Corporate Income Tax in Singapore

In Singapore, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) is the revenue agency responsible for administering corporate income tax in Singapore. All annual tax returns are required to file here.

The annual filing deadline for paper filing Form is 30 Nov and e-Filing is 15 Dec. Filing can be done either in C-S form or in C form. Form C-S is a simplified 3-page income tax return for companies to report their income to IRAS whose annual revenue is S$5 million or less. C form is for the rest not qualified under C-S.

Since the assessment year 2010, both the local and foreign corporate bodies have been paying a flat 17% tax on their incomes in Singapore.

Compulsory e-Filing is becoming

The government of Singapore has decided to discourage Paper filing of tax returns. To put this in action it has proposed a plan to phasing out Paper filling in three years from now and replacing it with e-filling totally by 2020.

Fiscal Year	Mandatory e-filling by Companies
2018	Whose turnover is more than $10 million in 2017
2019	Whose turnover is more than $1 million in 2018
2020	All

Benefits of e-Filing

On-the-spot iHelp facility
In-built formulae to auto-compute certain fields
Saving of draft till taxpayer is ready to submit the final return
Get your estimated tax amount on-the-spot
Instant acknowledgment of successful e-filing
Extension of filing date up to De 15th
24/7 access to your account

Documents required for corporate income tax in Singapore

Companies that elect to use C-S form must prepare:

Audited or un-audited financial statements;
Tax computation and supporting schedules; and
Documents relating to claiming for certain tax deductions as permissible under the law.

Documents required for tax return through C-S

Companies eligible under the file Form C must prepare:

Audited or un-audited financial statements;
Tax computation and supporting schedules;
Form IRIN 301
Profit and Loss Statement;
All claim forms such as Group Relief Forms, Research & Development Claim Form, IPRs under Section 19B of the Income Tax Act, Capital Contribution Form, and others relevant to the taxpayer.

Income Tax return e-filing in Singapore

e-Filing of return in 4 Steps

Step 1: Retrieve your company’s e-Services Access Code

Step 2: Authorize Yourself/ Third Party as an “Authorize/ Admin”

Step 3: Log in to my Tax Portal

Step 4: Submit the Completed Form C-S Online

Click Corporate Tax → File Form C-S/ C at the main menu of Inland Revenue. Select the Year of Assessment [YA] you are going to filing the ITR for and then, select Form C-S to fill the fields up as required.
Click on Confirmation Page → Submit.
You will receive an instant acknowledgment upon successful filing.

You are encouraged to go through this e-Learning guide before e-Filing Form C-S.

There are some schemes and rebates that substantially lower corporate taxes. These are to be considered before filing your returns.

Tax schemes Singapore

Qualified corporate houses will get:

complete exemption on the first $one hundred thousand of normal chargeable income; and
A further 50% exemption on the subsequent $200,000 of normal chargeable income for the first three consecutive years of assessment.

In addition, all companies including companies limited by guarantee are eligible to enjoy:

75% tax exemption on the first $10,000 of taxable income and
A further 50% tax exemption on the subsequent $290,000 of normal taxable income.

Corporate Income Tax Rebate

The government of Singapore has offered a general package of rebates for all the corporate houses to help them maintain steady growth against rising costs of doing business. This package of rebates is meant for a five years period starting from Assessment year 2013 to Assessment year 2020. The rebates are as follows:

30% corporate income tax rebate, capped at $30,000 per YA for YA 2013 to YA 2015;
50% corporate income tax rebate, capped at $20,000 for YA 2016;
50% corporate income tax rebate, capped at $25,000 for YA 2017
20% corporate income tax rebate, capped at $10,000 for YA 2018.

It is worth noting that the corporate income tax in Singapore rebate is computed on the tax payable after deducting tax set-offs.

Paper Filing Form C-S & C

Form C-S: the tax payers eligible for ITR submission in Form C-S are required to submit the same in original with signature by 30 Nov.

Form C: Completed Form C, duly seal-sign and submit it in original together with the financial accounts either audited or un-audited, tax computations claim forms and other documents or schedules as required on or before November 30th.

To submit the Form C-S/ C and the relevant documents, send them to:

Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore
55 Newton Road
Revenue House
Singapore 307987

Save a copy or print the page for future reference.