Both Singapore and international companies operating in the country are subject to taxes on their worldwide earnings when those profits are repatriated or treated as coming from Singapore. Certain forms of income (such as interest, royalties, technical service fees, and rental of immovable property) that are deemed to arise in Singapore are liable to WHT (Withholding taxes) for non-residents.
Singapore's corporate income tax rate is a flat 17 percent.
For eligible startups, the government will waive some taxes for the first three years of operation.
For Singapore Company Formation Customer, Partial Tax Exemption (Income Taxed at the Regular Rate)
|
Years of assessment 2018 to 2019 |
||
|
Chargeable income (SGD) |
Exempt from tax |
Exempt income (SGD) |
|
First 10,000 |
75% |
7,500 |
|
Next 290,000 |
50% |
145,000 |
|
Total |
152,000 |
|
|
Year of assessment 2020 onwards |
||
|
Chargeable income (SGD) |
Exempt from tax |
Exempt income (SGD) |
|
First 10,000 |
75% |
7,500 |
|
Next 290,000 |
50% |
95,000 |
|
Total |
102,500 |
|
Tax Exemption Program for New Businesses
Any newly formed business that satisfies the requirements (detailed below) will be exempt from paying taxes for its first three years as a going concern. Here are the requirements that must be met:
- Get a Singaporean company registration
- Take Singapore as your tax home
- includes at least one shareholder who holds 10% of the ordinary shares (and no more than 20% in total) and no more than twenty shareholders in total.
All new businesses, with two exceptions, are eligible for the tax break:
- A corporation whose primary business is the holding of investments;
- A corporation whose primary business is the development of real estate for either investment or sale.
|
Years of assessment 2018 to 2019 |
||
|
Chargeable income (SGD) |
Exempt from tax |
Exempt income (SGD) |
|
First 100,000 |
100% |
100,000 |
|
Next 200,000 |
50% |
100,000 |
|
Total |
200,000 |
|
|
Year of assessment 2020 onwards |
||
|
Chargeable income (SGD) |
Exempt from tax |
Exempt income (SGD) |
|
First 100,000 |
75% |
75,000 |
|
Next 100,000 |
50% |
50,000 |
|
Total |
125,000 |
|
Companies engaged in real estate development or investment holding are not eligible for the startup exemption.
In addition, businesses might receive a 40% tax credit for the 2018 assessment year. The maximum amount of this refund is SGD15,000. For the 2019 assessment year, taxpayers are eligible for a 20% tax rebate, up to a maximum of SGD $10,000.
All dividends paid out of Singapore are exempt from taxation at the shareholder level because the country has a single tax rate.
