Singapore Incorporation Packages for Foreigners: Required Support

Identify the support that must exist on filing day

A foreign founder’s nationality does not by itself determine the correct package. List the resident director, registered office, corporate secretary, ownership evidence and intended activity. The Singapore company setup requirements define the underlying registration task; the package should supply only the genuinely missing support.

ACRA’s officer requirements include a qualifying resident director and a secretary appointed within six months. A commercial nominee director remains a director with duties. An address service also needs to meet the registered-office requirements; it is not automatically licensed premises for the operating activity.

Compare the approved package scopes and renewal prices

All three include the S$315 incorporation government fees in year one and the S$60 Annual Return government fee on the stated package basis. Renewal includes the S$60 Annual Return fee. Secretary and address support runs for 12 months. The accounting eligibility of Plus must be checked again when revenue or transaction complexity changes.

The figures reproduce the supplied approved HSJGlobal baseline; they are not competitor prices or a new market-derived quotation. Any scope change, additional reporting obligation, translation, certification, work pass, licence, bank fee or applicable GST needs separate written treatment. Confirm service commencement and renewal dates in the engagement.

Start is the administrative-compliance option, not an accounting subscription. Plus adds only the specific simple-company accounting outputs in the approved scope; it should not be selected merely because the company is small. Foreign Founder addresses the resident-director gap but does not include the Plus accounting work. If you need both a resident director and accounting, request the combined scope explicitly rather than assuming the most expensive named tier contains everything in the other tiers.

Separate government costs, deposits and service fees

ACRA’s company transaction fee schedule lists S$15 for a name application, S$300 for registration and S$60 for an Annual Return. These charges should not be added again when already included in the package. A director risk deposit is a different cash requirement and is not revenue for services merely because it is collected at onboarding.

Obtain the deposit amount, release conditions, deductions and refund timing before budgeting the Foreign Founder route. A risk deposit is excluded from the S$3,280 service-price baseline. Bank minimum balances and paid-up capital should likewise be distinguished from consumed service fees.

For a same-scope two-year illustration, Compliance Start totals S$2,160, Plus S$3,560 and Foreign Founder S$6,160, before excluded items or applicable GST. These arithmetic totals assume a second full year, continued eligibility and no price change. They are a planning comparison, not a fixed future renewal guarantee.

Keep a five-line cash schedule: non-refundable professional services, included government fees, separately payable government fees, refundable deposit and funds retained by the business. That last category includes capital or a bank balance; it is not the same as a consumed fee. Only add an item when the business actually needs it and the selected package does not already cover it.

For the bank-document assistance, specify the deliverable and the decision boundary. Assistance can cover an agreed application pack and coordination; the bank still evaluates the company, owners, activity and source of funds. Ask whether extra bank applications, in-person verification, foreign-document certification or follow-up queries are included, and obtain a separate price where they are not. Do not put an assumed bank approval date into the incorporation service promise.

Test three founder situations against the support gap

A founder who has an independently qualifying resident director but no local address may fit Start. If the same company meets the narrow accounting conditions and needs those deliverables, Plus can be compared with a separately scoped accountant.

A founder remaining overseas who needs a resident director should assess Foreign Founder acceptance and the separate deposit. The resident nominee director responsibilities matter when planning the relationship; commercial availability does not remove statutory duties.

A founder planning to relocate must separately assess immigration permission. Incorporation does not authorise work in Singapore. Do not assume the director arrangement will be replaced on a particular date until a qualifying successor and the applicable approvals are confirmed.

A founder whose forecast changes during the year needs a scope review. For Plus, exceeding the revenue cap, registering for GST, requiring an audit or introducing complex cross-border transactions can move the work outside eligibility. Record a notification trigger in the engagement so the accountant can identify additional work before the annual deadline. A low first-year price is not a substitute for a reporting scope that matches the transactions actually undertaken.

Choose the package with a complete written boundary

Select the lowest scope that actually fills the appointment and compliance gaps. Ask the engagement to state government fees included, service duration, renewal, eligibility limits, excluded tasks and who supplies the records needed for delivery.

Before paying, obtain the cancellation and refund provisions, treatment of unsuccessful onboarding, deposit terms and any out-of-scope charges. Those terms were not supplied in the approved price baseline, so resolve them in the contract rather than assuming a refund right or a free additional service.