The Tan Kah Kee International Society was founded in 1992 in Hong Kong, and registered in Singapore in 1996. The main objective of the Society is to propagate the philosophy and spirit of the late Mr Tan Kah Kee in promoting education and culture for the advancement of mankind. Apart from promoting educational and cultural activities, the Society also promotes research and development in all academic disciplines, assisting in the establishment of an international network in educational and economic cooperation.

Since its foundation in 1992, the Society has launched several main events having a considerable impact both in Singapore and overseas, such as, the establishment of the School of Business Administration at Jimei University in collaboration with the Xiamen Municipal Government in 1996; the building of the Tan Kah Kee Hall on the campus of University of California at Berkeley of the United States in 1997 (this is the first building in the history of American higher learning institutions to bear a Chinese name); the public lecure organized by the Society in 1999 given by Prof. Lee Yuan-Tseh, 1986 Nobel laureate in Chemistry; the International Conference on Immigrant Societies and Modern Education, jointly organized with the Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences, National University of Singapore (the Conference attracted 200 participants from 25 countries). Through these activities, Singaporeans have come to know more about the Society, and its name has become better known around the region.