has been microfilmed or converted to electronic form, the Registrar may —
destroy the document with the authorisation of the National Library Board under section 17 of the National Library Board Act 1995; or
transfer the document to the National Archives of Singapore under section 16 of that Act.
(7)
In subsection (3), “non‑electronic medium” means a medium other than the electronic transaction system established under Part 6A of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority Act 2004.