Security Agency License

A Notice of Renewal of the Security Agency licence will be mailed to the company’s Director, approximately two months before the expiry of the existing licence.

The Renewal Notice will provide detailed information on the requirements to submit a renewal application.

A Security Agency's licence is required if your company is involved in any of the following:

a. Engage in the business of supplying, for reward, the services of Security Officers to other persons;

b. Advertise, or in any way hold out, that the person supplies for reward, or is willing to supply for reward, the services of Security Officers.

Types of Applications	Validity	Fees (Non-Refundable)
New Security Agency Licence	1 Year	$400
Renewal of Security Agency Licence	1 Year	$400
Amendment of existing Security Agency Licence	NA	NA
Cancel of existing Security Agency Licence	NA	NA
Withdrawal of Security Agency Licence Application	NA	NA

New

This is for persons who wish to apply for a Security Agency Licence.

You may submit a new Security Agency Licence here.

Renew

This is for persons who wish to apply to renew an existing Security Agency Licence.

You may submit your renewal of Security Agency Licence here.

Amend Licence Details

You can amend the following information of your existing Security Agency licence:

Name of Company/Business/LLP/Organisation
Business operating address or details of branch office
Name of licensee (for transfer of licence to new partners in partnership)
Details of Director/Partner/LP General Partner or Limited Partner/LLP Manager or Partner/ Officer Bearer
Contact details
Employment or termination of licensed Security Officer
Security Officer's employment grade
Deployment site

Cancel Licence

You are permitted to terminate your existing Security Agency licence any time before its expiration.
Please be informed that there will be no refund of licence fees upon cancelling the existing Security Agency licence.

Withdrawal

You can withdraw your application for a Security Agency Licence any time before licence approval.
If licence has been approved and issued, you will have to submit a request to cancel the licence.

Licensing Criteria for Security Agency

To be eligible for a new Security Agency’s licence or a renewal of an existing licence, the business entity must meet the following criteria:

Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) Registration

(1) A registered business entity with ACRA

Company Directors/Partners

(2) There must be at least 2 directors/partners

(3) All directors/partners must be fit and proper persons¹

(4) The directors/partners of the business entity must fulfil the following requirements:

FirstDirector/Partner

SecondDirector/Partner

OtherDirector/Partner (if any)

a) A Singapore Citizen or a Permanent Resident of Singapore;

b) Possess a minimum of 2 years' experience in security-related work or business holding a management position;

c) Unless exempted by the Licensing Officer, be certified competent in all of the following WSQ modules:

i. Manage Security Agency within Legal Framework;

ii. Manage Security Operations; and

iii. Manage Security Emergencies.

a) A Singapore Citizen, or a Permanent Resident of Singapore, or a foreigner²with a valid S-Pass or Employment Pass issued by the Ministry of Manpower;

b) Possess a minimum of 2 years' experience in security-related work or business holding a management position; and

c) Unless exempted by the Licensing Officer, be certified competent in WSQ module ‘Manage Security Agency within Legal Framework’

a) Possess minimum 2 years’ experience in security-related work or business holding management position;

b) Unless exempted by the Licensing Officer, be certified competent in WSQ module ‘Manage Security Agency within Legal Framework’³

Security Agencies Competency Evaluation (SACE)

(5) Unless exempted by the Licensing Officer, applicants must pass the Security Agencies Competency Evaluation (SACE) conducted by the Police Licensing & Regulatory Department and the Ministry of Manpower, to be eligible for an SA licence.

a. Applicants who pass all the prescribed core competencies are eligible for a 1 year licence;

b. Applicants who pass all the prescribed core competencies,and the stipulated number of elective competencies (as specified by the Licensing Officer) are eligible for a 2 year licence; and

c. First time applicants (“FTAs”) must pass 3 core competencies to be eligible for a 1 year licence. FTAs are not eligible to opt for elective competency assessment.

For more details on SACE, please visit here

For FTAs, please visit here to view the assessment checklist⁴

Other Requirements

(6) An initial paid-up capital⁵of SGD$300,000 [ To be rescinded on 1 July 2023 ]

(7) [ With effect from 1 July 2023 ] An initial paid-up capital⁵of SGD$500,000

(8) A physical office

(9) Certified with bizSAFE Level 2⁶, and bizSAFE Level 3 for annual licence renewal.

¹Section 21(8) and 21(9) of the Private Security Industry Act 2007 states:

In deciding whether a person or an officer^ of a business entity is a fit and proper person, the licensing officer may consider any of the following matters as indicating that the person or officer may not be a fit and proper person:

(a) that the person or officer associates with a criminal in a way that indicates involvement in an unlawful activity;

(b) that in dealings in which the person or officer has been involved, the person or officer —

(i) has shown dishonesty or lack of integrity; or

(ii) used harassing tactics;

(c) that the person or officer is or was suffering from a mental disorder; or

(d) that the person or officer is an undischarged bankrupt or has entered into a composition with his debtors.

The above mentioned shall not limit the circumstances in which a person or an officer of a business entity may be considered by the licensing officer not to be a fit and proper person.

^“officer”, in relation to a business entity, means —

(a) a director, partner, member of the board of management, chief executive, manager, secretary or other similar officer of a business entity that is a body corporate;

(b) a partner of a business entity that is a partnership; or

(c) a president, secretary, or any member of the committee of management of a business entity that is an unincorporated association (other than a partnership), or any person holding a position analogous to that of president, secretary or member of a committee, and includes a person who can control or substantially influence the conduct of the affairs of the business entity.

²A director/partner who is not a Singapore Citizen or a Permanent Resident of Singapore shall submit a Certificate of Non-Criminal Conviction (CNCC) from their country of origin if the director/partner is not a Singapore Citizen or a Permanent Resident of Singapore.

³Foreign directors who do not hold a work pass issued by MOMandare not based in Singapore may seek approval from the Licensing Officer for exemption from the requisite WSQ certification requirement. The business entity is required to submit the necessary documents, including a letter of undertaking to affirm that their foreign directors are not issued with Singapore work passes (work visas) and not involved in the daily management of the security agency.

⁴FTAs are required to submit the documents (in soft copies and PDF-format)for the following SACE competencies during the licence application process.

a) C.1: Pre-deployment Training

b) C.2: Continuous Professional Development

c) C.5: Business Continuity Plan

⁵The requirement of initial paid-up capital is only applicable to First Time Applicants (FTAs). The requirement is not applicable to existing licensed SAs when they apply to renew their licences.

⁶Existing security agencies must attain a minimum of bizSAFE Level 3 for licence renewal

Updated as of 25 November 2022

General Licensing Conditions For Security Agencies (with effect from 4 August 2023)

General Licensing Conditions For Security Agencies (rescinded)

New

You are required to obtain the following documents before applying for a Security Agency licence.

Minimum 2 years' experience in security-related work or business holding management position
WSQ Statement of Attainment for modules stated in ‘Eligibility’ section
Paid-up capital of at least $300,000
Highest education certificate (at least 3 GCE 'O" level passes or ITE NTC 2 or its equivalent)
Proposed company name which does not infringe copyright or trademark
Business plan outlining the:

Financial outlay
Research on market opportunities
Organization chart
Resumes of personnel actively involved in the day to day operations and administration
Proposed uniform and insignia designs for security officers
Audit and internal procedures to ensure approved and trained security officers are deployed
Mechanism to facilitate continuous improvement and training of officers.

You must submit all supporting documents, together with the acknowledgement slip generated either via post or in person to:

OC Licensing
Security Industry Division
Police Licensing & Regulatory Department
391 New Bridge Road #02-701
Police Cantonment Complex
Singapore 088762

Alternatively, you can email toSPF_Licensing_Feedback@spf.gov.sg

Renew

A letter of notice to renew the Security Agency licence will be mailed to the company’s Director, approximately two months before the expiry of the existing licence.

You have 14 days to submit the following documents if you wish to renew your existing licence:

a.     Completed application form for licence renewal;
b. Completed form on:
                    i.    Deployment sites for Executive Protection/Bodyguard/Bouncer;
                    ii.   Updated contact details of SA; and
                    iii.   Particulars of administrative and management staff in agency

You must submit all documents, within 14 days from the date of the renewal notification, via post to:

    OC Licensing
    Security Industry Division
    Police Licensing & Regulatory Department
    391 New Bridge Road #02-701
    Police Cantonment Complex
    Singapore 088762

Amend Licence Details

You are required to obtain the following documents before amending your existing Security Agency licence.

For amendment of:	Documents required:	Fees
Name of Company/Business/LLP/Organisation	Email/letter of approval from Licensing Officer	$20 to change business name
Business operating address or details of branch office	No documents required	No fees required
Name of licensee (for transfer of licence to new partners in partnership)	Email/letter of approval from Licensing Officer; and Documents showing proof of transfer	$40 to transfer licence to new partners in partnership
Details of Director/Partner/LP General Partner or Limited Partner/LLP Manager or Partner/ Officer Bearer	No documents required	No fees required
Contact details	No documents required	No fees required
Employment ortermination of Security Officer
Security Officer's employmentgrade
Deployment site

Cancel Licence

No document is required.

Withdrawal

No document is required.

New

About 4 to 6 weeks from the receipt of the application and the necessary supporting documents. Any incomplete or incorrect submission will be rejected.
You may also be required to attend an interview with the Licensing Officer.
You will be notified of the outcome via post. Alternatively, you can login to GoBusiness Licensing to view your application status.

Renew

About 4 to 6 weeks from the receipt of the application and the necessary supporting documents. Any incomplete or incorrect submission will be rejected.
You will be notified of the outcome via post.

Amend Licence Details

About 14 working days (except for change of business address¹) from the receipt of the submission and the necessary documents, if required. Any incomplete or incorrect submission will be rejected.
You will be notified of the outcome via post. Alternatively, you can login to GoBusiness Licensing to view your application status.

¹ Change of business address will be updated within 7 working days.

Cancel Licence

Immediate upon receipt of your Cancellation Request.

Withdrawal

Immediate upon receipt of your Cancellation Request.

New

You can download the step-by-step guide to assist you in your application at GoBusiness Licensing.

Cancel Licence

You can download the step-by-step guide to assist you in your cancellation.

Withdrawal

You can download the step-by-step guide to assist you in your withdrawal.

To download a copy of your Security Agency’s active staff list, login to GoBusiness using your company’s CorpPass and follow the following steps:

Select “Licensed Entities”
Select “Singapore Police Force” > Enquiry on Existing SPF Licences
At “Licence Type” drop down box, select “Security Agency Licence”
Select “Active Staff List” from the “Enquiry Type” drop down box
Enter the Licence No. and click the search button

To check on the Security Officers’ employment grade and training status, login to GoBusiness using your company’s CorpPass and follow the following steps:

Select “Licensed Entities”
Select “Singapore Police Force” > Enquiry on Existing SPF Licences
At “Licence Type” drop down box, select “Security Agency Licence”
Select “Individual Licence” from the “Enquiry Type” drop down box
Enter the licensed Security Officer’s NRIC/FIN and click the search button
System will display the officer’s particulars
Click “View training records”

As an employer of your Security Officers, a licensed Security Agency ought to be familiar with the training requirements and job functions for each staff grade under the Security Progressive Wage Model.

Security Officers must have attained the relevant training certifications before they can perform certain job functions.

Information on Security Officer’s training requirements can be found here.

“Recognise Terrorist Threats” (RTT) for Security Officers from 1 January 2020

Please refer to the following link for the Information Sheet on Assessment-Only-Pathway for the WSQ Recognize Terrorist Threats:

Assessment-Only-Pathway Information Sheet for the WSQ Recognize Terrorist Threats [PDF]

Please refer to the following link for the Press Release on the above:

RTT Training for Security Officers [PDF]

Please refer to the following link for the FAQ on RTT:

FAQ on RTT [PDF]

Dear Customers,

With effect from 1 Aug 2021, the Police Licensing & Regulatory Department will further restrict over-the-counter services at the Police Cantonment Complex, 391 New Bridge Road, to attend to services with pre-approved appointments only, including making payments at counter for services that cannot be done online. This move supports the Multi-Ministry Taskforce’s implementation of elevated safe distancing measures.

2 To make an appointment, please use the following link or QR code: www.picktime.com/policelicensing

3 We will attend to cases of persons who turn up without an appointment on a case by case basis, only if they have valid reasons. For collection of controlled item(s), please pay the license fee for the item(s) (if any) online, and email us at SPF_Licensing_Feedback@spf.gov.sg to arrange for collection.

4 For enquiries, please use our online services on www.police.gov.sg/licence or email us at SPF_Licensing_Feedback@spf.gov.sg.

5 We seek your understanding and apologise for any inconvenience caused.

6 Thank you.

If you are familiar with the application requirements and wish to apply now, please click here to proceed to GoBusiness Licensing. CorpPass is required for login to GoBusiness Licensing.