Immigrate to Singapore and focus on Singapore: Whether self-employed or engaging an accounting firm, it can be said that entrepreneurs in Singapore are quite fortunate. The government actively provides various conveniences and favorable conditions to encourage young people to start their own businesses.
How low are the costs of starting a business in Singapore? A registered capital of 1 Singapore Dollar (approximately 4.6 Chinese Yuan) is sufficient to establish a company.
In Singapore, any individual aged 18 or older can apply to establish a limited liability company. Foreigners wishing to start a business in Singapore can also do so by applying for a foreign entrepreneur pass from the government.
The Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) is the sole regulatory body for company registration in Singapore. All companies and businesses must be registered with ACRA. Except for specific business activities such as banking, financial insurance, securities, communications, and transportation, as well as industries that impact the environment, where entrepreneurs are required to apply to the relevant government departments in advance, for all other general business types, entrepreneurs only need to log onto the ACRA website, submit their application through the electronic system, and pay the fees, which can be easily completed within fifteen minutes.
To experience how convenient it is to start a business in Singapore, a reporter also attempted to go through the registration process on the ACRA website. The system interface is very simple and clear. First, the applicant needs to choose a name for their company, which can be instantly checked on the website to ensure compliance and availability. Next, the applicant must fill in the company's operational date and main business activities. After that, the entrepreneur only needs to provide a company address and submit the personal information and contact details of at least one director or manager, along with a payment of 65 Singapore Dollars, to easily complete the business application.
However, the above steps are just the simplest procedures for establishing a company, which are more suitable for university students or couples starting a business alone. If multiple directors are involved, registering through an accounting firm is a more convenient and effective method. This is because accounting firms typically provide a document upon completion of registration, detailing the proportion, rights, and responsibilities of the company's shareholders, the internal personnel structure, and the election and removal processes of the board of directors, which cannot be obtained through self-registration.
Whether self-employed or engaging an accounting firm, it can be said that entrepreneurs in Singapore are quite fortunate. The government actively provides various conveniences and favorable conditions to encourage young people to start their own businesses.
As mentioned earlier, registering a company in Singapore requires providing a company address, but in a land-scarce nation, renting an office can impose high operational costs on entrepreneurs. To address this, the government has implemented measures allowing certain self-employed individuals or entrepreneurs who can work from home to register using their home addresses. In addition, Singapore has a large number of serviced offices, where entrepreneurs can rent for office use at a price ranging from 300 to 500 Singapore Dollars per month.
For established small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), Singapore has integrated resources, with departments such as the Inland Revenue Authority, Economic Development Board, and Enterprise Singapore providing various support for SMEs. Among them, the Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board (SPRING Singapore) is particularly notable. SPRING Singapore can be considered a "nanny" for supporting SMEs, providing assistance not only in terms of policies and funding but also in how to recruit suitable employees and establish reasonable compensation systems. If a company wishes to expand overseas, relevant departments in Singapore will mobilize think tanks to tailor exclusive "go global" plans for the company.
Thanks to government support in various policies, SMEs in Singapore have been able to establish a foothold in an increasingly competitive environment. Statistics show that there are over 150,000 companies in Singapore, including 1,500 large enterprises, 30,000 SMEs, and as many as 120,000 micro-enterprises. It is these SMEs that provide over 70% of employment opportunities in Singapore.
