Category: Singapore – setting up in Singapore

In Singapore, any income received from services provided or employment exercised within the country is taxable. This includes compensation received in the form of cash or non-cash benefits. Since the income is sourced in Singapore, it is subject to Singapore’s tax. Income tax is calculated on a preceding year basis.

The amount of tax and the applicable tax rates depends on the taxpayer’s tax residency status. Singapore has several tests in regard to whether a foreigner is a resident in Singapore. The key tests of relevance relating to a foreigner coming to Singapore are set out below.

You are a tax resident for a particular Year of Assessment if you are a:

  • Foreigner who has stayed/worked in Singapore:

– for at least 183 days in the previous calendar year, or
– continuously for 3 consecutive years, or

  • Foreigner who has worked in Singapore for a continuous period straddling 2 calendar years and the total period of stay is at least 183 days. This applies to foreign employees who entered Singapore.

To elaborate on the second point above, you will be regarded as a tax resident under the 2-year rule if you:

  • work in Singapore for a period straddling 2 calendar years; and
  • your employment period plus your physical presence immediately before/after your employment cover a continuous period of at least 183 days.

Note that the number of days of employment in Singapore includes weekends and public holidays. Any absences from Singapore that are temporary (e.g. overseas holiday leave) or incidental to your employment (e.g. business trips) are still counted in the total days of employment for the purpose of determining your tax residency status.

The income of tax residents after deducting allowable expenses, donations and personal reliefs is subject to income tax at progressive rates ranging from 0% to 22%.

Contact Us

At Sheltons Accountants Singapore we have extensive experience in providing Singaporean and international tax advice. This includes advice on tax treaty issues and cross-border tax efficient structuring.

If you need advice or assistance with your Singaporean tax obligations, or if you would like us to prepare your Singaporean tax returns, we’re here to help.

Simply send us an email at SG@SheltonsGroup.com.

Sheltons Singapore

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GST, also known as VAT, was introduced in Singapore on 1 April 1994 at the rate of 3%. This has progressively increased and currently it is at 8%. With effect from 1 January 2024, this will be increased to 9%. Only GST registered businesses can charge GST.

GST can be broadly classified into two categories:

– Taxable supply

  • Standard-rated supply
  • Zero-rated supply

– Non-taxable supply

  • Exempt supply
  • Out-of-scope supply

Standard-rated supply is when GST is charged at the prevailing rate by GST-registered businesses on all sales of goods and services made in Singapore.

Zero-rated supply relates to export of goods and the provision of international services where GST is charged at 0%.

Exempt supply includes the provision of financial services, sale and lease of residential properties and local supply of investment precious metals. No GST is charged on exempt supplies.

Out-of-scope supplies include supplies where the place of the supply is outside of Singapore. No GST is charged. Examples of out-of-scope supplies include:

  • Sales of goods delivered from a place outside of Singapore to another place outside of Singapore
  • Sales of overseas goods within a Free Trade Zone (FTZ)
  • Sales of overseas goods within Zero GST/Licensed warehouse
  • Private transactions

Compulsory GST registration is required under the following conditions:

  • Under the retrospective view, the taxable turnover is more than SGD1 million at the end of the calendar year, or
  • Under the prospective view, the taxable turnover is expected to be more than SGD1 million in the next twelve months

Taxable turnover refers to the total value of all taxable supplies made in Singapore, which includes standard-rated supplies and zero-rated supplies. Taxable turnover does not include exempt supplies, out-of-scope supplies and sale of capital assets.

Contact Us

At Sheltons Accountants Singapore we have extensive experience in providing Singaporean and international tax advice. This includes advice not only on GST but also on tax treaty issues and cross-border tax efficient structuring.

If you need advice or assistance with your Singaporean tax obligations, we’re here to help.

Simply send us an email at SG@SheltonsGroup.com.

Sheltons Singapore

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Singapore incorporated companies will be assessed on the requirement for audit based on the “small company concept”.

A company qualifies as a “small company” if the following are met:

  • It is a private company in the financial year in question

and

  • It meets at least two out of three of the following quantitative criteria
  1. Total annual revenue is less than or equals to SGD10 million
  2. Total assets are less than or equal to SGD10 million
  3. Number of employees are less than or equal to 50

For a company which is part of a group, in order to qualify for an audit exemption:

  • The company must qualify as a “small company” and
  • The entire group must be a “small group”

A group is considered a small group if it meets at least 2 of 3 of the quantitative criteria on a consolidated basis for the immediate past two consecutive financial years.

The above “small company” audit exemption only applies to Singapore incorporated companies. However, for the purposes of determining whether the Group to which a company belongs is a “small group”, all entities within that group are taken into account, including foreign entities, in determining whether the consolidated total revenue, total assets and number of employees of the group meet the thresholds.

Contact Us

At Sheltons Accountants Singapore we have extensive experience in setting up and administering operations for overseas-based businesses. We provide a broad range of services, from setting up the entity and opening a bank account, to providing the legally required local director and a full range of tax, accounting, company secretarial and administrative services.

We are also experienced in providing local and international tax advice, advice on tax treaty issues and cross-border tax efficient structures.

If you need advice or assistance with UK, Singaporean or Australian matters, we’re here to help. Simply send us an email at SG@SheltonsGroup.com. 

Sheltons Singapore

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The legal system in Singapore and Australia is a common law system, ultimately inherited from England. However, the tax and legal differences between Singapore on the one hand, and the UK and Australia on the other, are often surprising to those in the UK and Australia setting up in Singapore. 

Here are a few examples. 

  • Company secretary #1. All Singaporean companies must have a company secretary. However, a company secretary is not needed for private limited companies in the UK and Australia. 
  • The need for a local director. All Singaporean companies must have a local resident person to act as director. Australia has a similar requirement but the UK has no such requirement. 
  • The private limited company – different names.  

UK Ltd (limited)
Australia Pty Ltd (proprietary limited)
Singapore Pte Ltd (private limited).  

  • Company secretary #2. All Singaporean companies need a local resident person to act as company secretary. 
  • Tax residency #1. A company incorporated in Singapore is not automatically a tax resident of Singapore. This contrasts with most other countries, including the UK and Australia – a company incorporated there is automatically a tax resident there. 
  • Tax residency #2. A Singapore company is only a tax resident of Singapore if it is ‘managed and controlled’ in Singapore. This test is easily satisfied. We will publish a separate blog on this. 
  • Due diligence. Singaporean banks and service providers are subject to strict ‘know your client‘ anti-money laundering due diligence requirements. At least in practice this is more demanding in Singapore than in the UK and Australia. Some may find the regime tedious – and it can be time consuming. 
  • Public officer. Neither Singapore nor the UK have the concept of public officer as is found in Australia. 
  • PAYE/PAYG. Singaporean employers are not required to withhold tax from employees salaries.  
  • Work visas. The handling of applications for work visas in Singapore tends to be significantly faster than the UK, and dramatically faster than in Australia. 
  • Territoriality regime. Singapore uses the territorial system of taxation. This compares with the global or worldwide system in use in the UK and Australia. In its pure form all that is taxed in Singapore is income that has its source in Singapore. So a Singapore taxpayer (including individuals and companies) are not taxed on income sourced outside Singapore. There are exceptions of course. (I suppose we should do a blog on this too)! 

Contact Us

At Sheltons Accountants Singapore we have extensive experience in setting up and administering operations for overseas-based businesses. We provide a broad range of services, from setting up the entity and opening a bank account, to providing the legally required local director and a full range of tax, accounting, company secretarial and administrative services.

We are also experienced in providing local and international tax advice, advice on tax treaty issues and cross-border tax efficient structures.

If you need advice or assistance with UK, Singaporean or Australian matters, we’re here to help. Simply send us an email at SG@SheltonsGroup.com. 

Sheltons Singapore

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