Your accountant files your returns, keeps your books and explains your numbers. When one of those jobs slips, you pay for the mistake. Here are the signs which tell you to leave, the cost of one missed date, and the checks to run before you hire the next firm.
Signs you need a new accountant
– Dates slip. After each financial year end your company owes the Estimated Chargeable Income (ECI) filing within 3 months, the annual general meeting within 6 months and the annual return within 7 months. The tax return falls due on 30 November of the Year of Assessment. A GST-registered company also files a return one month after each accounting period ends. Two missed dates in one year is enough reason to move.
– Silence between filings. A good accountant calls you when a rule changes. The EDGE Grant replaced the Enterprise Development Grant, Market Readiness Assistance and Productivity Solutions Grant from 30 September 2026. If your accountant never mentioned the change, ask why.
– Late numbers. Monthly figures which reach you six weeks after month end guide no pricing or hiring decision.
– Jargon without explanation. A plain question about profit, cash or tax deserves a plain answer.
– Fee surprises. Scope and fee belong in writing before work starts.
– No reply. An accountant who needs two weeks to call back leaves you exposed when IRAS writes to you.
What one missed date costs
Take a GST-registered company which owes S$8,000 for the quarter and files one completed month late. The late filing penalty is S$200 at once plus S$200 for the completed month, a total of S$400. The late payment penalty is 5% of S$8,000, equal to S$400. The total is S$800 for a delay one reminder would have prevented. A late annual return adds a lodgment fee of S$300 when up to 3 months late and S$600 after this. Directors face disqualification after 3 or more filing convictions within 5 years.
Why a small company still needs one
A company with a single director follows the same filing calendar as a large group. You keep records for 5 years, prepare financial statements and file a tax return. A private company meeting 2 of these 3 tests for 2 consecutive financial years needs no audit: revenue of S$10 million or less, total assets of S$10 million or less, and 50 or fewer full-time employees. An accountant who knows your numbers tells you which tests you pass, so you never pay for an audit you do not owe.
How to choose the next accountant
– Ask which dates the firm tracks for you and how the reminders reach you.
– Meet the person who will handle your file, not only the person who sells the service.
– Get the scope and fee in writing, with a list of work which costs extra.
– Ask which accounting software the firm uses and whether the software supports InvoiceNow. GST-registered businesses adopt InvoiceNow in phases from 1 April 2028 to 1 April 2031, by size.
– Set a first-month test: a reconciled bank statement and your profit figure for the month.
How to leave without losing records
– Ask the old firm in writing for your ledgers, bank reconciliations, filed returns and company registers.
– Give the new firm Corppass authorisation for Corporate Tax (Filing and Applications) on myTax Portal, and remove the authorisation of the old firm.
– Keep all tax records for at least 5 years.
Change accountants right after a filing, not a week before 30 November. The new firm needs time to learn your file.
Send the latest profit figure or your question by WhatsApp to +65 9876 3553 or by email to henry@cschow.com.sg.
Henry Chow
Public Accountant, C S Chow & Co