The company is the first step. This page covers the rest: what you must sort out next, what each thing asks of a founder who lives abroad, and what it costs. Every figure has its source. These are the options a founder would look at. No seller pays to be on this page.
1 Form the company
Start here. We compare 12 providers and what each one charges.
A Singapore company needs its own bank account, and a founder abroad has two routes: a bank, or a regulated online account. Banks ask for a minimum balance and charge a fee if you fall below it. Rules for foreign-owned companies differ by bank, and some need a visit or a relationship manager.
What to know
Maybank opens its start-up account online through Singpass only if the company has no more than 3 directors, all Singapore citizens or permanent residents. Otherwise the company applies at a branch, and all signatories must be present. maybank2u.com.sg/en/business/local-enterprise/sme…
Standard Chartered BusinessOne asks for an initial deposit and monthly average balance of S$30,000. The fall-below fee is S$50 a month, and closing within 6 months costs S$500. Its document list names at least 2 directors, all 10% shareholders and all signatories. sc.com/sg/business-accounts/businessone
HSBC's tariff lists a monthly fall-below fee of SGD 70 on its SGD operating account when the monthly average balance is under SGD 50,000. The tariff also lists an extra account opening fee for Singapore companies with corporate shareholders or directors incorporated overseas. business.hsbc.com.sg/-/media/media/singapore/pdfs/cam…
Revolut Business asks that the applicant's current legal home address is in the UK, the EEA, Switzerland, Australia, Singapore or the US. Its Basic plan costs S$0 a month. revolut.com/en-SG/business
WorldFirst says the main applicant must be one of the company's directors. YouBiz says you apply with Singpass (MyInfo Business) or with a manual form that needs the ACRA business profile and an ID photo. worldfirst.com/sg/help-center/onboarding/requir…
MAS says e-money held by payment firms is not a bank deposit and is not protected by deposit insurance. Major payment institutions must safeguard customer money, but MAS says this gives less certainty than deposit insurance. The deposit insurance scheme (SDIC) covers deposits at full banks and finance companies, up to S$100,000 per depositor. mas.gov.sg/-/media/mas-media-library/regula…
DBS says companies owned by foreigners with non-local residency must apply with a Relationship Manager's help. It says it supports such companies for up to six months after opening. The page does not mention nominee directors.
These fees come from the standard-account FAQ. The foreign-owned route uses the Multi-Currency Account, which DBS lists with a S$40 service charge below S$10,000 average daily balance.
OCBC says Singapore companies owned by foreigners with permanent residency outside Singapore, or by foreign corporate shareholders, can open with 100% remote online support and no branch visit.
UOB's eBusiness Account has a S$5,000 minimum balance and a S$15 fall-below fee, waived for the first 12 months, but UOB says online opening needs an owner or director who is a Singapore citizen or PR.
Airwallex's Singapore document list asks for ID of each owner of 25% or more and of the authorised person, plus address proof. It does not state a residency rule.
Wise asks for the ACRA registration number, details of all directors and of shareholders over 25%, and an authorisation letter if you are not a director. It does not state a residency rule.
Statrys also sells corporate services and accounting, so it competes with the incorporation providers on this site.
Read 5 Oct 2026
We could not find: Neither DBS, OCBC, UOB, Maybank, Standard Chartered nor HSBC says anything on its own page about nominee directors. We found no bank statement on that point. We could not confirm the Standard Chartered and HSBC rules for a Singapore company whose directors all live abroad. We did not find a MAS licence number for Aspire, Wise, YouBiz, Revolut, WorldFirst or Statrys on a page we read, so we only state Airwallex's number. Revolut, YouBiz, WorldFirst and Maybank are covered in the facts, not as separate rows, to keep the list short.
3 Take payments from customers
You need a way to take cards or PayNow before the first invoice. Singapore gateways charge per payment and no monthly fee. The trap is the bank link: most gateways pay out to a Singapore business account in the company's name, so open the bank account first.
What to know
PayNow Corporate lets a company receive Singapore dollar payments with its UEN instead of an account number. Only entities incorporated in Singapore with a Singapore bank account at a participating bank can register. dbs.com.sg/sme/paynow
HitPay says it is a MAS-licensed major payment institution, licence PS20200643. hitpayapp.com/sg/paynow
Stripe says it must verify all directors and beneficial owners of a Singapore business. It says to open the account only if you are an owner or a director. stripe.com/en-sg/guides/sg-payment-services…
HitPay prefers CorpPass (MyInfo Business). Its manual route asks for the ACRA profile, ID of owners with 25% or more, and a utility bill as address proof for foreign nationals. It states no residency rule.
Adyen says it has no monthly, set-up or closure fees, and that commitments are agreed with its commercial team.
Read 5 Oct 2026
We could not find: We found no published 2C2P prices. We found no current published fee for receiving PayNow Corporate payments at DBS or OCBC; OCBC's waiver ran to 31 December 2025. Adyen's page does not say what minimum volume it expects from a new Singapore company. None of Stripe, HitPay or Adyen states a residency rule for directors on a page we read.
4 File your company's tax and accounts
A Singapore company files two tax returns a year with IRAS and its accounts with ACRA, even if it earns nothing. A small company can skip the audit, but not the filings. The trap is the date: the first filing, the ECI, falls due 3 months after the financial year ends.
What to know
A company files its Estimated Chargeable Income (ECI) within 3 months of its financial year end. It does not need to file if annual revenue is S$5 million or less and ECI is nil. You must judge this yourself; IRAS says not to ask it to confirm. iras.gov.sg/taxes/corporate-income-tax/estim…
Form C-S, Form C-S (Lite) or Form C is due on 30 November each year, including for companies with no business or a loss. Form C-S (Lite) is for companies with annual revenue of S$200,000 or below. iras.gov.sg/taxes/corporate-income-tax/basic…
A private company is exempt from audit if it meets at least two of three tests for each of the two past financial years: revenue of S$10 million or less, total assets of S$10 million or less, 50 employees or fewer. ACRA said in February 2026 it is reviewing these limits. Shareholders with at least 5% of shares can still require an audit. acra.gov.sg/manage/companies/legal-requireme…
A company with revenue and total assets of S$500,000 or less files simplified XBRL financial statements, with a PDF copy. Larger companies file full XBRL. You can prepare the file with ACRA's free BizFinx tool, approved accounting software, or a corporate service provider. acra.gov.sg/manage/companies/legal-requireme…
GST registration is compulsory above S$1 million of taxable turnover. A company below that can register voluntarily, but must stay registered for at least 2 years and use GIRO. IRAS says a newly incorporated company that registers voluntarily from 1 November 2025 must also send invoice data through InvoiceNow. iras.gov.sg/taxes/goods-services-tax-(gst)/b…
Late filing of a corporate tax return is an offence. IRAS can issue an estimated assessment payable in 1 month, offer a composition amount of up to S$5,000 per offence, or take the company and its directors to court. A late GST return costs S$200, plus S$200 for each further completed month, up to S$10,000 per return. iras.gov.sg/taxes/corporate-income-tax/form-…
The page we read shows four plans, Simple Start, Essentials, Plus and Advanced, each free for 30 days, but no monthly price.
Read 5 Oct 2026
We could not find: We did not find a published price for QuickBooks Online Singapore on the page we read. We did not find a firm that states a price for a company run from abroad; the three firms do not mention foreign directors. IRAS does not publish a fixed fee for a late ECI; it can issue an estimated assessment. We did not re-check the start-up tax exemption, which the ACRA and IRAS notes already cover.
5 Keep a registered address
The law needs a Singapore address for the company (see the registered office rule above). Bought alone, this costs from about S$100 to S$360 a year. The trap is the fine print: some cheap plans fit only local companies, and some only the first year.
What to know
The URA Home Office Scheme lets people living in private homes run small administrative work from home. The home must stay a place of residence, up to two non-residents may work there, and clients may not visit. ura.gov.sg/guidelines/property-and-business…
GoBusiness says registering under the Home Office Scheme is not required unless you intend to hire employees. It says you may register even if your business address is registered elsewhere. licensing.gobusiness.gov.sg/e-adviser/home-based-business/ho…
For an HDB flat, registering under the Home Office Scheme costs a non-refundable administrative fee of S$20 through GoBusiness. If you stop, you must file a change of company address with ACRA. hdb.gov.sg/managing-my-home/home-ownership/…
The provider says these plans are for local entrepreneurs or foreign entrepreneurs with a local resident director. It sells separate plans for foreign-registered companies.
The page is dated April 2025. It includes unlimited mail reception and self collection.
Read 5 Oct 2026
We could not find: We did not find a rule from ACRA on whether a home can serve as the registered office when the company is run from abroad. Most incorporation providers sell the registered address inside a secretary package, so the price alone is hard to compare. The search results gave no verified price for VOffice Singapore beyond its page title. A price for My Office Pte Ltd (Premium plan, with mail forwarding (annual billing)) that we could read again on its page.
6 Buy the insurance you need
The law requires cover only once you hire staff: Work Injury Compensation (WIC) insurance, plus medical insurance for Work Permit and S Pass holders. A founder with no staff has no legal duty to buy either. Many founders still buy professional indemnity cover, because clients ask for it.
What to know
An employer must buy work injury compensation insurance for all employees doing manual work, and for all non-manual employees earning S$2,600 or less a month. The policy must come from an insurer that MOM designates. mom.gov.sg/workplace-safety-and-health/work…
An employer must buy medical insurance for each S Pass holder, with cover of at least S$60,000 a year, and cannot pass the cost on to the worker. mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/s-pass/medica…
MOM says employers need not buy medical insurance for Employment Pass holders. The requirement applies only to Work Permit and S Pass holders. mom.gov.sg/faq/employment-pass/are-employer…
MOM asks employers to give the insurer the company UEN, nature of business, headcount, annual wages and employee occupations, and to finalise the contract at least 21 days before the policy starts. mom.gov.sg/workplace-safety-and-health/work…
Anapi's qualifying rules for this plan: incorporated in Singapore with no more than 2 subsidiaries, and annual revenue under S$600,000. It states nothing on directors' residence.
Anapi sells packaged plans for consultants without long forms.
Read 5 Oct 2026
We could not find: MOM's page does not say whether a director who is the only person paid by the company counts as an employee for WIC insurance. Ask an insurer. No official source says a company must buy professional indemnity cover; we list it as a common purchase, not a duty. We did not find a published price for the S Pass medical insurance policy.
7 Pay yourself and your first hire
How a founder is paid decides the tax and payroll duty. A director abroad who is paid a director's fee triggers withholding tax. An employee in Singapore triggers CPF (for citizens and PRs) and a small levy. Start with what you will pay, to whom, and from where.
What to know
CPF contributions are for employees who are Singapore citizens or permanent residents and earn more than S$50 a month. Foreigners are exempt, so an Employment Pass holder gets no CPF contribution. cpf.gov.sg/member/growing-your-savings/cpf-…
The Skills Development Levy applies to all employees working in Singapore, foreign employees included. It is 0.25% of monthly total wages, at least S$2 and at most S$11.25 for each employee. A company with only foreign employees pays it directly to the Skills and Workforce Development Agency. cpf.gov.sg/employer/employer-obligations/sk…
A Singapore tax-resident company that pays director's fees to a non-resident director must withhold tax at 24%. It files and pays by the 15th of the second month after the payment. IRAS says this applies whether or not the director is in Singapore. iras.gov.sg/taxes/withholding-tax/payments-t…
A non-resident director (under 183 days in Singapore in the year before the Year of Assessment) is subject to this withholding tax. IRAS says pay to a foreign individual as an executive director is not subject to it; that person reports the income in their own tax return. iras.gov.sg/taxes/withholding-tax/payments-t…
IRAS says the full director's remuneration is subject to withholding tax, whether paid in Singapore or abroad, and even if the fees are declared but not yet paid. iras.gov.sg/taxes/withholding-tax/payments-t…
Payboy bills by pay-per-use and shows the price only in an online calculator. It offers a 7-day free trial.
Read 5 Oct 2026
We could not find: We could not read a fixed price for Payboy; its page uses a calculator. We did not find which Swingvy plan costs S$4.25 and which S$5.00 on the page text we could read. The founder's own work pass (Employment Pass, EntrePass) is covered in the existing government notes, so we do not repeat it here. We did not look at whether a company with a sole non-resident director and no staff must register as an employer.
Setup Costs