Apply for Approval to Hold Interests in a Law Practice Entity

Law practice entities should submit an application via LSRA e-Services to:

Apply for approval for a foreign lawyer registered under Section 36B, 36C or 36D of the Legal Profession Act (Cap. 161) to hold or change the interests they hold in a Singapore Law Practice (“SLP”).
- Under Section 176(1) of the Legal Profession Act (Cap. 161), an SLP must apply to the LSRA for approval before entering into any arrangement that may result in a foreign lawyer becoming a partner, director or shareholder of the SLP, or sharing in the profits of the SLP.
- The SLP must satisfy the general threshold requirements, and the foreign-qualified lawyer must have successfully completed the Legal Practice Management Course conducted by the Law Society of Singapore.
- The eligibility criteria and conditions for approval to hold interests in an SLP can be found in the Legal Profession (Law Practice Entities) Rules 2015.
Apply for approval for a foreign law practice to hold or change the interests it holds in an SLP.
- Under Section 176(9) of the Legal Profession Act (Cap. 161), an SLP must apply to the LSRA for approval before entering into any arrangement that may result in a foreign law practice becoming a shareholder of the SLP, or sharing in the profits of the SLP.
- The SLP must satisfy the general threshold requirements.
- The eligibility criteria and conditions for approval to hold interests in an SLP can be found in the Legal Profession (Law Practice Entities) Rules 2015.
Apply for approval for a regulated non-practitioner (“RNP”) registered under Section 36G of the Legal Profession Act (Cap. 161) to hold or change the interests they hold in any law practice entity in Singapore.
Terminate the appointment or interests held by any of the above individuals.

Please also refer to the User Guide (under Quick Links) for a detailed step-by-step procedure.

Step	Exceptions
STEP 1: Login to LSRA e-Services
Please login to Government-to-Business (G2B) digital services in Singapore using SingPass. For more information, please visit here.	Nil.
STEP 2: Complete and submit application form and pay application fee
The completed application form must be signed by the Managing Partner / Managing Director of the foreign law practice or the foreign lawyer / regulated non-practitioner applying to hold interests, and also by the Managing Partner / Managing Director of the law practice in which the foreign law practice or foreign lawyer / regulated non-practitioner is applying to hold interests. The application fee can be found in the First Schedule of the Legal Profession (Law Practice Entities) Rules 2015. The application fee must be paid online using a valid credit/debit card.	There is no application fee for a regulated non-practitioner to hold or change the interests held in a law practice.
STEP 3: Receive outcome of application
The application may take about 3-16 weeks to process, commencing when all required supporting documents and information have been received. Applications that are incomplete, complex or submitted during the peak period from January to March may require more time to process. Therefore, you may wish to submit your application at least 16 weeks in advance. The LSRA will seek clarification or further information from the Main Contact for the Application.	Nil.

Last updated on 12 Apr 2021