ACRA Registered Business Address in Singapore: Home Address vs Virtual Office Address

Starting a business in Singapore seems simple until you reach the “registered address” section. Many founders assume they can use their home address. However,ACRA has specific requirements, and using a residential address requires extra approvals.

This guide clarifies common misunderstandings and walks you through the two main address options: your home address or a virtual business address.

ACRA requires every local company to provide aregistered office address during incorporation. This address is where official notices and communications get sent, and it’s also where the company’s registers and records are kept.

Importantly, the Corporate and Accounting Laws (Amendment) Act 2025 has removed the fixed minimum opening hours requirement. Companies are no longer required to keep the registered office open for a set number of hours each day.

Instead, the Act introduces a notice-based system: anyone entitled to inspect company records must first give the company reasonable advance notice of their intent. The company must then make those records available for at least two hours during a business day. This gives companies greater flexibility in setting their operating hours while preserving inspection rights.

Meanwhile, the registered office need not be your actual operating location. For example, your registered address can be in the CBD, while your operations take place elsewhere.

Also, if your registered address changes, you must update ACRA via BizFile within 14 days of the effective date of the change.

You can use your home address in Singapore, but it isn’t always straightforward.

If you plan to run a small-scale business from home and use your residential address as the registered office, ACRA points you to theHome Office Scheme. HDB manages this scheme for HDB flats, and URA manages itfor private residential properties.

ACRA requires you to apply for Home Office Scheme approvalbefore submitting your company incorporation application.

Many miss this step and learn about the approval only after registering their business.

URA’s Home Office Scheme views home office use assmall-scale. It allows a private residence (or an HDB flat) to conduct a business’s administrative functions and employ up to 2 non-resident employees.

URA also lists key terms and conditions.For example:

The 2025 amendments have removed the fixed three-hour obligation, thereby reducing the daily compliance burden for home-based operators. However, the notice-based system introduces its own challenge: when an entitled party gives reasonable notice of their intent to inspect, you must make your records available for at least two hours during a business day.

If you travel frequently, work irregular hours, or are simply difficult to reach at short notice, a home address can still leave you scrambling to comply.

Using your home address can compromise privacy, as residential details may appear in public records when someone purchases entity information.
ACRA requires business owners to provide their residential address at registration, which means your home address may be included in public records accessible to anyone who purchases your entity information.

Fortunately, ACRA also allows you to register a contact address for public display instead of your residential address, provided it meets certain conditions (such as being located in Singapore and not being a P.O. box). This option lets you protect your home address from public disclosure.

Even with a virtual address, you may need a contact address strategy to protect officer privacy.

A virtual business address provides a Singapore office location for your company’s registered address, often with mail handling and extra services.

This option is popular with:

• • Freelancers who work remotely,
  • Home-based founders who want privacy,
  • Startups that want a more professional business presence.

ACRA’s core requirements focus on “reachability” and “access.”

A staffed business centre address can simplify compliance because:

• • The address is a physical Singapore location, and
  • The centre is professionally staffed during business hours, so responding to inspection notice requests and making records available is handled without disrupting your own schedule.

Mail handling reduces the risk of missing important correspondence, since official notices are sent to your registered address.

• • Privacy: You avoid placing your home on your company’s “front door.”
  • Professionalism: A commercial address can improve credibility in client conversations.
  • Consistency: You can keep the same registered address even if you move house.
  • Convenience: Someone receives mail while you focus on work.

Using a home address links your business identity to your personal location — a potential issue as your business grows.