UEN format: how to read and validate a Singapore Unique Entity Number

The UEN is the one identifier every registered Singapore entity carries. It has three shapes, a check letter and a few things it does not tell you.

The three shapes

ACRA issues the UEN in a fixed pattern that tells you what kind of entity it is, without a lookup:

Entity	Shape	Example
Local company	Year of registration (4 digits), 5 digits, check letter	196800306E (DBS Bank Ltd., registered 1968), 201429281D
Business (sole proprietorship, partnership)	8 digits, check letter	Not served by the API
Other entities: LLP, foreign company branch and others	T or S or R, 2-digit year, 2-letter entity type, 4 digits, check letter	T08LL1267L (KPMG LLP), S74FC2367E (JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. branch)

In the third shape the two digits after the first letter relate to the year of registration and the two letters name the type of entity: LL for a limited liability partnership, FC for a foreign company. The last character of every UEN is a check letter.

Validate the shape in your form

This checks the format, not the check letter. For the letter use the UEN lookup or the API, which enforce it and refuse a UEN that fails it with a 400 validation_error and no charge.

What a valid UEN does and does not tell you

• It tells you the shape. A well-formed UEN of the right kind.
• It does not tell you the entity exists. A UEN can be well-formed and unissued, struck off or belong to something that is no longer registered.
• It is not a GST number. Whether an entity is GST-registered is a separate IRAS record.
• It carries no personal data when it is a company. A business UEN of 8 digits can identify a sole proprietor, so the API does not serve them.

Look it up

The call returns the entity, its legal form (here LLP), status and registered address. The UEN is also what addresses a business on the InvoiceNow network; see InvoiceNow, Peppol and the UEN.

Singapore is included in every plan at no upcharge. The 14-day free trial includes 500 credits, needs a card and charges nothing; Starter (EUR 9.99 a month, 1,000 credits) follows unless you cancel. A company record costs 1 credit; an error response costs nothing. See pricing for the plans.

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Contains information from ACRA Information on Corporate Entities and Entities Registered with ACRA from the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) via data.gov.sg, which is made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1.0 (data.gov.sg/open-data-licence). Adapted by Prometiam; not an official ACRA extract.