Some businesses unable to access e-services, process transactions on Acra’s new Bizfile portal

SOME business owners are facing difficulties accessing e-services and processing transactions on the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority’s (Acra) new online Bizfile portal, following the website’s launch on Dec 9.

The issues include being unable to make annual filings; register a company; retrieve business data; update shareholder or company information; as well as withdraw and appoint position holders, several frustrated corporate service providers told The Business Times.

Some also reported e-services being temporarily unavailable on Acra’s portal as at Tuesday (Dec 24).

Accounting firm U Ventures has had more than 20 clients affected by the portal’s glitches and at least 16 unresolved cases – and counting – to date, said director Jace Koh.

Since Dec 9, the firm has faced problems such as being unable to file a number of annual returns; not receiving updated business profiles automatically after filing returns; as well as changes in the particulars of shareholders, directors or secretaries not being reflected in the portal after submission.

“Some of my clients are going through mergers and acquisitions (M&A), which are very time-sensitive – we need the correct shareholders to be reflected (on the system) to receive the money,” she said.

“The entire M&A can be called off just because we cannot make these updates; it’s a very serious matter.”

After making multiple calls to Acra’s helpdesk, Koh said she was advised by a customer service officer on Dec 16 to proceed with any late filings first and to seek refunds thereafter.

U Ventures has already incurred a S$300 fine from one late filing. It intends to apply for a waiver from Acra.

Meanwhile, Sebastian Neo, co-founder of Foodxpert and Retail Consultancy, has been unable to incorporate a food and beverage company on behalf of a client since Dec 12.

The application was not captured on the portal after making a payment for a new company name and receiving an invoice, said Neo.

While his application was finally approved on Dec 19, he is now unable to submit the constitution of his client’s company on Bizfile to proceed with the incorporation.

“Everything has been pushed back because of this,” he said. “My client has already secured a shop space (for his business), but he cannot sign the lease agreement without a registered company nor begin renovations.”

Danny Ong, director of professional services firm GDPS Consulting, has faced similar issues with five transactions over the last two weeks.

On Dec 11, he tried to lodge a transfer of shares for a client that recently bought over a company. But the transaction – which would usually go through “immediately” – could not be processed, thus delaying the closure of the deal.

“I’ve nearly lost two clients because of the delays,” he said. All five transactions went through only on Monday.

In response to BT’s queries, an Acra spokesperson said “most” users continue to file their transactions successfully on its Bizfile portal.

“We are aware a minority have encountered challenges with filing and our team is working to resolve this,” the spokesperson said, adding that no penalties will be imposed for those who face difficulties in filing.

“Bizfile users who need to file time-sensitive and critical transactions can also contact Acra for assistance.”

Lack of official notice

These issues come in the wake of public uproar over Acra’s new Bizfile people search function, introduced alongside its Bizfile portal on Dec 9.

The function allowed users to access full National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) numbers through a search without paying, sparking data privacy concerns. A revised search function that will not show any NRIC numbers is set to be relaunched this week.

The Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (Asme) said a “significant” number of its members have faced problems accessing Acra’s services on its portal since Dec 9. These include corporate service providers and individual business owners that must make year-end filings.

To prepare for system migration, all of Acra’s online services were previously suspended and unavailable from 8 pm on Dec 4 to 8 am on Dec 9.

“The problems are quite random and systemic, like not being able to download your Acra business profile or the report not reflecting updated information,” said Asme’s president, Ang Yuit. He has reached out to Acra’s representatives but has not heard back.

Businesses also lamented the lack of official notice from Acra regarding the disruption.

For one, a formal announcement would enable them to better manage upset clients or hold off on processing transactions during this period, they said.

“I called Acra’s customer service hotline on Dec 14; they said they were aware of this issue and were trying to fix it,” said Neo.

“So if they knew about this issue, why didn’t they have a notice on their website to ask us to not carry out the transactions first?”

Added Ong: “At least with a black-and-white notice (from Acra), I can prove to my clients that this is a nationwide problem and that the delays are not because of my incompetence.”

On Dec 21, Acra published an announcement on its portal saying that companies will have until Dec 27 to submit statutory filings – such as annual returns and ad hoc filings – with due dates that fall within the period of Dec 9 to Dec 20.

No late lodgement penalties will be imposed for filings made by Dec 27, it added. It acknowledged concerns from business entities and corporate service providers about missing deadlines due to difficulties filing annual returns and other transactions.

It is “rare” that Acra did not make an announcement earlier, said Koh. She noted that Acra has, in the past, informed businesses of similar disruptions by posting notices on its website or social media channels.

“If Acra doesn’t announce that there’s a glitch, our clients will think that we did not perform our work,” she said.

With additional reporting by Yong Jun Yuan