- Qualified company secretary appointed to satisfy Singapore's Companies Act requirements
- Statutory registers maintained and updated as changes arise, not annually
- Named account manager with a same-day response standard
- Supports companies at incorporation and those switching from an existing provider
- Works over WhatsApp and Slack to reduce communication friction
Missing a company secretary is not a minor oversight
Singapore's Companies Act requires every incorporated company to appoint a qualified company secretary within six months of incorporation. The secretary cannot be the sole director, and the role cannot sit vacant. For busy founders, this is the kind of requirement that slips, especially when incorporation was handled quickly and the to-do list moved on. The consequences are real: ACRA can pursue enforcement action against the company and its directors for non-compliance. Getting this right from the start, or fixing it quickly if it has been neglected, is not optional.
What a corporate secretary actually does day to day
The role is broader than most founders expect. Your company secretary is responsible for maintaining the statutory registers, including the register of members, register of directors, and register of charges. They file annual returns with ACRA on time, ensure resolutions are properly documented, and flag any changes that require regulatory notification, such as a director's address change or an allotment of new shares. Statutory registers and filings are the paper trail that proves your company is properly governed. Without them in order, you will run into problems when opening a bank account, bringing on investors, or selling the business.
A named account manager, not a ticket queue
Duellix assigns each client a named account manager. You are not emailing a generic inbox and waiting to find out who picks it up. If something needs signing, a resolution needs to be passed, or ACRA has issued a notice, your account manager is the person who handles it, and same-day response is the stated standard. The firm also works over WhatsApp and Slack if that is how your team communicates, which removes the friction that makes compliance feel like a chore.
Switching from an existing provider is straightforward
If you already have a corporate secretary and the relationship is not working, changing providers is a routine process. Duellix handles the transition, including the transfer of statutory registers and the filing of the necessary ACRA notifications to reflect the change of secretary. There is no gap in coverage during the switch. Companies that come to Duellix mid-year, or mid-compliance cycle, are onboarded on the basis of where they actually are, not where an ideal new client would be.
The statutory registers that banks, investors, and acquirers look at first are either in order or they are not, and that becomes obvious at the worst possible moment.
How corporate secretarial services work with Duellix
Tell us about your company
Share your company's current status, whether you are newly incorporated, switching providers, or incorporating now. Duellix will confirm what is already in place and what needs to be set up. Your preferred communication channel (email, WhatsApp, or Slack) is established at this stage.
Appoint your qualified company secretary
Duellix formally takes on the company secretary role, satisfying the Companies Act requirement. The ACRA records are updated to reflect the appointment. If you are incorporating at the same time, the secretary is appointed as part of the incorporation process so the obligation is met from day one.
Statutory registers are set up and maintained
The register of members, register of directors, and other required statutory registers are established and kept current. Every change that requires a register update, such as a new shareholder or a change in director particulars, is handled as it arises, not batched at year end.
Resolutions and filings are handled as they arise
When the company needs to pass a resolution, whether for a routine matter or a structural change, your account manager prepares the documentation. Annual return filings with ACRA are tracked and submitted on time. You receive notice of what is being filed and why.
Ongoing compliance, year after year
The relationship is ongoing, not transactional. Your account manager monitors deadlines, flags anything that requires director or shareholder action, and responds to ad hoc queries. Same-day response means compliance questions do not sit unanswered while your business waits.
Benefits
Companies Act obligation met immediately
The requirement to appoint a qualified company secretary within six months of incorporation is satisfied from the moment Duellix is engaged. No gap between incorporation and appointment means no exposure to enforcement action.
Statutory registers that are actually current
Registers of members, directors, and charges are updated as changes happen, not reconciled once a year. Accurate statutory registers are what banks, investors, and acquirers look at first when they conduct due diligence.
Same-day response from a named account manager
Every client has a named account manager, not a shared inbox. Same-day response means compliance questions and urgent filings are handled the day they arise, not queued behind other clients.
Switching handled without a compliance gap
Transitioning from an existing provider is managed end to end, including ACRA notifications and register transfer. No gap in coverage during the switch means your company remains compliant throughout the change.
Who typically uses these services
Overseas founder incorporating in Singapore remotely
A founder based outside Singapore incorporates a private limited company through Duellix and cannot personally fulfil the resident director or company secretary requirements. Duellix appoints a qualified company secretary at incorporation, ensuring the Companies Act obligation is met from the start. The founder communicates via WhatsApp and receives updates without needing to be in Singapore. Statutory registers are maintained from day one, so there is no backlog to clean up later.
Singapore SME switching from an unresponsive provider
A small business with an existing corporate secretary finds that responses take days, annual returns are filed at the last minute, and nobody flags upcoming obligations proactively. Switching to Duellix involves a transfer of statutory registers and ACRA notifications, handled by Duellix with no gap in coverage. The business gets a named account manager and a same-day response standard instead of a generic support queue.
Startup past the six-month mark without a secretary
A startup incorporated quickly and moved on, missing the six-month window to appoint a company secretary. The statutory registers are incomplete and no annual return has been filed. Duellix comes in, assesses the current state of compliance, rectifies the outstanding filings, and appoints the secretary to bring the company back into good standing with ACRA.
Common questions about corporate secretarial services
Does Singapore law require every company to have a company secretary?
Yes. The Companies Act requires every Singapore-incorporated company to appoint a qualified company secretary within six months of incorporation. The secretary cannot be the sole director of the company, and the position cannot be left vacant. Failure to appoint is a compliance breach that exposes directors to enforcement action by ACRA.
What happens to my statutory registers when I switch to Duellix?
Duellix manages the transfer of your statutory registers from your existing provider and files the necessary ACRA notifications to record the change of secretary. There is no gap in compliance coverage during the transition, and you are onboarded based on where your company actually stands, not an idealised starting point.
Who is my point of contact for day-to-day secretarial matters?
Each Duellix client is assigned a named account manager who handles your account directly. You are not dealing with a rotating support team or a generic inbox. The firm's stated standard is same-day response, and you can communicate via email, WhatsApp, or Slack.
Can Duellix handle corporate secretarial services alongside accounting and tax?
Yes. Duellix covers the full compliance lifecycle of a Singapore company, including bookkeeping, accounting through Xero, unaudited financial statements, and corporate tax filings with IRAS. Combining secretarial and accounting services under one account manager means deadlines across both functions are tracked together.