HNW due-diligence checklists for Singapore: 60 questions, six areas

These six due-diligence checklists — insurance, family office, private banking, wealth management, trusts and succession, and residency and tax — contain ten questions each, sixty in all, to settle before committing to a structure, account or policy in Singapore. Each question names where an answer can usually be checked. They are written for families deciding whether to proceed and for the lawyers, accountants and other professionals who advise them.

How to use these checklists

Three rules make them useful:

1. Questions, not answers. A "no" is not automatically a problem; an unanswered question usually is.
2. Record who answered and when, with the document relied on, because rules and product terms change.
3. Check the source, not the summary. Read statutory thresholds from the current official page on the day of the decision.

Who leads each area is in the professional-collaboration model; the order of work is in the eight-step process.

A. Insurance

1. Is the representative listed on the MAS Financial Institution Representatives Register, and for which activities? Where to check: eservices.mas.gov.sg/rr, using the representative number.
2. Is the insurer a licensed life insurer in Singapore? MAS Financial Institutions Directory.
3. Which benefits are guaranteed and which are non-guaranteed, and what assumptions drive the illustration? Policy contract and benefit illustration.
4. What is the surrender value in each of the first ten years, and what charges apply? Surrender schedule in the illustration.
5. How much of this policy would the Policy Owners' Protection (PPF) Scheme cover? Guaranteed sums assured are capped at S$500,000 and guaranteed surrender values at S$100,000 per life assured per insurer. SDIC.
6. Who will own the policy, who is the life assured, and is a trust or revocable nomination intended? Only a policy owner who is the life assured and at least 18 can nominate. LIA nomination guide (2026).
7. Have all medical and financial facts been disclosed, given that incomplete disclosure can void the contract? LIA medical underwriting guide (2024).
8. If financing is planned, will the policy be assigned to the lender, and has everyone understood that assignment revokes a revocable nomination? LIA; loan agreement.
9. When does the 14-day free-look period start, and what is refunded? MoneySense: premiums less medical and other expenses paid.
10. Has the CRS and FATCA self-certification been completed consistently with the family's tax residence analysis? Insurer's forms; residency and tax.

B. Family office

1. What assets, purposes and generations is the family office meant to serve, and are they written down? Family charter or mandate.
2. Has a single family office been compared with alternatives — a trust with managed accounts, an external asset manager, or a fund vehicle? Compare; family office.
3. Does the entity qualify for the class licensing exemption that took effect on 15 June 2026, and has MAS been notified? MAS media release (2026-06-11).
4. Who will file the annual return on assets under management and the bank used, and when? MAS framework; existing SFOs have until 15 June 2027 to transition.
5. If a 13O or 13U fund incentive is sought, are the headline conditions met: at least S$20 million (13O) or S$50 million (13U) in designated investments at application and at each basis-period end? MAS Circular FDD Cir 05/2026 (for awards approved on or after 1 August 2026).
6. Can the required investment professionals (at least two for 13O, including one non-family member; three for 13U) be hired? Same circular.
7. Is a private banking account with a MAS-licensed financial institution in place, as the 13O/13U conditions require? Same circular.
8. What governance applies — investment committee, family council, decision rights? Governance documents.
9. What AML controls does the office apply to its own transactions and counterparties? Compliance manual; source of wealth.
10. What is the annual cost budget, including local business spending tiers, and what is the exit or wind-down plan? Circular; budget.

C. Private banking

1. Does the family meet an accredited investor (AI) test — net personal assets above S$2 million (primary residence counted at no more than S$1 million), net financial assets above S$1 million, or income of at least S$300,000 in the previous 12 months? SFA section 4A.
2. Which regulatory safeguards are given up by opting in as an AI, and has the bank explained them in writing? Opt-in form; MAS reply (2025-02-05).
3. Is the mandate execution-only, advisory or discretionary, and who makes each investment decision? Account agreement.
4. What are all fees — custody, transaction, management, retrocessions, FX spreads? Fee schedule.
5. For any credit line, what loan-to-value ratios apply, how can they change, and what happens on a margin call? Credit facility terms; financing and leverage.
6. How concentrated is the portfolio by issuer, sector and currency? Portfolio report.
7. Is a complete source-of-wealth file ready? Source of wealth.
8. Where is the account booked, and which jurisdiction's law governs it? Account opening documents.
9. What conflicts of interest exist, including in-house products? Disclosure documents.
10. How are complaints handled, and is FIDReC available? FIDReC adjudicates claims of up to S$150,000 per claim. FIDReC.

D. Wealth management

1. Has each pool of money been given a job — operating, safety, growth or legacy? Wealth management.
2. Is each fund authorised or recognised by MAS, or a restricted scheme offered only to relevant persons or with a minimum of S$200,000 per transaction? MAS CIS pages.
3. What is the currency mix against the family's future spending currencies? Portfolio report.
4. Which deposits are insured? SDIC covers up to S$100,000 per insured depositor per scheme member and does not cover foreign-currency deposits or structured deposits. SDIC.
5. What could be turned into cash within one week, one month and one year? Liquidity ladder.
6. What is the written rebalancing rule? Investment policy.
7. What is the total annual cost across all layers? Fee schedules.
8. Is consolidated reporting available across banks and entities? Reporting agreement.
9. What tax reporting does each holding create in each country? Tax adviser; residency and tax.
10. How often is the allocation reviewed, and by whom? Review calendar.

E. Trusts and succession

1. Is there a valid Singapore will — made at 21 or older, signed before two witnesses over 21 who are not beneficiaries or their spouses? Wills Act; MoneySense.
2. Is a Lasting Power of Attorney in place, so that a Deputyship application is not needed if capacity is lost? Office of the Public Guardian.
3. Do policy nominations and CPF nominations match the will and the trust plan? Insurer records; CPF Board.
4. Is the trustee a licensed trust company, or a private trust company that has engaged a licensed trust company? MAS Directory; MAS licensed trust companies page.
5. If a private trust company is used, who sits on its board and who replaces them? PTC constitution.
6. What is the trust's duration? Singapore's perpetuity period is 100 years or a shorter period specified. Civil Law Act section 32.
7. Who files the trust's tax return (Form T), and at what rate is trustee income taxed? IRAS trust pages.
8. Which assets sit in other countries and are governed by their succession and tax law? Asset schedule; local counsel.
9. Is there a current letter of wishes? Trustee file.
10. Who succeeds the trustee and the protector, and how? Trust deed.

F. Residency and tax

1. What pass does each family member hold, and what are its conditions? MOM or EDB.
2. Is each person tax resident in Singapore under the 183-day or three-consecutive-years test? IRAS.
3. Is a Certificate of Residence needed to claim treaty benefits? IRAS processes applications in 2 to 3 weeks. IRAS COR page.
4. What does the home country require on departure or afterwards? Home-country tax adviser.
5. Are CRS and FATCA self-certifications consistent across all institutions? Institutions' forms; IRAS CRS pages.
6. Does anyone hold US citizenship or US-situs assets, or meet the UK 10-of-20-years test? IRS; HMRC.
7. Could section 10L apply to a group entity receiving foreign disposal gains? IRAS e-Tax Guide; tax adviser.
8. If buying residential property, what ABSD applies to the intended buyer? IRAS ABSD page.
9. Is there a DTA between Singapore and each relevant country? IRAS DTA list.
10. Who maintains the family's annual filing calendar? Lead adviser.

Recording the answers

Keep the completed checklists with the family's master fact file. For each answer, record who answered each question and on what date, their role, the document relied on and any follow-up action with an owner. Where two professionals disagree — for example on whether a family member is tax resident in Singapore — record both and ask the lead adviser to resolve the difference before anything is signed. Repeat the relevant section after a move, a marriage or divorce, a birth, a business sale, a new lender or a change in law. If you need these points applied to your own circumstances, you can register your enquiry through the contact options on this site.