Singapore Legal Updates for Business, 2025 to 2026

How to use this guide to Singapore legal updates

This page collects the Singapore legal updates that businesses, investors and institutions have been tracking through 2025 and 2026, organised by our six practice fields. Each entry states what changed, when it applies and who should care, and links to the official source and to our deeper guidance.

The guide is curated, not exhaustive. We include only developments we have checked against government, regulator or other reliable published sources, and we describe dates as they were announced. Commencement dates can move, and subsidiary legislation and guidance often follow later, so always check the linked source before acting. The position stated is as at 20 October 2026.

For analysis of a specific development, see the Perspective library, or contact us to discuss how a change affects your business.

Disputes & Investigations

SIAC Rules 2025

The seventh edition of the SIAC Rules applies to arbitrations commenced from 1 January 2025. It introduces a Streamlined Procedure for disputes of up to S$1 million, with the award due within three months of the tribunal being constituted, and raises the Expedited Procedure threshold from S$6 million to S$10 million. Parties can also seek a preliminary determination of specific issues, and emergency relief may be sought before a Notice of Arbitration is filed. Review your dispute resolution clauses with these tools in mind; see our guidance on international arbitration and SIAC arbitration.

Protection from Scams Act 2025

Passed on 7 January 2025, the Protection from Scams Act came into force on 1 July 2025. It allows the Police to issue Restriction Orders directing banks to restrict a person’s banking and credit access where they are believed to be about to transfer money to a scammer. Orders last up to 30 days and can be extended. Banks and payment businesses should make sure their operational processes can act on orders promptly; our investigation and crisis response team advises on related controls.

Corporate, Capital & Tax

Beneficial ownership and nominee transparency

Amendments under the Companies and Limited Liability Partnerships (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 2024 took effect on 16 June 2025. Companies, foreign companies and LLPs must keep a register of controllers from incorporation or registration, and must verify controller information annually. ACRA now holds central registers of nominee directors and nominee shareholders; existing companies had until 31 December 2025 to submit nominee information. Check that your statutory filings are complete; our article on corporate ownership transparency explains the registers in detail.

Corporate Service Providers Act 2024

The Corporate Service Providers Act 2024 came into force on 9 June 2025, a week before the company law amendments. It sits alongside the new transparency rules and strengthens the regulation of corporate service providers. Businesses that rely on a provider for registered office, nominee director or secretarial services should confirm that their provider is properly registered.

Revised merger procedure guidelines

The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCS) revised its Merger Procedure Guidelines with effect from 1 May 2026. Mergers unlikely to raise competition concerns can use a streamlined track, with Phase 1 review shortened from 30 to 25 working days, and information requirements for merger parties and third parties have been reduced. Factor the new process into M&A timetables; see also our article on merger review.

Digital token service providers

The regulatory regime for digital token service providers under Part 9 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2022 took effect on 30 June 2025. Singapore-based businesses providing digital token services only to customers outside Singapore now need a licence, and MAS has said it will generally not grant one and offered no transitional period. Groups with token businesses should review where activities are carried on; see our digital payment tokens guidance.

Technology, IP & Data

Online Safety Commission and statutory torts

The Online Safety (Relief and Accountability) Act 2025 began to operate on 29 June 2026, when the Online Safety Commission started work. The first phase covers five harms: intimate image abuse, image-based child abuse, doxxing, online harassment and online stalking. The Commissioner can issue directions to communicators, administrators and platforms, and victims can bring statutory tort claims in court. Platforms and operators of online communities should check their notice-and-response processes; see our media and entertainment practice.

Model AI Governance Framework for Agentic AI

On 22 January 2026 the government launched a Model AI Governance Framework for Agentic AI, developed by IMDA. It recommends that organisations bound agent risks upfront, keep humans accountable through approval checkpoints, apply technical controls across the agent lifecycle and support end-user responsibility. It is guidance rather than legislation, but it signals regulatory expectations for businesses deploying AI agents. Our AI governance page and our article on AI and personal data discuss how it fits with the PDPA.

Real Estate, Projects & Energy

Seller’s Stamp Duty changes

For residential property acquired on or after 4 July 2025, the Seller’s Stamp Duty holding period was extended from three to four years, with rates of 16%, 12%, 8% and 4% depending on how long the property is held. Additional Conveyance Duties for Sellers, which apply to disposals of interests in property-holding entities, were aligned. Investors and developers should revisit exit timelines; see our property acquisition guidance and our article on real estate tax structuring.

Carbon tax at S$45 per tonne

The carbon tax rose from S$25 to S$45 per tonne of CO2-equivalent for 2026 and 2027, with the government aiming for S$50 to S$80 by 2030. It applies to facilities emitting at least 25,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases a year, which may use eligible international carbon credits to offset up to 5% of taxable emissions. Energy-intensive operators and their counterparties should check how carbon costs are allocated in contracts; see our energy projects and carbon markets pages.

Trade, Regulation & ESG

Climate reporting timelines extended

On 25 August 2025, ACRA and SGX RegCo extended most climate reporting timelines. Listed companies must still report Scope 1 and 2 emissions from FY2025, and Straits Times Index constituents must report Scope 3 from FY2026, but other ISSB-based disclosures for non-STI issuers are phased by market capitalisation to FY2028 or FY2030. External limited assurance of Scope 1 and 2 emissions is deferred to FY2029 for listed companies, while large non-listed companies now report from FY2030 with assurance from FY2032. See our sustainability reporting guidance and our article on climate disclosures.

Health Information Bill

Parliament passed the Health Information Bill on 12 January 2026. It requires licensed healthcare providers to contribute key patient information to the National Electronic Health Record and imposes cybersecurity and data security requirements, including prompt notification of incidents to the Ministry of Health. MOH intends the framework to take effect in early 2027. Providers, especially those not yet on the record, should plan system and governance changes now; see our health data governance page and our article on healthcare data.

Employment & Mobility

Workplace Fairness Act

The Workplace Fairness Bill was passed on 8 January 2025, prohibiting discrimination in employment decisions based on protected characteristics including age, nationality, sex, marital status, pregnancy, caregiving responsibilities, race, religion, language, disability and mental health conditions. A second bill on dispute resolution was passed on 4 November 2025, requiring in-house grievance processes and mediation before claims go to the Employment Claims Tribunals or the High Court. The government aims for the Act to take effect at the end of 2027. Employers should review hiring, promotion and grievance policies well before then; see our article on employment fairness governance.

Retirement and re-employment ages

From 1 July 2026 the minimum retirement age rose to 64 and the re-employment age to 69, under notifications made under the Retirement and Re-employment Act 1993. Employers must offer re-employment to eligible senior employees up to the new age. Update contracts, HR systems and re-employment procedures accordingly; see our employment contracts guidance.

Higher work pass qualifying salaries

For new applications from 1 January 2027, the Employment Pass minimum qualifying salary rises to S$6,000 (S$6,600 in financial services), and the S Pass minimum to S$3,600 (S$4,000 in financial services), both increasing with age. The new figures apply to renewals of passes expiring from 1 January 2028. Employers should budget for renewals and check offers to new hires; see our Employment Pass guidance and our article on EP criteria.

Platform Workers Act 2024

The Platform Workers Act 2024 came fully into force on 1 January 2025. It treats ride-hail, delivery and similar platform workers as a distinct category, with work injury compensation coverage, CPF contributions phased in for eligible workers, and a legal framework for collective representation. Platform operators should confirm that onboarding, payment and insurance processes reflect the new obligations; see our employment policies guidance.

Building a tracking routine for Singapore legal updates

Most businesses do not need to follow every Singapore legal update, but they do need a reliable way to spot the ones that matter. A simple routine works well for most in-house teams.

1. Map your regulators. List the agencies that license or supervise your business, such as ACRA, MAS, MOM, PDPC, CCS or NEA, and subscribe to their announcements.
2. Distinguish passage from commencement. Record when a bill is passed, when it comes into force, and when any transition period ends; these are often far apart.
3. Assign an owner. Give each relevant change an internal owner and a deadline for policy, contract or system updates.
4. Check group impact. For regional groups, ask whether the change affects entities, staff or customers outside Singapore, for example through work passes, data transfers or holding structures.
5. Review annually. Revisit the list each year against the practice areas relevant to your business.

What to do next

A change in the law rarely needs a new policy on the day it commences; it needs one well before, while there is still time to consult, train and test.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and official materials

1. ACRA: Commencement of new requirements under the CLLPMA Act 2024 — Controller and nominee registers from 16 June 2025
2. ACRA and SGX RegCo: Extended timelines for climate reporting — Revised climate reporting timelines, 25 August 2025
3. CCS: Revisions to Merger Procedure Guidelines — Streamlined merger review from 1 May 2026
4. MOM: Workplace Fairness (Dispute Resolution) Bill — Second bill passed 4 November 2025; end-2027 target
5. MOM: Employment Pass eligibility — Qualifying salaries from 1 January 2027
6. NCCS: Carbon tax — Rates, threshold and international credits
7. IRAS: Seller's Stamp Duty for residential property — SSD rates and holding periods
8. MinLaw: Online Safety Commission and OSRAA — Commencement on 29 June 2026
9. MHA: Commencement of the Protection from Scams Act — Restriction Orders from 1 July 2025
10. MDDI: Model AI Governance Framework for Agentic AI — Launched 22 January 2026
11. Allen & Gledhill: Health Information Bill passed — NEHR contribution and security duties; early 2027
12. MAS: Regulatory regime for digital token service providers — FSMA Part 9 from 30 June 2025

General information only, current as at 20 October 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create a lawyer–client relationship. Singapore law and regulatory practice change; check current official sources and take advice on the facts of your matter.