How is a dormant company determined in Singapore?

Generally, a company with no meaningful accounting transactions or business income during the financial year is called a dormant company. However, ACRA (Companies Act) and IRAS (tax law) use different criteria, so it must be checked separately depending on the obligation in question.

• ACRA criteria: a company with no significant accounting transactions during the financial year. This is used to determine exemptions from audit, from preparing financial statements and from holding an AGM.
• IRAS criteria: a company that did not carry on business and had no income throughout the entire basis period. This is used to determine how corporate income tax is filed and whether a filing waiver applies.

For example, if business operations have stopped but the company has deposit interest or investment income, it may not be considered dormant under the IRAS criteria. Even a dormant company is not automatically released from its Annual Return obligation.

Tax treatment can differ depending on the company's revenue, shareholder structure and transactions, so please consult an accounting professional before applying it.

The Lee Kim Alliance accounting team provides accounting and tax consultations.

As of November 2026, source: ACRA, ACRA, IRAS