A Guide: Hiring a Registered Company Secretary in Malaysia
- Chow Ping
- Sep 26
- 3 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
Need to find a registered company secretary?
You’ve come to the right place.
Please take a seat as we present everything you need to know about a registered company secretary.
Who are they? Do they bite?
How do you find, vet, and hire one?
What can you expect from them?
How much do they cost? Will you need to sell a kidney to afford them?
Here goes nothing.
What is a registered company secretary?
The company secretary goes by many names.
Corporate secretary.
Compliance officer.
Charted secretary.
Board secretary.
CoSec.
But in Malaysia, “company secretary” is the legal term under the Companies Act.
We’ll use the terms interchangeably as we go.
What does a registered company secretary /corporate secretary do?
Without a company secretary, your company is a defenseless little baby.
Your “baby” is ripe for abuse.
It has no voice to speak up when directors cross the line. So they can treat it like their personal piggy bank. (Other directors, not you!)
Your “baby” can't protect itself from poor decisions or illegal activities.
That's why your “baby” needs a guardian… your company secretary!
They protect your “baby”, ensuring it stays compliant and safe from day one.
“That’s a cute analogy,” you say. “But what does a registered company secretary actually do?” you ask.
Six things. I’ve arranged them according to the length of sentence for aesthetic reasons:
Communicate with SSM
Keep company legal documents up to date
Plan and attend important company meetings
Keep track of new laws that affect the company
Help company directors understand their legal duties
Submit required reports and financial records to the government on time
Is it mandatory to hire a registered company secretary?
Yes.
Big brother, the government says so.
Next question!
How to vet a CoSec?
Ah excellent question.
Let’s think of this in terms of red flags and green flags.
A CoSec should meet the following requirements (green flags):
1/ Knows all the key compliance deadlines
Can clearly explain Annual Returns, Financial Statements, SSM notifications, and other statutory requirements.
2/ Asks questions about your business first
They should have a comprehensive understanding of your business before making any recommendations
3/ Has practical business knowledge beyond just compliance
They should be able to advise you on opening bank accounts, finding business premises, nominee arrangements, and other real business needs
Now for the red flags — run away if a CoSec ticks any of these boxes!
1/ Charges below RM1,010 for company registration
This is less than the official SSM fee. What does this mean? Well, they’re making money by forcing you into expensive long-term contracts.
2/ Cannot explain why they recommend a specific pricing plan
A trustworthy CoSec should always understand your business first. Then make recommendations based on your needs.
They must be able to justify why a more expensive option is necessary.
3/ Lacks basic statutory compliance knowledge
If they cannot properly explain key deadlines like Annual Returns (30 days), Financial Statements (6-7 months), or other compliance requirements… RUN!
How much does a registered company secretary cost?
It can be as low as RM60 or as high as RM600 a month.
In the spirit of shamelessly selling you our company secretary services, we hereby declare:
At Douglas Loh & Associates, our company secretary services start at RM80.
Cheaper than many of our peers. To add to that, our peers don’t have 22 years of experience the way to do.
How to hire a registered corporate secretary?
Three steps:
1/ Find their contact
2/ Contact them
3/ Put them through the green flag/red flag test we just talked about.
Wanna see how Douglas Loh & Associates measures up? Book a free consultancy call now to find out more.
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