Does Singapore Have Taxes? Rates, Types & Exemptions

Yes, Singapore does have taxes. The country levies personal income tax, a flat corporate income tax, a Goods and Services Tax on most consumption, property tax on real estate, and stamp duties on property and share transfers, but the rates sit below most developed economies and several familiar taxes — on capital gains, inheritance, and dividends — do not exist at all. Resident individuals pay progressive rates from 0% up to a top marginal rate of 24% on income above S$1 million, and companies pay a flat 17% on chargeable profits.¹²

Personal Income Tax

Personal income tax is governed by the Income Tax Act 1947 and administered by the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Your residency status decides which schedule applies. You qualify as a tax resident if you are physically present in Singapore for at least 183 days in the calendar year preceding the year of assessment, or if you ordinarily reside in Singapore apart from temporary absences.²

Residents pay tax on a progressive scale. The first S$20,000 of chargeable income is taxed at 0%, and rates climb through several brackets to 24% on income above S$1 million.¹ The middle brackets step up modestly: 2% on S$20,001–S$30,000, 3.5% on S$30,001–S$40,000, 7% on S$40,001–S$80,000, and continuing through 22% on S$320,001–S$500,000 and 23% on S$500,001–S$1,000,000. In practice, someone earning S$100,000 pays an effective rate well under 10%.

Non-residents are taxed differently. Employment income is taxed at a flat 15% or at the resident progressive rates, whichever produces the higher amount.¹ Non-resident directors face a steeper 24% on director fees.³

Tax residents can claim personal reliefs — for CPF contributions, spouses, children, elderly dependants, life insurance premiums, and Supplementary Retirement Scheme contributions, among others — with the total capped at S$80,000 per year of assessment.⁴ Course Fees Relief has lapsed starting from YA 2026. Non-residents cannot claim these reliefs.

The filing deadline for Year of Assessment 2026 is April 18, 2026.⁵ Late or inaccurate filing can trigger penalties starting at 5% of the tax owed and rising to as much as double the unpaid amount. Deliberate evasion under Section 96A of the Income Tax Act can carry fines and imprisonment of up to three years.²

Corporate Income Tax

Every company operating in Singapore pays a flat 17% on chargeable income, whether it is locally incorporated or foreign-owned.² Singapore runs a single-tier system, so profits are taxed once at the company level and dividends paid to shareholders are not taxed again.

Tax is charged on income that accrues in, is derived from, or is received in Singapore from outside the country. Foreign-sourced income that stays overseas and is not remitted is generally untaxed. When foreign income is brought into Singapore, it may still qualify for exemption if certain conditions are met, including that the income was subject to tax abroad at a headline rate of at least 15%.

New companies can use the Start-Up Tax Exemption during their first three consecutive years of assessment: 75% of the first S$100,000 of chargeable income is exempt and 50% of the next S$100,000. Companies that don’t qualify still get a partial exemption of 75% on the first S$10,000 and 50% on the next S$190,000.⁶

Corporate returns (Form C-S, Form C-S Lite, or Form C, depending on size and complexity) are due November 30 each year.⁷ Smaller companies with revenue of S$5 million or less and only Singapore-sourced income can use the simplified Form C-S.

Goods and Services Tax

Singapore charges a broad-based consumption tax under the Goods and Services Tax Act 1993. The current GST rate is 9%, applied to most domestic sales of goods and services and to imports.⁸

Businesses must register for GST once their annual taxable turnover exceeds S$1 million. Failing to register when required can lead to a fine of up to S$10,000 plus a penalty equal to 10% of the tax that should have been collected. Registered businesses charge GST on sales, remit the collected amounts to IRAS, and reclaim GST paid on business purchases as input tax credits.

Companies below the S$1 million threshold can register voluntarily, which typically makes sense for exporters whose supplies are zero-rated and who want to recover input GST. Voluntary registration comes with a commitment to stay registered for at least two years and meet ongoing conditions set by the Comptroller.⁹ Some supplies are exempt, most notably the sale and rental of residential property and certain financial services. GST-registered businesses must keep transaction records for at least five years.

CPF Contributions

The Central Provident Fund is Singapore’s mandatory social security savings system, and for anyone employed in Singapore the contributions behave much like a payroll tax. Employers must contribute for all employees who are Singapore citizens or permanent residents earning more than S$50 per month. Foreigners on work passes are exempt.¹⁰

From January 2026, workers aged 55 and below earning monthly wages above S$750 have a combined contribution rate of 37%: 17% from the employer and 20% from the employee.¹¹ Rates step down with age, reaching 12.5% total for workers above 70. The employee share is deducted from wages; the employer share sits on top of salary, so employing someone under 55 costs roughly 17% more than their gross pay.

Property Tax and Stamp Duties

Property owners pay an annual property tax under the Property Tax Act 1960, calculated by applying a rate to the property’s Annual Value — IRAS’s estimate of what the property would rent for over a year based on comparable market rents.¹²¹³ Owner-occupied residential properties are taxed on a progressive scale starting at 0% on the first S$12,000 of AV and rising to 32% above S$140,000. Non-owner-occupied residential properties face steeper rates, from 12% on the first S$30,000 of AV up to 36% above S$60,000.

Property transactions also trigger stamp duties under the Stamp Duties Act 1929.¹⁴ Buyer’s Stamp Duty applies progressively on the higher of purchase price or market value, ranging from 1% on the first S$180,000 up to 6% on amounts above S$3 million for residential purchases from February 15, 2023.¹⁵

Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty sits on top of BSD for certain residential purchases and depends on residency and how many properties the buyer already owns. Foreigners pay ABSD of 60% on any residential property purchase.¹⁶ Singapore citizens buying a second residential property and permanent residents buying their first also pay ABSD, at lower rates.

Seller’s Stamp Duty applies to residential property bought from July 4, 2025 onward if the seller disposes of it within four years: 16% within one year, 12% within two, 8% within three, 4% within four, and none after. Properties bought before that date follow an older three-year holding schedule with lower rates. Stamp duties on documents signed in Singapore must be paid within 14 days of signing; documents signed overseas get 30 days from when they are received in Singapore.

Rental Income

Rental income from Singapore property is taxable. Landlords can deduct allowable expenses — property tax, mortgage interest, repairs, fire insurance, and maintenance fees — against gross rent. As an alternative to tracking every receipt, individuals can claim a deemed expense deduction of 15% of gross rental income, and still claim mortgage interest separately on top of the 15%.¹⁷

What Singapore Does Not Tax

Several taxes common elsewhere simply don’t exist in Singapore’s code, and that gap is a large part of why the country has a low-tax reputation.

Capital Gains

Profits from selling property, shares, or financial instruments are generally not taxable. The qualification: IRAS will treat gains as taxable trading income if the pattern of transactions looks more like a business than personal investing. The factors weighed include how frequently you trade, your stated reasons, whether you had the means to hold the asset long-term, and how long you actually held it.¹⁸ Someone who buys and sells five condos in two years will get a very different outcome than someone selling a family home after a decade.

Inheritance and Gifts

Estate Duty was abolished on February 15, 2008 under the Estate Duty (Abolition) Act 2008.¹⁹ There is no inheritance tax on assets passed to heirs, regardless of estate size. Singapore also has no gift tax, so lifetime transfers of assets don’t trigger a separate obligation.

Dividends

Because of the single-tier corporate system, dividends paid by Singapore-resident companies to shareholders are not taxed in the recipient’s hands.

Foreign-Sourced Income for Individuals

Most foreign-sourced income received by resident individuals in Singapore is exempt from tax, provided the income is not received through a Singapore partnership. This covers foreign dividends, service income earned abroad, and other overseas earnings. When such income does flow through a partnership, exemption is still possible for specified foreign income meeting further conditions, including that it was taxed abroad at a headline rate of at least 15%.²⁰

Double Taxation Agreements

Singapore has comprehensive Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreements with around 96 countries, covering major trading partners across Europe, Asia, and the Americas.²¹ These treaties usually reduce or eliminate withholding taxes on cross-border dividends, interest, and royalties, and provide mechanisms to stop the same income from being taxed twice. To claim benefits, you need a Certificate of Residence from IRAS proving you are a Singapore tax resident, which you submit to the foreign tax authority.²²

One boundary worth flagging: the United States does not have a comprehensive income tax treaty with Singapore. American citizens and green card holders living in Singapore remain subject to U.S. worldwide taxation and cannot use a DTA to resolve overlapping obligations. They may still claim foreign tax credits on their U.S. return for Singapore taxes paid, but the absence of a treaty creates extra complexity and potential double taxation on certain types of income, particularly royalties and service fees.

1
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Individual Income Tax Rates
2
Singapore Statutes Online. Income Tax Act 1947
3
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Types of Payment and the Applicable Withholding Tax Rates
4
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Tax Reliefs
5
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Tax Season 2026 – All You Need to Know
6
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Corporate Income Tax Rate, Rebates and Tax Exemption Schemes
7
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Basic Guide to Corporate Income Tax for Companies
8
Singapore Statutes Online. Goods and Services Tax Act 1993
9
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Factors to Consider Before Registering Voluntarily for GST
10
Central Provident Fund Board. Who Should Receive CPF Contributions
11
CPFB. What Are the Changes to the CPF Contribution Rates for Senior Workers From 1 January 2026
12
Singapore Statutes Online. Property Tax Act 1960
13
gov.sg. Property Tax on Residential Property
14
Singapore Statutes Online. Stamp Duties Act 1929
15
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). When to Pay Stamp Duty
16
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD)
17
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Simplification of Claim of Rental Expenses for Individuals
18
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Gains From Sale of Property, Shares and Financial Instruments
19
Singapore Statutes Online. Estate Duty (Abolition) Act 2008
20
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Tax Exemption for Foreign-Sourced Income
21
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). List of DTAs, Limited DTAs and EOI Arrangements
22
IRAS. Apply for Certificate of Residence (COR)