The Singapore Government has decided to delay the renewal process for five international firms' licences to practise local law.

The Ministry of Law has announced that Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, Latham & Watkins, Norton Rose Fulbright and White & Case will have their licences extended by one year to 2020 before the government decides whether to renew and how long the new licences will last.

The five firms were among the first batch of foreign law firms to receive licences as Qualifying Foreign Law Practices (QFLP) in 2009, and their licences were due to expire in 2019. The QFLP programme enabled foreign firms to directly hire Singapore-qualified lawyers and give Singaporean law advice. But some domestic practice areas including litigation, conveyancing and family law remain off limits for the QFLPs.

The Ministry of Law said the temporary extension was given to the five firms so the government can better assess their contribution to Singapore alongside another four firms, whose licences were also extended to 2020. The QFLP licenses for Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, Jones Day, Linklaters and Sidley Austin were originally due to expire in 2018, but in late 2017 the government announced a similar two-year temporary extension because the firms' performance was weaker than expected.

The ministry did not give specific details about the performance of A&O, CC, Latham, Norton Rose and White & Case since their last renewal in 2014. (White & Case only received a full renewal in 2015.) Instead, the government made a general comment that the QFLPs "have contributed strongly to the growth of Singapore's legal sector".

In the 2017-18 financial year, according to the law ministry, the nine QFLPs contributed more than S$400m (£230m) in total revenue, and about 80% of that combined income was generated by, as the government put it, "work that could have been done elsewhere". The ministry cited the exact same revenue figures for the 2016-17 financial year.

The government also said that about 35% of the 450 lawyers the nine QFLPs employ in Singapore are locally qualified. That's about 158 Singaporean lawyers – up from about 30% of 450 lawyers from a year ago.

In deciding on a renewal, the government said it will consider the value of work the Singapore office generates, and the extent to which the Singapore office functions as the firm's headquarters for the region, the firm's contributions to Singapore during the licence period relative to its earlier commitments, and the firm's proposal for the new licence period.

The QFLP programme has not been open for applications since 2012. Foreign firms can choose other avenues for a Singaporean practice. Last week, K&L Gates and Withers, respectively, completed mergers with Singaporean law firms. Morgan Lewis & Bockius and Eversheds Sutherland have also merged and fully localised in Singapore.

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