Starting a company in Singapore is a very exciting experience considering the fact that the city-state has established itself as a premier destination for businesses. Many international companies also consider Singapore as a regional hub for their Southeast Asia or the Asia-Pacific operation. Both locals and foreigners can incorporate a company in Singapore, and there are several key benefits to doing so.
One of the main benefits is the ability to secure your desired company name while acquiring a larger equity stake for yourself for the company registered. Additionally, registering a company also simplifies many processes, as legal agreements can only proceed after a company is registered, and banks will only offer SME financing services to a registered company. The company incorporation process in Singapore is overseen by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA), which also charges fees for company registration. Understanding how much it costs to register a company in Singapore will help in your company's financial planning before incorporation. Let’s explore the Singapore company registration costs and other additional expenses, such as the corporate secretarial services fees to incorporate a company.
How much does it cost to register a company in Singapore?
The minimum cost charged by ACRA in registering a company or business in Singapore is S$315, which consists of the following:
1. S$15 fee for a company name application
The first thing to consider when registering a company is none other than the name of the company. A good company name should be easy to read while being unique and meaningful. Keep in mind to avoid using vulgar or obscene words or infringing on any copyrights.
2. S$300 fee for company registration.
Once the company name is approved, it will be reserved for 120 days from the date of application, and applicants can proceed to the company registration process with all the documents prepared.
These are the preliminary step for company registration, and the fee does not include professional fees charged by a corporate secretarial firm, which can range between S$500 to S$2,000 depending on the precise scope of services needed. To understand better on the different corporate secretary services and fees provided by Atriox, visit here to get a free quotation.
How to register a company in Singapore?
Now that we understand the company registration cost in Singapore, let’s examine the process for registering a company. The registration process is fully computerised through the BizFile+ portal since April 2021.
To log into the BizFile+ portal, a SingPass ID is required. Hence, foreigners without a SingPass ID cannot incorporate a company by themselves and therefore require a corporate service provider to help register their company. This process will be easier for Singapore citizens with a SingPass ID as they can log in directly to the BizFile+ portal and register the company.
Regardless, it is still much recommended to engage with a corporate services provider to help ease the company registration process.
Additional costs to comply with ongoing regulatory requirements on Singapore company
To incorporate a Singapore company, there are a few regulatory requirements to be fulfilled during the initial registration process and after the setting up of the company, and these are additional costs on top of the S$315 mentioned above. Fulfilling these regulatory requirements set by ACRA is not easy, especially for a newly incorporated. Hiring respective professionals to handle and fulfil each of the regulatory requirements is impractical because it can be very costly and time-consuming. Hence, most companies engage with experienced corporate services providers to handle all company incorporation matters.
Below are a few additional costs of setting up a company in Singapore to comply with the current regulatory requirement by ACRA:
1. General Compliance Requirements
In addition to the initial registration processes and requirements, there are some compliance requirements that registered companies must comply with. These include having:
At least one Singapore resident director,
Appointing a Singapore resident company secretary. A qualified company secretary must be appointed within 6 months of company incorporation. They are crucial for a company's operation as they are responsible for ensuring the company’s compliance with the local law while also handling numerous administrative and reporting responsibilities. Check out why a company should outsource a company secretary in Singapore here!
The table below provides a rough estimate of the corporate secretarial services fee in Singapore for the services mentioned above.
Corporate Services | Cost Range |
Registered Office Address | S$200 - S$400 per year |
Nominee Directorship | S$2,500 - S$3,000 per year |
Corporate/Company Secretary | S$500 - S$1,800 per year |
2. Accounting Requirements
All Singapore companies are mandated to maintain proper financial accounts and records of its transaction for at least 5 years. Besides, public companies and their subsidiaries are subject to additional requirements, including the implementation and maintain a system of internal account controls to ensure that transactions are properly authorised and recorded. It is generally encouraged to outsource these bookkeeping and accounting tasks to save time and costs considering the complexity of the operation.
Atriox offers bookkeeping and accounting services at a starting price of S$250 for companies with under 50 transactions. Discover and learn more about our fees for accounting services.
3. Filing of annual returns
Companies in Singapore are required to file their annual returns with ACRA via BizFile+ portal unless exempted. While this process is usually done by the company secretary, a company is encouraged to check with the corporate secretarial services provider if this fee is included when appointing the company secretary.
ACRA will charge an annual filing fee of S$60 in Singapore.
4. Tax-filing Requirements
Singapore companies are obligated to pay corporate tax on chargeable income generated from Singapore or foreign income remitted to Singapore. In addition, companies are also required to register for Goods and Services Tax (GST) if their taxable annual revenue turnover exceeds S$1 million. Usually, a company will outsource the operation to an accounting firm, and the tax filing services generally cost between S$300 and S$1,800 per filing in Singapore. Reach out to us and learn more about the tax filing services and fees offered by Atriox.
5. Audit Requirement
On top of the company director and company secretary mentioned above, a Singapore company must also appoint an auditor within 3 months of incorporation. The only exception to not require an auditor is if the company fulfils the requirements for exemption as a dormant or small company. However, exempted companies or “small companies” are still required to prepare unaudited yearly financial statements.
While the fees for statutory audit services may vary depending on the scale and complexity of the company’s financial statements, it is safe to assume that the cost usually starts from S$3000 per audit in Singapore.
6. Ad-hoc Requirements
On top of all the compliance requirements, processes, and operations, a company usually requires additional ad-hoc services from a corporate service provider. These include preparing documents and resolutions for extraordinary general meetings, amending company particulars or constitutions with ACRA, transferring shares with ACRA, overseeing the opening of corporate bank accounts, and more. The fees vary for the services mentioned above but generally cost between S$100 – S$300 in Singapore.
Bonus Tips: 3 Important Things To Ensure a Smooth Company Registration in Singapore
1. Registered office address
The company requires an official local premise or office in Singapore from where your business will be operating. This is because ACRA requires all registration applications to be accompanied by a registered office address. There are two ways of doing it. You can either rent a commercial property in Singapore for your business operation or register your company as a home-based enterprise with your residential address.
2. Company stamp
A company stamp is required to handle official documents like compliance reports and statements. The more commonly used stamps are rubber stamps and self-inking stamps, with rubber stamps normally being the cheaper alternative of rubber stamps. With the help of a corporate service provider, applicants usually can get their company stamps faster and cheaper.
3. Tax reporting
In Singapore, every company is expected to file corporate taxes by the 30th of November (for hard copies), and the 15th of December (for e-filing). There are a few approaches that will help to reduce the corporate tax, such as calculating your taxable amount from company profit instead of the business revenue while also being clever with tax incentives and exemptions.
Maintaining accounting records or bookkeeping may be overwhelming for a newly registered company. Hence it is smart to look for a corporate services provider to handle the processes.
With that, you can now incorporate your company with a better understanding of the company registration costs in Singapore, processes, and requirements. Once your company is registered, ACRA will email you or your Registered Filing Agent with your Business Profile and Certificate of Incorporation (COI).
Still confused about where and how to start setting up a company or not entirely sure how much it will cost to register a company in Singapore? Fret not! At Atriox, we have an experienced team to walk you through your company incorporation process and other corporate services needed. Get in touch with us now to learn more!
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Email: info@atriox.sg
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