Company incorporation in Singapore and opening a corporate account for it with a Singapore bank is a 2-in-1 service that has gained popularity with our readers. The procedure is not that easy as the requirements are really stringent, but we are confident in the skills of our experts – so Offshore Pro Group takes full responsibility for success! We would like to emphasize that the company registration and opening of a corporate account with a bank in Singapore is not a premium luxury service, and the expenses you will have to incur (from 12600 EUR) are quite affordable even for beginners with a limited budget.
Items included in the cost:
- Preparation of a package of documents
- Preliminary risk analysis
- Assessment of whether the client needs an extended package of services
- Expert assessment of the advantages and disadvantages of a corporate account in different banks
- Preliminary arrangements with officials in Singapore
This is the procedure we typically follow to guarantee company registration and the opening of a corporate account with a bank in Singapore to our clients. We cannot totally exclude the risk of failure but our experience shows that it is extremely low. Experts at Offshore Pro Group adopt a meticulous approach to work and offer a worthy alternative to a “gray” service with a slightly lower price and almost no guarantees.
Register a Company in Singapore + Open a Corporate Account in Singapore – Advantages of the Jurisdiction
I can talk about it for hours as there is really a long story to tell. Singapore is an extremely profitable jurisdiction for starting and running a business, and the financial requirements you will have to meet to be a part of the business community are in no way high. You are unlikely to have any reason to regret your decision as Singapore is a land of opportunities!
Why Singapore:
- Financial, economic and political stability
- Sound and business-friendly legislation
- An extremely low level of corruption
- Well-developed infrastructure
- Absence of red tape and the factor of informal interpersonal relations
- Favorable strategic location
- The city-state has its own seaport
- The simplest possible process of company registration (if you clearly understand what you are doing and how)
- Favorable tax climate
- Lots of business support programs
- Well-functioning nominee service
- Simplified access to other Asian markets
All these features are combined to form a really special Asian eco-system offering multiple roads to your success in business! And our experts can help you lay down the important cornerstones in a hassle-free manner.
FREE EXPERT CONSULTATION
on which jurisdiction is best for
your business, preferred tax regime,
company structure.
on which jurisdiction is best for your business, preferred tax regime, company structure.
How to Incorporate a Company in Singapore in 2022: Sequence of Steps
First of all, we would like to emphasize that all the information we provide is not intended (!) for independent use but is merely an illustration of how our experts will do the job for you! We cannot reasonably elaborate a comprehensive self-study guide for our readers as there are too many aspects to consider. Therefore, we request our potential clients to first contact us in a way convenient for them (e-mail, Internet messengers) to get an expert opinion on their situation.
General steps for company incorporation in Singapore:
- Select the type of company. If there are no special requirements, opt for the standard Pte Ltd format for Singapore.
- Make up a name for it. The main requirement is uniqueness: the name should bear no resemblance whatsoever to the registered trademarks.
- Reserve the name. This will be handled by the registrar.
- Prepare a package of documents. Natural persons are typically required to provide an application, a passport, a confirmed address of residence, and personal information (citizenship, date and place of birth, occupation, phone, etc.). A legal entity will additionally need a set of standard certificates – Certificate of Incorporation, Certificate of Registration with the tax authorities, as well as copies of constituent documents.
Keep in mind that according to the new rules you only need to provide one document for registration, the Company Constitution. It can be standard or custom-made (i.e. amended to suit your needs)!
- Decide whether you will use the nominee service. The Basic Service Package (extended company registration in Singapore with a block of additional services) includes services of the secretary, director and shareholder.
- Submit the documents to ACRA (Singapore Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority). The Singapore company is automatically registered in IRAS (Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore).
The documents for company registration in Singapore must be in English or Chinese only, and their legalization is mandatory.
Opening an Account with a Bank in Singapore
This service is included in the price of any company registration package in Singapore (see below), so no additional costs will be required. You may experience some difficulties with the preparation of a package of documents as the list will be quite long. But our experts are well versed in the peculiarities of Singapore’s banking sector, so we can guarantee a positive result in almost 100% of cases.
An approximate list of documents for opening a corporate account with a bank in Singapore (provided that the company conducts a transparent business and there are no aggravating circumstances):
- Certificate of Incumbency
- Certificate of Registration
- Documentary evidence of the actual residence address for the director(s) and shareholder(s)
- Brief description of the company’s business in Singapore
- Business Structure M&A
- Short list of suppliers and buyers
- Basic data for the company in Singapore: annual turnover, office location, approximate monthly turnover, size and origin of funds to be credited to the account before it is activated
We would like to point out that the list of documents required to open a corporate account with a bank in Singapore is based on the practical experience of our experts and may be redundant. But this is a necessary step on our part which helps to minimize the probability of failure. Some documents are desirable but not mandatory, but it would be good to have them to increase probability of success!
The choice of a particular bank is a complicated procedure. We recommend 5 main options for corporate account opening (on the condition that your company is incorporated in Singapore), but this is not an attempt to limit your choice. Upon your request, we are ready to consider the possibility of opening a corporate account with any other bank in Singapore!
Terms of service for the largest banks in Singapore (initial deposit and average daily balance requirements, in SGD, USD and EUR in each case):
- Bank account in Singapore OCBC Bank: 3,000, 500, 500/10,000, 10,000, N/A
- Bank account in Singapore DBS Commercial Banking: 3,000, 1,000, 800/10,000, 1,000, 800
- Bank account in Singapore MayBank: 1,000, 1,000, 1,000/10,000, 1,000, N/A
- Singapore bank account CitiBank Singapore: SGD 50,000 (or equivalent)/SGD 50,000 (on all accounts in total)
- Bank account in Singapore UOB Bank: 1,000, 1,000, 900/10,000, N/A, 8,000
Upon the client’s request, we can open a corporate bank account in one of the payment systems operating in Singapore – PayPal (international) or SmoovPay (national).
Additional services
- Change of the corporate account manager in the bank/payment system – USD 700
- Adding a new user to the online banking system – USD 1,200
- Opening a personal account with a bank in Singapore – from USD 2,999
- Opening an account in the payment system (with verification and connection to an existing bank account) – USD 1,900
We recommend paying attention to the following:
- The time required to open a corporate account with a bank in Singapore depends on the selected financial institution and the company’s characteristics. On average, expect about 3-4 weeks for your account to become operational.
- Banks can refuse to serve a company for the following reasons:
- a) the director occupies the director’s position in more than 5-10 companies
- b) you cannot clearly and documentarily prove that the business is related to Singapore
- c) the real owner is from the Russian Federation or another CIS country
But we should keep in mind that “can refuse” and “will refuse” are not the same things. The best idea here is to trust our experts as we know how to help your company look respectable in the eyes of the bank’s employees.
Company Registration in Singapore: Service Packages
Service packages have been developed to make it easier for clients to choose service options and comply with the All Inclusive principle. Please note that services marked with an asterisk (*) require annual renewal (the first 12 months are already included in the package price). A package of services required to incorporate a company in Singapore costs less than the same services selected individually.
Expanded packages include all the features of simpler options!
Basic Package – USD 8,660
- Company registration in Singapore + all required state fees
- Legal address*
- Secretarial services*
- Singapore Director*
- Security deposit
- Courier delivery from Singapore to your address
Business Package – USD 11,680
- All the features of the Basic Package
- The director’s position may be occupied by a foreigner
- The shareholder’s position may be occupied by a foreigner
- A complete set of documents for opening an account (no more than 12 documents stitched)
- Corporate checking account with a Swiss bank
Premium Package – USD 13,760
- All the features of the Basic and Business packages
- Nominee Director (natural person, resident of Panama)
- Nominee shareholder (natural person, resident of Panama)
- Power of attorney, trust declaration (issuance, notarization)
- Additional courier delivery of a package of documents from Panama
Annual Renewal Service (** — Premium Package only):
- Legal address
- Secretarial services
- The local director
- Accounting service. It includes the minimum amount covering the “zero” reporting (if the company does not carry out operations). The final costs are calculated immediately before the document is handed over to the client.
- Nominee director**
- Nominee shareholder**
- Power of Attorney and Trust Declaration**
- The security deposit is intended to cover the costs of company dissolution if its owner does not get in touch (the amount may be broken down into monthly instalments).
Other popular services in Singapore that we provide:
- Set Up a Singapore Company with a Hong Kong Account Remotely.
- A Company in Singapore with an Account in a Sierra Leone Bank.
- Open a Company in Singapore + an Account in the Caribbean Bank.
- Reasons to set up an external asset management bank account in Singapore.
- Open a Company in Singapore in 2022 with an Account in an Island Jurisdiction or Belize.
You can incorporate a company in Singapore and open a corporate account with a bank in Singapore with minimal expenses and almost zero risk of refusal. The experts at Offshore Pro Group are always ready to offer you alternative service options and consider your requests for services that are not included in the current price list. If you have any questions, please contact us in a way that is convenient for you (for example, via e-mail info@offshore-pro.info). We wish you good luck in all your business endeavors!
I want to open an account in Singapore. Which account provides a credit limit?
You will have access to 3 main account types:
– A current account without interest accrued but with a debit card and a checkbook.
– A fixed deposit account with interest accrued but without a checkbook.
– A current account with interest accrued (savings account), which stands in between the accounts described above.
Credit cards are issued for the use of borrowed funds. The initial limit will be quite modest – SGD 9,000 at the rate of 24% per annum (for natural persons), but it may subsequently be raised provided that the debt is repaid in a timely manner. When you choose a bank, pay attention to the amount of the down payment and the mandatory minimum balance, the terms of service and the list of additional services.
What are the advantages of Singapore banks?
There are quite a few of them, but we should first of all mention a fairly tight control. And this is not a paradox as such a policy guarantees the absence of problems and a high-quality service that is not tied to the current market conditions. Among other advantages, we would like to note the focus on comprehensive services, the state deposit protection program (adopted in 2011), strict requirements for bank secrecy, advanced Internet banking with a very high degree of resilience and the loyalty of banks to their customers (not to be confused with persons who only intend to become customers). Please also pay attention to the reputational factor as the “weight” of the account in Singapore is significantly higher than the one opened in any offshore jurisdiction. And, after all, this criterion is extremely important for solid international business.
I need a Company Limited by Shares in Singapore. What are the main requirements for it?
This is the format selected by the majority of non-residents – primarily due to limited (rather than full) liability. It is indeed subject to quite strict requirements: the size of the authorized capital (we recommend at least USD 3-5 thousand), availability of all necessary licenses (if the field of activity so requires), the absence of bearer shares and shares without par value, 1 shareholder (natural person/legal entity), 1 director (a person with resident status), legal address. It should be noted that nominee service is allowed at the legislative level to protect information about real owners. But please note that the information from the register of companies is in the public domain, so anyone can get access to it.
