The Singapore Standard Industrial Classification (SSIC) Code Search Tool
Before you choose an SSIC code for your business, you must:
2. Determine what is your business's primary, secondary & ancillary activity
Structure of the SSIC classification
The first and the most important step is to understand how SSIC codes are structured. The latest SSIC classification broadly comprises 21 economic activity categories called ‘sections’. Each section is distinguished by a single alphabet. Each section is further broken down into one or more ‘divisions’. A division is further divided into ‘groups’, a group into ‘classes’, and each class into ‘sub-classes’. Here is an example of how the SSIC hierarchy looks:
The way to read an SSIC code is to understand that the first two digits stand for the major business division while each digit that follows further refines the classification of the business activity.
When the digit 0 appears at the end of an SSIC code, it is usually an addition because there is no further classification. So, the SSIC code for ‘manufacture of basic iron and steel’ is 2410 because it is the only class within the group ‘manufacture of basic iron and steel’ with the classification code 241.
When 9 appears at the end of your SSIC code, it indicates residual activities that are not significant enough to warrant their own SSIC code. For business activities with SSIC codes ending in 9, the description of the activity ends with the acronym N.E.C, which means ‘not elsewhere classified’.
The SSIC codes that a business unit needs to select are the Sub-class codes which are most relevant to your businesses primary activity (more on this later). This sub-class codes or SSIC codes as they are commonly known are 5 digit codes and include all the information related to the Section, Division, Group, Class and Sub-class. Now that we understand how the SSIC codes are structured, let’s move on to the next step on how to identify one for your business unit.
Primary, Secondary & Ancillary activities & how to define one for your business
Economic activity is at the heart of SSIC classifications, and businesses must grasp this to choose the appropriate SSIC code. According to SSIC 2020, "An economic activity occurs when resources such as labour, capital, goods, and services are used in a production process to produce goods and services,". It states that there are 3 kinds of economic activity:
- Principal activity - Principal activity refers to the activity that contributes the most to the value added (VA) of the goods and services produced by the economic unit, or the activity with the highest VA among the activities of the unit.
- Secondary activity refers to each separate activity undertaken by the economic unit which is not the unit’s principal activity.
- Ancillary activity refers to activity undertaken to support the main productive activities of an economic unit by providing goods or services entirely for the use of that unit. Examples of such activities are human resource functions, bookkeeping, purchasing, storage and sales promotion.
To put this into context, if your primary activity is the retail selling of mobile phones, a secondary activity may be mobile phone repair, while ancillary activities could include everything from human resources and accounting to sales and advertising.
Unit
- Provision of human resource services to hire workers for the handphone retail shop
- Repair and maintenance of tools to support the firm’s communication equipment repair business
How to determine the principal activity of your business?
Now that you have understood the definitions, the next step would be to determine your principal activity. As mentioned above, it is determined by identifying which activity provides the most Value Added (VA), and the suggested approach to identify the same is using the top-down method.
The top-down method follows a hierarchical principle to ensure that the classification at the lowest level is consistent with the classification at the highest level. So start by creating a table of hierarchy as shown in the illustration below. Starting from top-level i.e. ‘Section’, start plotting which sections does your business operates in. Then move downwards and identify all possible ‘Divisions’, ‘Groups’, ‘Classes’ & ‘Sub-classes’ that your business deals in.
Once this is done, start by identifying the SSIC ‘Section’ that contributes the highest VA, followed by the ‘Division’ and then the ‘Group’ and so on until the highest VA item within the ‘Sub-class’ is obtained. The code of the sub-class that is obtained, is the SSIC code that is most relevant to your business.
Example of how to determine SSIC code using the Top-Down Method
Refer to the example provided below. Based on the top-down method, the SSIC code of the economic unit in the example given below is SSIC 27201 ‘Manufacture of primary batteries’ as the VA of SSIC 27 ‘Manufacture of electrical equipment’ is the highest.
(VA = 10)
‘Real Estate Activities’
(VA = 5)
‘Manufacture of basic metals’
(VA = 4)
(VA = 6)
‘Real Estate Activities’
(VA = 5)
‘Manufacture of basic iron and steel’
(VA = 4)
‘Manufacture of batteries and accumulators’
(VA = 4)
‘Manufacture of domestic appliances’
(VA = 2)
‘Real estate activities with own or leased property’
(VA = 5)
‘Manufacture of basic metals’
(VA = 4)
‘Manufacture of batteries and accumulators’
(VA = 4)
‘Manufacture of domestic appliances’
(VA = 2)
‘Real estate activities with own or leased property’
(VA = 5)
‘Iron and steel rolling mills’
(VA = 4)
‘Manufacture of primary batteries’
(VA = 4)
‘Manufacture of domestic appliances n.e.c’
(VA = 2)
‘Real estate developers’
(VA = 5)
What if you cannot determine the Value Added (VA) for your business activities?
If it is difficult to obtain information on VA of the goods sold or services rendered, the principal activity could be determined by other metrics such as:
- Gross output that is attributable to the goods or services
- Value of sales or shipments of those groups of products falling into each category of activity
- Proportion of employment or wages in the various activities
There are multiple businesses & scenarios that can cause confusion e.g. What if you are the retailer of your own manufactured goods - should your primary activity be manufacturing or retail trade? The SSIC 2020 classification highlights many such cases and provides a clear understanding on how to proceed. There are specific scenarios of economic units not yet in operation, outsourcing, online marketplaces, government activities as well as for repair and maintenance activities.
SSIC 2020 edition Vs SSIC 2015 edition - The difference
The SSIC 2020 is the 14th edition of the SSIC and supersedes the previous editions. It is a significant update over the SSIC 2015 (Version 2018) edition.
(2-Digit)
(3-Digit)
(4-Digit)
(5-Digit)
(2-Digit)
(3-Digit)
(4-Digit)
(5-Digit)
Common SSIC Codes by Industry
Technology
Consulting
Online Marketplaces
Wholesale Trade
Retail Trade
Food and Beverage Service Activities
Real Estate Activities
Transportation and StoragE
Financial Services
Other Services
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Frequently asked questions related to SSIC codes
What is an Singapore Standard Industrial Classification (SSIC) Code?
An SSIC code is a 5 digit number classifying a company’s business activities that it carries out in Singapore. SSIC code helps businesses to identify licence applications, receive government grants and tax incentives, loans and to identify competitors. The SSIC code serves an administrative function such as to analyse economic activity, tax eligibility, industry support schemes etc. Read more about it on our blog: Guide to SSIC codes in Singapore
How many SSIC codes can a company register?
ACRA allows a company to register a maximum of 2 SSIC codes. The primary code should clearly depict the primary business activity. If you are registering 2 codes, it is advisable that both business activities are coherent.
Can SSIC code be changed once registered?
Yes, SSIC codes can be changed. Companies are constantly evolving and there is a good probability that the primary business activity might change over a period of time. Read more about it on our blog: Guide to SSIC codes in Singapore
How to check company SSIC code?
To check the SSIC code registered by your company or any other organization, you can visit Bizfile and search teh ACRA register for entities and public accountants.
What Is ACRA Singapore?
The acronym ACRA stands for Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority. ACRA is a statutory board under the Ministry of Finance of the Government of Singapore. Being a national business registry of Singapore, one of ACRA's functions is to establish and administer a repository of documents and information relating to business entities and public accountants, and to provide access to the public to such documents and information.
Does my company or business type has any impact on SSIC code?
It should be emphasised that an economic unit’s SSIC code does not depend on the following characteristics:
- Type of ownership - Foreign, local, private or government owned
- Type of legal organisation - Sole proprietorship, partnership, company
- Type of production - Formal or informal production, market or non-market production, production by factories or households
- Mode of delivery - Internet or traditional brick-and-mortar. For instance: firms that retail clothes solely through the Internet are classified with firms that retail clothes through brick-and-mortar stores.Firms that provide virtual banking services are classified with brick-and-mortar banks.
Can the incorporation be delayed because of the code I chose?
Be careful to select the most relevant SSIC code as a wrong decision could delay your incorporation process by anywhere from two weeks to two months.