🇸🇬 Singapore · reviewed 2026-10-09
Franchise law and registration in Singapore
Singapore leaves franchising to contract. That puts the weight on how the agreement is drafted, and on three laws that still reach into it: the anti-pyramid-selling act, the Competition Act and the common law on restraint of trade.
No franchise statute
- Singapore has no franchise-specific statute and no registration system. Franchising is governed by general contract and commercial law, including the Competition Act 2004, the Trade Marks Act 1998 and the Unfair Contract Terms Act. Secondary · Pinsent Masons, Operating a franchise in Singapore, 2025-10-16
- There is no required disclosure document before signing, no registration of agreements, no statutory cooling-off period and no minimum or maximum term. Secondary · Pinsent Masons, Operating a franchise in Singapore, 2025-10-16
- The Franchising and Licensing Association (Singapore) has a voluntary Code of Ethics on transparency, fair dealing and disclosure. It binds only members, and joining is optional. Secondary · Pinsent Masons, Operating a franchise in Singapore, 2025-10-16
Laws that still apply
- The Multi-Level Marketing and Pyramid Selling (Prohibition) Act applies to franchising. Its Excluded Schemes and Arrangements Order excludes master franchise schemes with a right to sub-franchise, but only if the scheme meets the Order's conditions. Official · MLM and Pyramid Selling (Excluded Schemes) Order, Singapore Statutes Online
- Vertical agreements, such as franchisor-franchisee agreements, are excluded from the Competition Act's section 34 ban on anti-competitive agreements. The exclusion does not cover agreements whose main object is intellectual property, and the section 47 ban on abuse of a dominant position still applies. Official · CCCS, scope of the Competition Act
- Non-compete and other restraint-of-trade clauses are presumed void unless the party relying on them shows they protect a legitimate interest and are reasonable. Secondary · Pinsent Masons, Operating a franchise in Singapore, 2025-10-16
More on Singapore
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