For years, the government of Singapore has focused on cutting red tape and making it as easy as they can to do business there, creating a fertile environment for business growth and drawing entrepreneurs from all over the world. If you’d like to join them, this guide takes you through the key steps of launching a business there.
Register Your Business
Once you have come up with a plan for your Singapore business, your first step should be completing company registration with the local regulator, called ACRA. This can take as little as one day if all your papers are in order, and should take no more than three. You need to have a company name and secretary, a local address, a local director, and at least one Singapore Dollar to start with.
There are services that can provide a Singapore address and a local director to businesses which do not have their own. This is a popular choice for many companies, as these services help ensure compliance with the local rules and laws.
Secure Licenses and Permits
The next step on your journey to wealth in Singapore is to get any licenses and permits you need. This depends largely on the activities your business plans to engage in. Food, finance, and healthcare businesses are some of those that usually need to apply for licenses and permits once they have been registered. Luckily, Singapore has made it simple to apply for these via their online GoBusiness portal. As with registration, processing times tend to be fast.
Getting all the right permissions for your business straight away is a smart move, because if you start without them, you could face legal issues, fines, and delays.
Open a Corporate Bank Account
You will need a bank account for your business in order to manage the finances, process transactions, and build trust with your clients and backers. Singapore is home to both local and international banks that offer corporate accounts, and the documents they need are often straightforward. You should expect to provide proof that you have registered with ACRA, as well as proof of address and ID documents for your directors.
Using a business bank account can also help you build a relationship with the bank, which can be useful later if you need loans or other financial services to help you grow.
Seek Professional Tax Advice
Tax rates in Singapore are known to be very generous. The island taxes businesses at a flat 17% rate and has exemptions for startups and small operations. It also has double-taxation avoidance agreements with many countries, which help to lower the tax burden for large businesses. To check whether these apply to your business, and to ensure you are making the most of the country’s generous tax system, it’s smart to seek expert advice.
Leverage Government Grants and Support
Other than its low tax rates, Singapore supports businesses by providing grants and assistance. These tend to go to high-growth industries like tech, but some have more general eligibility criteria, so it’s always worth checking if any apply to you. They can help get your business off to a strong financial start or fund your growth into a new market.
Find the Right Office Space
The space your business operates from does not need to be the same as the address you used when you registered the business. Once you have registered, secured the licenses you need, and opened a bank account, you can start looking for a space to work from. There’s plenty to choose from in Singapore’s skyscraper-lined streets. Office space in the Central Business District comes at premium prices, but can work wonders for your company’s credibility and image.
However, many smaller businesses prefer modern options like co-working spaces or virtual offices. The latter are great for startups that are looking to save on overheads while they get up and running.
Hire Locally
Singapore’s education system is renowned for its ability to produce smart, hardworking, and ambitious people. On top of that, the city-state attracts enterprising people from all over the world who are looking to build or expand their careers. This gives businesses a valuable and diverse talent pool to draw from when it comes to hiring staff.
However, employers in Singapore must comply with the local rules and laws. This means treating employees fairly, contributing to their pension fund, and making sure foreign hires have the right visas and permits. Employment laws can also change over time, so it is important for employers to watch them closely and update their practices when needed.
Ensure Ongoing Compliance
Filing paperwork is not just needed when you are setting up a business in Singapore. You also have to provide annual reports, financial statements, and tax filings on an ongoing basis. Luckily, the country is very tech-forward and most of this can be done online in just a few minutes if you have the documents ready. It can also be done by a third party, such as a professional company secretary or an accountant.
In fact, letting a professional service take care of your ongoing compliance needs is often a good move. This is because these services tend to have expert knowledge of the requirements and can make sure that everything is reported accurately and on time.
Build Your Brand Through Marketing
The downside of Singapore’s openness to business is that you will likely have a lot of competition. To stand out, you will need a unique value proposition, a strong brand that sticks in people’s minds, and a way to communicate these things to clients. That’s where having a solid marketing plan comes in. Whether you take care of this yourself or outsource it to a marketing agency, it will be a central part of building a successful business in Singapore.
Conclusion
The tiny city-state of Singapore has seen decades of economic growth as a result of its business-friendly policies, and this shows no sign of changing. With a solid plan that covers all of the points listed above, it is an ideal place to launch a business.
