Guide to Transfer of Shares for Singapore Companies 新加坡公司股份转让指南
Private limited companies in Singapore may appoint a minimum of 1 and up to 50 local or foreign shareholders. The shareholders of a company are considered its owners and they may wish to sell or transfer their shares for reasons such as retirement, gifting or raising funds. In this guide, we will refer to the original shareholder as the “transferor”, and the recipient as the “transferee”. Share transfers in Singapore are governed by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) and the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). It is important that you execute share transfer procedures with a high degree of care to ensure that the transfers are not deemed invalid or fraudulent. 新加坡私人有限公司可委任最少1名及最多50名本地或外国股东。公司的股东被认为是公司的所有者，他们可能希望出售或转让他们的股份，原因包括退休、馈赠或筹集资金。在本指南中，我们将原股东称为“转让方”，接收方称为“受让方”。在新加坡，股票转让由会计和公司监管局(ACRA)和新加坡税务局(IRAS)管理。重要的是，你要高度小心地执行股份转让程序，以确保转让不被视为无效或欺诈。
- Prepare a contract 准备一份合同
The first step to any share transfer is the establishment of the basis for the transfer. In most cases, a lawyer is appointed to prepare a contract for the transfer of the shares. As the sale price may either be fixed or pegged to the company’s future profits, the contract should state the basis of transfer clearly. If there are a few transferors comprising majority and minority shareholders, the agreement may sometimes include a ‘tag-along’ clause that require minority shareholders to sell their shares at a similar price. 任何股份转让的第一步都是建立转让的基础。在大多数情况下，律师被指定为股份转让准备合同。由于销售价格可以是固定的，也可以是与公司未来利润挂钩的，所以合同中应该明确说明转让的依据。如果有少数几个转让方由多数股东和少数股东组成，协议有时可能包括一个“附带条款”，要求少数股东以类似的价格出售自己的股份。
- Check restrictions 检查限制
Find out if there are any restrictions to share transfers in your company. While company directors normally do not have the right to refuse transfers, some transfers may require the board’s approval. It is thus good practice to discuss share transfer plans with the board before proceeding. In some cases, consent for waiver of pre-emptive rights will be required. Pre-emptive rights refer to existing shareholders’ first rights to any share that is being offered. To check if your company’s shareholders have pre-emptive rights, refer to the relevant clauses in your company’s constitution. 了解一下在你的公司里是否有股份转让的限制。虽然公司董事通常没有权利拒绝转让，但有些转让可能需要董事会的批准。因此，在进行之前与董事会讨论股份转让计划是一种良好的做法。在某些情况下，需要同意放弃优先购买权。优先购买权是指现有股东对任何股份的优先购买权。查看贵公司股东是否有优先购买权，请参考贵公司章程中的相关条款。
- Sign an instrument of transfer 签署转让文书
To begin the share transfer process, the transferor will execute an instrument of transfer with the transferee. This document essentially confirms that both transferor and transferee are agreeable to the transfer of legal title of the shares. A transfer involving individual shareholders will require a witness, while a company’s common seal will be required if the transfer involves corporate entities. Individual shareholders who are based overseas may appoint a proxy to sign on his or her behalf. 在开始股权转让过程时，转让方将与受让方签署一份转让文书。本文件基本上确认，转让方和受让方均同意转让股份的法定所有权。涉及个人股东的转让需要有证人，涉及公司实体的转让需要公司公章。常驻海外的个人股东可以委托代理人代为签字。
- Seek board approval 寻求董事会批准
The share transfer will then be tabled. Before granting approval, the board typically reviews the proposed transferee, any conflicts of interest, as well as whether the business would still perform as effectively with the new shareholder on board. The board should raise concerns if any or arrive at a board resolution needs-know/) in writing within 30 days. If the board disapproves of the transfer, it should send a notice of refusal to both the transferor and transferee. 随后将讨论股权转让问题。在批准之前，董事会通常会审查提议的受让方、任何利益冲突，以及在新股东加入后，公司是否仍能有效运作。如果有任何疑问，董事会应在30天内以书面形式提出，或达成董事会决议。如果董事会不批准转让，则应向转让方和受让方发出拒绝通知。
- Pay stamp duty 缴纳印花税
Upon execution of the share transfer, the instrument of transfer must be stamped by IRAS within 14 days. The instrument usually states if the transferor or transferee will be paying the stamp duty. If this is not reflected in the document, the transferee will be liable as per the Third Schedule of the Stamp Duties Act. Stamp duty is usually taken to be 0.2% the higher of the purchase price, or the market value of the shares. To derive the market value of one share, the net asset value of the company is divided by the total number of shares issued. 在股份转让签署后，转让文件必须在14天内由IRAS盖章。文书通常述明承让人或受让人会否缴付印花税。如果文件中没有反映这一点，受让人将根据印花税法案第三附表承担责任。印花税通常是购买价格或股票市值的0.2%。要计算一股的市场价值，公司的资产净值要除以发行的股票总数。
However, as companies have the freedom to issue different classes of shares with varying privileges (such as ordinary, non-voting, redeemable and preference shares), you may wish to engage a corporate services provider to prepare a working sheet for verification with IRAS on your company’s behalf. 然而，由于公司可自由发行不同类别的股份，并享有不同的特权(例如普通股、无投票权股份、可赎回股份及优先股)，你可能希望聘请公司服务供应商为你的公司拟备一份工作表，以便向税务局核实。
- Surrender of share certificate 交出股票
Once the transfer is approved by the board, the transferor will have to surrender his or her original share certificate to the company secretary for cancellation. This should be done immediately but the board can set a deadline. 一旦转让获得董事会批准，转让人将不得不将其原始股票交给公司秘书注销。这应该立即完成，但董事会可以设定最后期限。
- Submit notice of transfer 递交转让通知书
The company must then submit a notice of transfer to ACRA. As per the Companies Act, all companies in Singapore must maintain an accurate register of shareholders with ACRA. The effective date of notice of the share transfer would thus be based on the date of filing with ACRA. The company may authorise its company secretary to make the relevant lodgements with ACRA. 然后，公司必须向ACRA提交转移通知。根据《公司法》，在新加坡的所有公司必须在ACRA保持准确的股东名册。因此，股份转让通知的生效日期将以提交ACRA的日期为基础。公司可授权其公司秘书向ACRA提交相关文件。
- Issue new share certificate 发行新股
The company secretary will next issue a new share certificate to the transferee within 30 days of which the transfer is lodged. This legal document signifies ownership of the shares specified and should bear the company’s common seal. A share certificate should also include the company’s name and registration number, the number of shares issued and details of the new shareholder. 公司秘书会在股份过户后30天内向受让人发出新股份证明书。本法律文件表明指定股份的所有权，并应加盖公司公章。股份证书还应包括公司名称、注册号、已发行股份数和新股东详情。
