Qualifications for registration
10.—(1) Any individual who —(a)
has attained 21 years of age; and
(b)
satisfies the prescribed requirements relating to —(i)
qualifications;
(ii)
practical experience; and
(iii)
membership in any professional accountancy body or organisation,
is entitled, on payment of the prescribed fee, to be registered as a public accountant under this Part.
(2) The Authority may, after consultation with the Oversight Committee and subject to such conditions as it thinks fit, exempt any individual from any of the prescribed requirements referred to in subsection (1)(b).
Application for registration
11.—(1) Any individual who desires to be registered as a public accountant under this Part may make an application to the Oversight Committee in such form or manner as the Oversight Committee may require.
(2) An application for registration under subsection (1) on or after the date of commencement of section 15 of the ACRA (Registry and Regulatory Enhancements) Act 2024 must contain the following particulars of the applicant: (a)
full name;
(b)
identification;
(c)
nationality;
(d)
residential address and contact address.[35/2014]
[Act 21 of 2024 wef 09/12/2024]
(3) An application under subsection (1) must be accompanied by —(a)
the prescribed fee; and
(b)
a declaration by the applicant verifying any information contained in or relating to the application.
(4) The Oversight Committee may require an applicant for registration to undergo such interviews as the Oversight Committee may determine.
(5) The Oversight Committee may refuse to register any applicant who —(a)
in the opinion of the Oversight Committee —(i)
is not of good reputation or character;
(ii)
is engaged in any business or occupation that is inconsistent with the integrity of a public accountant; or
(iii)
is otherwise unfit to practise as a public accountant; or
(b)
has had his or her registration, licence or approval to practise as a public accountant in any other country withdrawn, suspended, cancelled or revoked.
(6) Where the Oversight Committee refuses to register an applicant, it must by written notice inform the applicant of its refusal.
(7) Any person who is aggrieved by any refusal of the Oversight Committee under subsection (5) may, within 30 days of the notice given under subsection (6), appeal to the Minister whose decision is final.
(8) In the case of an applicant who applies for registration before 3 January 2016 and is registered as a public accountant after 3 January 2016, the address stated in his or her application to the Oversight Committee is treated as his or her residential address in the Register of Public Accountants, until a notification of any change to his or her residential address is received under section 14(1).[35/2014]
(9) In the case of a public accountant registered before 3 January 2016, the address as recorded in the Register of Public Accountants is treated as his or her residential address in that Register, until a notification of any change to the public accountant’s residential address is received by the Registrar under section 14(1).[35/2014]
Certificate of registration and record in Register of Public Accountants
12.—(1) Upon an individual being registered as a public accountant under this Part, the Registrar must —(a)
issue to the individual a certificate of registration; and
(b)
record his or her name and relevant particulars in the Register of Public Accountants.
(2) A certificate of registration must be issued in such form or manner as the Oversight Committee may determine.
(3) Subject to the provisions of this Act, every such certificate of registration is in force from the date of its issue or renewal to 31 December of the year in respect of which the certificate is issued or renewed.
Electronic transaction system
12A.—(1) The Registrar may —(a)
require or permit any person to carry out any transaction with the Registrar under this Act; and
(b)
issue any approval, certificate, notice, determination or other document pursuant or connected to a transaction referred to in paragraph (a),
using the electronic transaction system established under Part 6A of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority Act 2004.
[18/2014]
(2) In this section, “transaction”, in relation to the Registrar, means —(a)
the filing or lodging of any document with the Registrar, or the submission, production, delivery, provision or sending of any document to the Registrar;
(b)
any making of any application, submission or request to the Registrar;
(c)
any provision of any undertaking or declaration to the Registrar; and
(d)
any extraction, retrieval or accessing of any document, record or information maintained by the Registrar.[18/2014]
Request for copy of filed documents
12B.—(1) A person may, upon payment of such fee as may be prescribed, require a copy of or an extract from any document, as may be prescribed, which is filed with the Registrar, to be given or certified by the Registrar.[35/2014]
[Act 21 of 2024 wef 09/12/2024]
(2) Any copy or extract given under subsection (1) which 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.[35/2014]
(3) Subsection (1) does not apply to any document prescribed as an excluded document for the purposes of this subsection.[Act 21 of 2024 wef 09/12/2024]
(4) Where a document is submitted on or after the date of commencement of section 16 of the ACRA (Registry and Regulatory Enhancements) Act 2024 using a form on the electronic transaction system, the reference to a document in subsection (1) excludes the following entries in the form:(a)
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;
(b)
an individual’s date of birth obtained under this Act or section 28(1A) of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority Act 2004;
(c)
any other prescribed information.[Act 21 of 2024 wef 09/12/2024]
(5) Where —(a)
a document is filed or lodged with the Registrar or the Oversight Committee under this Act by submitting a form on the electronic transaction system on or after the date of commencement of section 16 of the ACRA (Registry and Regulatory Enhancements) Act 2024; and
(b)
an individual’s residential address is entered in that form,
the Registrar must cause the individual’s residential address to be excluded from every copy or extract of that document given or certified by the Registrar under subsection (1).
[Act 21 of 2024 wef 09/12/2024]
Renewal of registration
13.—(1) Unless the Oversight Committee or the Registrar allows otherwise, a public accountant who desires to renew his or her certificate of registration upon its expiry must, at least one month before the date of the expiry, submit his or her application for the renewal to the Oversight Committee in such form or manner as the Oversight Committee may require.
(2) An application under subsection (1) must be accompanied by —(a)
the prescribed fee; and
(b)
a declaration by the applicant verifying any information contained in or relating to the application.
(3) Unless the Oversight Committee determines otherwise, a public accountant is not entitled to have his or her certificate of registration renewed if he or she has failed —(a)
to comply with the prescribed requirements relating to continuing professional education;
(b)
to comply with any order made under section 38(1) or (2)(b); or[Act 32 of 2022 wef 01/07/2023]
(c)
to satisfy any other requirement that the Oversight Committee thinks relevant.
Duty to report change in particulars
14.—(1) Every public accountant must, whenever there is any change in his or her name, residential address, contact address or any other of his or her relevant particulars as recorded in the Register of Public Accountants, notify the Registrar of such change within 14 days after the change in such manner as the Oversight Committee may require.[35/2014]
[Act 21 of 2024 wef 09/12/2024]
[Act 24 of 2025 wef 06/05/2026]
(2) Any person who, without reasonable excuse, fails to comply with subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $1,000.
(3) Where the public accountant has changed his or her residential address and has made a report of the change under section 10 of the National Registration Act 1965, the public accountant is to be taken to have informed the Registrar of the change of residential address in compliance with subsection (1).[35/2014]
Removal from Register of Public Accountants
15.—(1) The Registrar must remove from the Register of Public Accountants the name and relevant particulars of any public accountant —(a)
who has died;
(b)
who has become unfit to practise as a public accountant by reason of any physical or mental condition;
(c)
who has been adjudged a bankrupt;
(d)
who, without reasonable excuse, has failed to renew his or her certificate of registration after one month from the date of the expiry of the certificate of registration;
(e)
whose registration has been cancelled under the provisions of Part 5, 5A or 6; or[Act 32 of 2022 wef 01/07/2023]
(f)
who has applied to the Oversight Committee for his or her registration to be cancelled and whose application has been granted by the Oversight Committee.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), any individual whose name has been removed from the Register under subsection (1)(d) may, if he or she desires to be reinstated in the Register, apply to the Registrar for reinstatement within 21 days of his or her being informed by the Registrar of the removal of his or her name from the Register, and the Registrar must, upon payment of the prescribed fee by the applicant, reinstate the applicant to the Register.
(3) The Registrar must not remove the name and relevant particulars of a public accountant from the Register of Public Accountants under subsection (1)(d) and the Oversight Committee must not grant an application by a public accountant to cancel his or her registration under subsection (1)(f), if the Registrar or Oversight Committee (as the case may be) has received any complaint or information against the public accountant under Part 6, or if disciplinary proceedings under that Part are pending against the public accountant.
(4) The Oversight Committee may also cancel the registration of a public accountant and order the removal of his or her name and relevant particulars from the Register of Public Accountants if it is satisfied that —(a)
the public accountant has obtained his or her registration by fraud or misrepresentation;
(b)
the public accountant has made any arrangement with his or her creditors;
(c)
the public accountant no longer satisfies any of the requirements prescribed under section 10(1)(b) by virtue of which he or she was registered under this Part;
(d)
for any reason, the public accountant has been censured by any professional accountancy body or organisation of which he or she is a member or with which he or she is registered, or has had his or her membership or registration with the body or organisation terminated or suspended; or
(e)
the public accountant is no longer in a position to discharge the duties of a public accountant effectively.
(5) The Oversight Committee must, before exercising its powers under subsection (4), notify the public accountant concerned of its intention to take such action and must give the public accountant an opportunity to submit reasons, within such period as the Oversight Committee may determine, as to why his or her registration should not be cancelled.
(6) Any public accountant who is aggrieved by an order under subsection (4) may, within 30 days after being notified of the order, appeal to the Minister whose decision is final.
Publication of list of public accountants
16. The Registrar may, from time to time, prepare and publish in such form or manner as the Oversight Committee may determine a list of the names and particulars of all public accountants.
Source: Singapore Statutes Online (Attorney-General's Chambers), © Government of Singapore.
