Singapore

Setting Up a Single Family Office in Singapore   Singapore is regarded as one of the most prominent financial centre in Southeast Asia because it is adjacent to local and global private banks, investment banks and other financial service providers. It is also known for its stable governance and favourable business environment, so it’s popular as a base for many high net worth families to manage assets and invest globally.   The Singapore government has set up tax incentives for offshore and onshore funds managed by family offices to boost Singapore’s appeal as a leading wealth management centre. Please refer to our Introduction to Family Office in Singapore for more details.   How to Set Up the Structure of a Single Family Office in Singapore？   A simplified description of the ownership structure of a typical family office is shown in the following figure: How Long Will it Take to […]

Guide to Starting a Pet Shop in Singapore   Nowadays, as millennial and Generation Z consumers have come into adulthood, they have embraced the pet-owning and pet-loving lifestyles to a far greater extent than their elders. The pet industry has been experiencing explosive growth recently. In this case, one may grab the business opportunity by setting up his or her own pet shop in Singapore.   In order to start a pet shop in Singapore, you must register a business with Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority of Singapore (“ACRA”). After that, you would need to have a pet shop licence which issued by Animal & Veterinary Service (“AVS”), a cluster of the National Parks Board before the pet shop is allowed to display, sell, distribute, or export pets.   Pet Shop Licence   You will need a licence from AVS before your pet shop is allowed to display, sell, distribute, […]

Guide to Starting a Traditional Chinese Medicine Business in Singapore Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) plays an important role in our daily life, recently the cooperation between TCM and Western Medicine has been increasing, which also boosted the market for Traditional Medicine, the benefits of TCM are widely recognized by consumers. TCM in Singapore has a history that goes back to more than a century.   Internationalization of TCM enterprises   Singapore is one of the countries in Southeast Asia with comparatively good development of TCM. Beside the domestic listed Eu Yan Sang International Ltd, there are other listed TCM companies from China, such as Pharmesis International Ltd. and Tianjin ZhongXin Pharmaceutical Group Corp Ltd. The Singapore government also encourages TCM enterprise to list on the Singapore stock exchange, which has a relatively large pool of international capital and relatively low listing requirement. Compared with Hong Kong and some other international bourses, […]

Guide to Relocating/Settling Down in Singapore   Singapore is considered by many investor/business owner as the gateway to ASEAN by having one of the lowest corporate tax rates and the government business-friendly policies make its easy for foreign companies to relocate or set up their office in Singapore.   A number of famous entrepreneurs (UK billionaire James Dyson and the owner of Haidilao Hot Pot Zhang Yong) had relocate their headquarter/office to Singapore in order to take advantage of the great number of business opportunities and benefits is offers.   This article will give you an overview on the reason to relocation to Singapore, the procedure as well as how to settle down in Singapore.   The Advantages of Singapore   (1)     Extensive Double Tax Treaties   Singapore has an extensive network of double tax agreements (DTA), with more than 80 counties across the global. The key benefits of a […]

Guide to Lease an Office Premises in Singapore   Lease Duration   In general, the duration of a lease agreement in Singapore is between 2 to 3 years with an option to renew at the end of the lease term.   Rent   The monthly rental fee includes base rent and service charges calculated per square feet of floor area and 7% of GST (Goods and Service Tax) if the landlord is GST-registered. In overall, Singapore office base rent rates and service charges averaging from S$4.50/sqft to S$10.00/sqft and S$0.70/sqft – S$1.20/sqft respectively depending on the locations and buildings. Service charges is charged for the general management services provided by the landlord such as building maintenance, security, cleaning, and maintenance of central air-conditioning of the building.   Deposits and stamp duty payable   A refundable security deposit equivalent to three months gross rent is common practice and payable by the […]

A company is considered as resident in Singapore if the control and management of the business is exercised in Singapore. Although the term “control and management” is not defined explicitly by authorities, a generally accepted consensus is that it refers to the policy level decision making at the level of Board of Directors and not the day-to-day decision making and operations. In general, a company is considered non-resident in Singapore if the directors manage and control the business and hold board meetings from outside Singapore. This is true even if, for example, the lower level operations are taking place in Singapore. A company’s residence may change from one year of assessment to the next depending on the circumstances. A Singapore branch of a foreign company is generally not treated as a Singapore tax resident since the control and management is vested with an overseas parent company. The basis of taxation […]