The process of incorporation through Aspire is:
- Smooth and easy: Registration process is 100% online and can be done in a couple of hours after we receive all the required documents
- Remote-friendly: Sit in the comfort of your home or office in any part of the world while you incorporate your new entity and open a business account in Singapore
- Competitively priced: Starting from S$299* (for Pte Ltd) for Singaporean directors, our packages are competitive and economical with no hidden fees
- Professionally guided: To help you select the right entity and structure of your new business, we provide professional guidance together with our incorporation partner. With Aspire, clients from Singapore and all around the world can incorporate their businesses in Singapore and get a business account.
*Excluding monthly account subscription fees. For more info on pricing,click here
There are three basic types of company structures in Singapore, and they vary in terms of liability, the number of owners, and relationships between them:
Limited Liability Company (Pte Ltd or LLC) - The most common choice for entrepreneurs in Singapore. It’s an exempt private company limited by shares.
Pros:
There can be from 1 to 20 individual shareholders and as many directors as you need;
A Pte Ltd or LLC is a legal entity that is separate from its founders, thus limiting your liability. This means that the debts, the risks, and the responsibilities are made in the company’s name, not in yours;
You will pay corporate tax (17% maximum) as opposed to the personal tax (up to 22%), and your company is eligible for corporate tax exemptions.
Cons:
There are certain requirements that the LLC needs to fulfill, such as employing a Company Secretary and filing annual returns to ACRA.
Sole Proprietorship - A business set up by one individual. This is only an option for local residents: foreigners have to incorporate under another registration type.
Pros:
Cheapest and easiest to incorporate and manage.
Cons:
The business is not a separate legal entity but is an extension of the entrepreneur. Hence, the entrepreneur is personally liable for all business risks;
All revenues of the business will be considered and taxed as individual income. This is usually cheaper than Pte Ltd for lower revenues, but more expensive for higher revenue buckets.
Partnership - Formed by minimum 2 to maximum 20 partners. There are several ways to set it up:
General Partnership (or just Partnership) - Similar to Sole Proprietorship, except there is more than one owner.
Pros:
Cheap and easy to incorporate.
Cons:
The liability is unlimited, and the partners are each taxed with personal tax off their individual income.
Limited Partnership - Partners have different liabilities: one is a general partner and the other is limited (or dormant) partner. The role of the limited partner is often restricted to funding.
Pros:
Allows you to have partners with different forms of involvement in the business.
Cons:
The liability is unlimited, and Individual Partners are taxed at personal tax rate (max 22%) and Corporate Partners at corporate tax rate (max 17%).
Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) - A partnership similar to Pte Ltd.
Pros:
An LLP creates a separate legal entity, thus limiting the partners’ liability;
Requirements for compliance activities are low, for example, there’s no need to file annual returns.
Cons:
Individual Partners are taxed at personal tax rate (max 22%) and Corporate Partners at corporate tax rate (max 17%);
An LLP is not eligible for corporate tax exemptions.
There are several factors to consider when selecting your entity structure:
- Liability: Only Pte Ltd and Limited Liability Partnership provide a separate legal entity and limit the personal liability of founders and shareholders. The other forms expose you to personal risks.
- Taxes: Only Pte Ltd companies pay corporate tax rates and can apply for tax exemptions. Other company forms will be subject to personal tax instead. Above a certain level of revenue, it is more beneficial to pay corporate tax compared to personal tax.
- Compliance requirements: Pte Ltd requires to appoint a Corporate Secretary and to submit annual reports to ACRA. These duties can however be outsourced to a specialized agency.
- Funding: A separate legal entity is usually required to apply for loans and attract investment.
Currently we offer following services to business incorporated outside Singapore
- Advance Cards
- Budget Controls
- Multi User Access
- USD Account
Please click here (refer to Type 2) to see the list of countries outside Singapore within our Acceptable Use Policy.
You can reach out to us to easily activate the USD Account with Aspire for your business needs.If your business is incorporated outside Singapore, you can easily activate the USD Account just by letting us know!
You can choose to get in touch with your Onboarding Manager or simply call or email us here to raise a support ticket.
With a USD Account, your business can:- Send and receive funds in supported currencies.- Send USD to countries all around the world.- Integrate with third party payment platforms, such as Paypal.
All companies registered in Singapore are listed in ACRA's database (Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority). ACRA's company search tool can inform you whether a company is registered in Singapore. You can also refer to our blog article how to check Singapore company registration number
Company registration process for Singapore is online through ACRA (Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority). Companies such as Aspire can assist with your company registration process.
You can visit ACRA's (Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority) website to review and understand requirements for setting up a company in Singapore or use Aspire's Kickstart service which helps making this process easy for you.
It can take anywhere between 14 days to 2 months for the the company to be registered in Singapore.