What this area covers: VAT / GST in Singapore
VAT / GST is one of 6 parts of our “Tax & Accounting” practice. It covers the full cycle from initial scoping to operational launch, run by a single named partner from our Singapore practice.
What it is in Singapore: registration plus monthly / quarterly returns.
How we handle VAT / GST
The “VAT / GST” project in Singapore is structured as a 4-stage process run by a single named partner.
Corporate tax and GST with IRAS, annual filings with ACRA and monthly bookkeeping.
The same desk that runs VAT / GST handles your banking, bookkeeping, compliance and — where needed — your wind-down.INNOVA · Operating model
Why Singapore
Singapore is the operating hub of the Asia-Pacific region, with territorial taxation, a strong regulator (MAS), and the rule of law. Our priority for structures focused on Southeast Asia and for fintech licensing under the PSA.
A reliable regulatory environment
Banking ecosystem
Corporate tax 17% (effectively lower with reliefs)
Local execution, one plan
Why INNOVA
What changes for you when INNOVA runs the project. If a company or a second jurisdiction is not needed yet, we will say so plainly.
Turnkey, without the extra hassle
One window and one contract: we take the task whole, handle everything on your behalf with our own team and trusted contractors, and you buy the result. From you we need decisions and signatures; we get in touch only when the next step depends on you.
We handle banks and regulators
A bank refusal, a registry query, a regulator's request, a stalled deadline: we answer, rework the file and resubmit at no extra charge for our work until the matter is closed.
We see it through
The partner who opens your project carries it through to the result, even when the process runs for months, and stays on afterwards: renewals, filings, changes to the structure. Where the law requires a licensed professional, we bring one in and remain answerable to you.
A boutique, personally involved
We have worked in international business since 2012. An experienced partner runs your project personally, and unusual structures are our field: where you hear “that can't be done”, we look for the lawful route.
Your affairs stay yours
Information about you, your structure, your beneficial owners and your deals reaches neither competitors nor third parties. Banks, registries and regulators receive exactly what the law or the procedure requires, and the contract says so.
Faster and more precise
We build the file around the specific bank's and regulator's requirements before filing. Experience means we get the work right straight away, where some firms need three attempts. A partner replies in writing within 24 hours.
How the work is structured
A 4-stage process led by a single named partner — from scoping to the operational hand-over.
Position audit
Audit of the current tax position and accounting system
Plan design
Restructuring or optimisation plan
Implementation
Filings, registrations and system setup
Ongoing support
Bookkeeping and recurring reporting
What we need from you · what you get from us
What we need from you to begin — and what you walk away with. We won't pester you with needless questions: we already have most of the answers.
- Prior-year financials (if any)scans
- Banking and invoicing accessread-only
- Intercompany agreementsif multi-entity
- IP ownership and licensingstructured
- Operating-entity diagramcurrent state
- Monthly bookkeeping cycle liveautomated
- VAT/GST registrations completedby market
- Tax-position memorandumdocumented
- Annual financial statements preparedregulator-grade
- Transfer-pricing documentation (if needed)master + local
Four ways to work together
We don't quote a fixed price without understanding your situation — cost depends on the complexity of your case. Send a written request or book a paid consultation, then we pick the right format.
Consultation
A paid 30-minute video consultation with a partner. We discuss your situation, define the project scope, and propose a structure and timeline.
Written analysis
A written consultation with a full review of the business — tax positioning, structure options, jurisdiction comparison, banking path. Turnaround: 5 business days.
Operating roadmap
For complex situations — multi-jurisdiction structures, regulated activity, founder relocation. A full plan with stages, dependencies, deliverables and timing.
Direct execution
You know what you need — we execute. No advisory mark-up and no discovery phase.
Fill in the questionnaire
Complete the online questionnaire: a partner studies your case and replies in writing within 24 hours.
Fill in the questionnaire
4 steps · a partner replies in writing within 24 hours.
A partner reads the questionnaire, replies in writing at the email you gave within 24 hours, then a written quote follows. Work starts after you accept it.
Frequently asked questions
The questions we're asked most often. If yours isn't here, a written request is the fastest way to get an answer.
Most “VAT / GST” projects in Singapore run 4–9 weeks start to finish. The fastest stage is document filing; the longest is post-registration onboarding (banking, tax registration). A single named partner runs the project throughout.
From US$ 600/mo · bookkeeping · scope by structure. The lower bound is for clean, standard profiles; the upper bound is for complex ownership structures, multi-jurisdiction projects or regulated activity. A fixed quote follows once we have scoped the task.
In most cases, no. The entire process runs remotely under a notarised power of attorney. A handful of jurisdictions require an in-person visit (typically biometrics for a residence permit) — we plan those as efficiently as possible.
Singapore's headline corporate income tax (CIT) rate is 17% on chargeable income. The system is single-tier: dividends paid to shareholders carry no further tax at the shareholder level. The 17% rate has held since 2010. Partial exemptions and the startup scheme cut the effective rate sharply in a new company's first three years — as low as 4.25% on the first S$100,000 of profit.
The Startup Tax Exemption Scheme (SUTE) gives a qualifying new company, for its first three consecutive years of assessment: a 75% exemption on the first S$100,000 of chargeable income (effective rate 4.25%) and a 50% exemption on the next S$100,000 (effective rate 8.5%). To qualify: incorporated in Singapore, tax resident, no more than 20 shareholders, at least one an individual holding 10% or more. Effective rate as low as 4.25% on the first S$100,000.
No. Singapore imposes no capital gains tax: gains on the sale of shares, property (in certain cases), and other capital assets are generally not taxable. This is a core reason holding structures sit here. But if trading assets is the company's main business, the profit is characterised as revenue — not capital — and taxed at the 17% CIT.
VAT / GST in other countries
The same service — in every jurisdiction we run. One desk, one standard.
