How to Apply Halal Certification for F&B Business in Singapore

The cultures of Singapore reflect in both food and cuisines. Although some foreigners may not derive total satisfaction from the Halal version of famous cuisines, it pays a restaurant in Singapore to be Halal-certified since a portion of Singapore population practice Islam. Majority of the people in the country also love the Halal version of cuisines.

This article serves as a guide for those intending to apply Halal certification for your Singapore F&B business.

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Table of Contents

The Halal F&B Industry

The word “halal” is an Arabic word meaning “lawful” or “allowable”. Muslims are only allowed to consume foods that are prepared in a Halal way. “Halal” does not limit to just food. Muslims have to adhere to other aspects of Halal, but Halal consumables have one of the greatest impacts as demand for Halal food keeps increasing everyday.

When Muslims find a Halal-certified restaurant in Singapore, there is a high chance that they will become loyal customers. A Halal-certified restaurant situated in Singapore can easily become a place of interest to Muslims from around the world, especially when the cuisines have different origins.

Applying to be Halal-Certified

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS) is the authority that conducts and award Halal certification in Singapore. The process to obtain a Halal certification can be a bit demanding, but the long term benefits will prove to be worth it.

A restaurant must fulfil a list of conditions before it can become Halal-certified in Singapore. These are the conditions that restaurants must adhere to in order to be Halal-certified:

Raw materials, additives, and processing aids must be Halal. These items must have supporting documents, and the items must be declared on the MUIS eHalal System, which is an online platform for all Halal certification applications.
Applicants must submit a floor plan of the restaurant to MUIS. The floor plan must clearly define areas for kitchen, production, crockery storage, utensils and dishwashing facilities for the handling and processing of Halal items. If any Haram item comes in contact with any of these, such Haram item must be declared to MUIS for ritual cleansing.
The restaurant owner must engage at least 2 Muslim employees, and one of them needs to be appointed as a representative of Muslims in the Halal Team.
A Halal team is among the ten principles of the Singapore MUIS Halal Quality Management system. The Halal team will have to constantly ensure total compliance with the conditions of MUIS Halal Certification. Every member of the Halal team must complete a compulsory Halal training programme.

Restaurant owners may submit an application for Halal certification online through the MUIS eHalal System. Once an application is submitted, a MUIS appointed auditor will check if all the necessary conditions are met and also verify the compliance of the supporting documents. If the MUIS appointed auditor spots any inadequacy, the auditor will give remarks in the online application.

Every shortcoming must be corrected before the deadline stipulated by MUIS eHalal System. In case there is no inadequacy, the auditor will come to the premises for audit inspection. The auditor will recommend the application to MUIS if he or she is satisfied with the conditions at the premises. However, if the auditor notices some shortcomings, the applicant will have to rectify them, and the premises will be revisited a second time for audit inspection. Site visits are important to ensure that all the conditions of MUIS Halal Certification are met.

Application Fees

Restaurant owners can click here to check the updated MUIS Halal certification fees. Fees are to be paid in cash or through cheque at MUIS office or via MUIS eHalal System. If you do not pay while submitting your application, MUIS will reject the application without any notice. There are also fees involved for the Halal training programmes.

The Application Process

Once you have submitted an application, the waiting process will take around 14 working days for a standard application or 7 working days if it is an express application.

Usually, the audit takes up most of the time. If you have remarks to rectify, the time can be longer than stated. Hence, we recommend that you regularly check the MUIS eHalal System for comments and audit reports. You will be able to obtain a Halal certificate on time if you clear the audits on time.

The Halal certificate will be emailed to you after the application is approved. You must display the Halal certificate at your restaurant. The Halal certificate will remain valid for 1 or 2 years, after which you will need to renew it. You can renew the Halal certificate for free via MUIS eHalal System.

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