Singapore Company Formation

Singapore company formation is, if properly-structured, an attractive, tax-efficient corporate structure to conduct international business. The following information will aid your Firm decide whether Singapore company formation is the optimum corporate solution to fulfill your international business objectives:

Full screen

Online video interview with Aidan Healy regarding Singapore Company Formation .

A properly-structured Singapore company enjoys legal tax exemption on profits earned outside Singapore, as outlined by the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore. In addition, S$200,000 (approximately US$145,000) of corporate profits earned in Singapore can be legally tax-exempt for the first three years of business trading. These benefits make Singapore company formation a secure long-term solution compared to jurisdictions such as the British Virgin Islands or Cayman Islands. To highlight Singapore's tax advantages, private companies recently voted Singapore as the state with the least burdensome taxes in the world, according to Grant Thornton International.

After Singapore company formation, an annual statutory financial audit is not required if corporate turnover/sales is less than S$5 million (US$3.6 million).

According to the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS), a Singapore company is obliged to register for goods & services tax (GST) if annual sales exceed S$1 million (US$650,000). GST registration by a non-resident Singapore company enjoys GST refunds from the Singapore government.

To counter the effects of the global economic downturn, the Singapore government offers a range of incentives and initiatives to assist investors choosing Singapore company registration. These include:

SPRING Singapore’s Incubator Development Programme (IDP). Under this initiative, existing Singapore companies designated by the government as ‘Incubators’ and who provide support services such as product commercialization and assistance finding investors, can claim up to 70% of the costs of providing these services.

Offering Permanent Residence to entrepreneurs investing at least S$1 million in the registration of a new Singapore company or as capital in an existing business. This incentive from the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) is called the Global Investor Program (GIP) . Part of the investment can be used to purchase residential property.

International Enterprise (IE) Singapore has capability development and market access programmes to assist businesses growth during the current downturn. These programs focus on developing export competencies.

Singapore company formation is popular with foreign investors setting up a regional or global headquarters. The Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) offers a range of grants and financial incentives to investors. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), business-friendly Singapore is the fifth-largest recipient of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Asia, after China and Hong Kong.

As a global private banking and wealth management hub, Singapore is rapidly becoming the preferred financial services centre and place to live for the world's wealthy.

It is easy to organise international banking accounts following Singapore company incorporation. To open a Singapore corporate bank account, Healy Consultants works with internationally-recognised banks such as HSBC, Standard Chartered and Citibank to provide corporate bank account services.

Unlike jurisdictions such as Dubai, it is not necessary to rent a physical office to incorporate a company in Singapore. Healy Consultants offers a full Singapore virtual office service, from short-term Singapore office rental to daily telephone answering and mail forwarding services.

Singapore is ranked 2nd in the 2009-2010 Global Information Technology report rising from 3rd in the previous edition of the report. The report is released by the World Economic Forum in conjunction with INSEAD and is well recognised as an authoritative analysis of the impact of information and communication technology on a country’s competitiveness

In its 2010 World Competitiveness Scoreboard the Switzerland-based IMD positively ranks Singapore as the world’s most competitive economy. The ranking takes into account economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure. Furthermore, the World Economic Forum ranks Singapore at 3rd in its Global Competitiveness Report 2009-2010, taking into account factors such as infrastructure, macroeconomic stability, health and education, labour market efficiency, technological readiness and innovation. This is an improvement from 5th in the previous survey.

Forming a Singapore company gives access to a highly competitive economy. It is positively ranked as the world's second-freest economy in the Heritage Organisation’s 2010 Index of Economic Freedom, a measure of freedom enjoyed in business, trade, monetary, financial, investment and labour markets. Furthermore, Singapore company formation is straightforward and cost-effective. According to the World Bank's Doing Business 2010 Survey, Singapore is the world's easiest place to do business. The survey measures factors including required procedures for Singapore company registration, time, cost and minimum capital required for company formation.

According to the 2010 Quality of Living Survey by Mercer Human Resources, Singapore offers the highest standards of living in Asia. Following Singapore company formation, Healy Consultants helps entrepreneurs obtain Singapore employment and residence visas.

Singapore is an excellent location to register intellectual property (IP), including global trade marks and patents. Singapore is a signatory to international conventions including the World Trade Organisation's (WTO) Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which helps protect against IP rights infringements. Singapore is also a signatory to the Berne Convention and the World Intellectual Property Organization Copyright Treaty.

According to DTZ's 2010 Global Occupancy Cost Report, Singapore is expected to offer significant savings in office costs and occupancy costs compared to other Asian business hubs such as Hong Kong. At -51% Singapore showed the largest decrease in occupancy costs in S.E. Asia due to weak demand and new supply dragging down average office rental rates.

Singapore ranks a positive 20th in the global Monocle Quality of Life Index. The index bases its ranking on factors like quality of housing, crime levels and the quality of education and healthcare.

Forbes Tax Misery Index 2009 rated Singapore as having the 11th lowest tax misery in the world. The index takes into account corporate income, employer social security, personal income, employee social security, wealth tax and VAT/sales. Forbes suggests the index can be used as a proxy to evaluate whether a country’s policy attracts or repels capital and talent.

The Human Development Index (HDI) is an analysis undertaken by the United Nations.  The annual report considers more than a countries income as a judge of development, considering other aspects including poverty, gender, democracy, rights, cultural liberty, globilization, access to water and climate factors. Singapore ranks 23rd out of 182 nations in the 2009 Human Development Index (HDI) rankings.

Singapore is an increasingly expensive location to base a business. A rise in property prices is just one factor contributing to Singapore's 11th position in the latest Mercer Human Resources' global Cost of Living Survey. As a services and export-based economy Singapore is vulnerable to i) high global oil and food prices and ii) the health of the global economy.

Contact Us

For more information on Singapore company registration, contact email@healyconsultants.com or call us in Singapore at (+65) 6735 0120.