Last year more than four thousand offshore companies where formed in Singapore. This number is expected to go even higher in the coming years and Singapore is all set to become one of the most popular destinations for offshore company formation. Foreign business owners are fast learning about all the advantages of having a business presence in the country including its liberal taxation regime and business friendly laws. Many overseas entrepreneurs interested in taking advantage of the liberal laws in the country research on the best option when it comes to offshore businesses in Singapore.

The best option is of course to register a private limited company in the country. It does not matter if you are looking for registering a Singapore subsidiary company or a Singapore offshore company. Both are one and the same as incorporating a private limited company. The only difference being that in this case the shares of the company are completely held by foreign owners. There are no restrictions on foreign ownership in Singapore companies and owners can even reside anywhere in the world and manage their firms from overseas. A private limited company in Singapore also provides a lot of flexibilities in terms of the type of business activity you want to conduct, the name of your company as well as flexibility in the structure of your company.

The most important advantage of a private limited firm however is the lowering of your risks. Since this type of company has its own legal status in Singapore, it is considered different from its owners. The company can own property on its own and even sign contracts in its own name. Having a unique legal identity, the personal assets of its owners get safeguarded against liabilities of the Singapore business. Basically any business debts, liabilities or legal claims cannot be passed on to the personal assets of the owners and their capital risk is limited to their investments and shares in the Singapore offshore company. This is a huge advantage and foreigners feel most at ease with this option over all other types of companies available for registration in Singapore.

Forming a private limited company is also the easiest of all businesses. It takes only a day or two to complete the entire process and the ongoing compliance requirements are quite minimal. However, the only three requirements are appointing at least one company director who is a local resident, one company secretary who is a local resident as well and obtaining a registered business address within Singapore.