How Much Paid-Up Capital Does a Singapore Company Actually Need?
Last updated: 6 September 2026 · Author: SBC Team
A Singapore private limited company can be registered with paid-up capital of S$1. The Companies Act 1967 sets no minimum beyond that for a standard private company, and the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA), the national companies registrar, will accept it. The harder question is whether S$1 serves you. Banks, the Ministry of Manpower, licensing bodies and large customers all read that figure, and a S$1 company reads as a company with nothing in it.
This guide covers what paid-up capital is, how it differs from issued and authorised capital, where the figure is recorded and who sees it, where S$1 causes friction, the licensed activities with a real minimum, and how to raise your capital later.
What Paid-Up Capital Actually Is
Paid-up capital is the money shareholders have actually paid into the company in exchange for their shares. Subscribe for 10,000 shares at S$1 each and transfer S$10,000 into the company’s bank account, and the paid-up capital is S$10,000. That money belongs to the company from the moment it lands, and no authority collects any part of it.
Paid-Up Capital Versus Issued Share Capital
Issued share capital is the total value of shares the company has allotted. Paid-up capital is the portion actually paid for. In most Singapore incorporations the two are identical, because founders subscribe and pay at the same time.
They diverge when shares are issued partly paid. A shareholder allotted S$50,000 of shares can pay S$10,000 now, leaving S$40,000 callable later, so issued capital is S$50,000 and paid-up capital is S$10,000. Both are recorded separately, and anyone assessing your company looks at the paid-up number.
Authorised Capital No Longer Exists
Founders still ask what authorised capital to set. Singapore abolished the concept, along with par value, on 30 January 2006 when the no-par-value regime took effect. There is no longer a ceiling you declare at incorporation.
So you never have to increase an authorised capital figure before issuing new shares. If a template constitution still refers to one, it predates 2006 or was copied from another jurisdiction.
Where the Figure Is Recorded and Who Sees It
You declare paid-up capital at incorporation through BizFile, ACRA’s online filing portal. It then appears on your company’s business profile, the official extract anyone can purchase from ACRA.
This is the part founders underestimate. Banks request the business profile during account opening, and so do government agencies assessing applications, landlords running credit checks, procurement teams onboarding vendors, and counterparties doing due diligence. Your capital figure is one of the first things a stranger learns about you.
Where S$1 Starts to Cost You
The statutory and commercial answers diverge here. Nothing obliges you to capitalise beyond S$1, but several processes assess your company’s substance, and capital is one of the few objective signals available early on.
Corporate Bank Account Opening
Singapore banks run their own risk assessment before opening a business account, and that assessment is not published. In practice, a newly incorporated company with S$1 of paid-up capital, no trading history and an overseas director sits at the difficult end of the range. Capital does not decide the outcome alone, but it contributes to a profile that invites more questions.
Be sceptical of any provider who quotes a bank capital threshold as a rule. Banks are assessing whether the business is real and funded, and a capital figure that matches your business plan does that work quietly.
Employment Pass and EntrePass Applications
If you plan to relocate and run the company yourself, you will apply for an Employment Pass through the Ministry of Manpower (MOM). MOM assesses the applicant through the COMPASS points framework, and it assesses the employing company too. For a company incorporated weeks earlier with no revenue, paid-up capital is one of the few pieces of evidence that the business is genuinely resourced.
EntrePass, the route for founders of innovative startups, has separate criteria around funding, intellectual property and incubator backing, and the applicant must hold at least 30% of shares. Neither pass publishes a capital minimum. Both involve an assessor forming a view of whether the company is substantive, and a S$1 balance sheet works against that view.
Grants, Licences and Government Schemes
Enterprise Singapore grants and sector schemes apply eligibility criteria that can include local shareholding, operating history and financial standing, and some licensing regimes set an explicit capital floor. Check the criteria for your scheme before you fix the figure.
Tenders, Landlords and Trade Credit
Corporate and government tenders require vendor prequalification, and financial standing forms part of it. Landlords may ask a thinly capitalised tenant for a larger deposit, and suppliers deciding on payment terms pull the same profile.
Capitalisation Levels and What They Typically Support
The table below describes how different levels are commonly assessed. These are not published rules, and no bank or agency guarantees an outcome at any figure. Treat them as a starting point.
| Paid-up capital | How it is commonly read | What it typically supports |
|---|---|---|
| S$1 | Compliant, but signals no funding behind the business | Registration and a legally valid company. Bank onboarding and pass applications usually need more supporting evidence. |
| S$1,000 to S$10,000 | A funded early-stage company with modest working capital | Most bank account applications, subject to the bank’s own assessment. Adequate for a services business with low upfront costs. |
| S$50,000 and above | A resourced operating business with visible commitment | Pass applications where company substance is assessed. Landlord and supplier credit checks. Tender prequalification. |
| Regulator-set minimum | Whatever the licence requires, as a condition of holding it | Licensed activities only. Set by the regulator, not by commercial judgement. |
Licensed Activities With a Real Statutory Minimum
For a standard private limited company, S$1 is genuinely the floor. For regulated activities, the licensing authority sets its own capital requirement as a condition of holding the licence.
- Travel agencies — the Singapore Tourism Board sets minimum paid-up capital for travel agent licences, with figures varying by licence class.
- Employment agencies — MOM’s licensing regime imposes financial requirements on licensees, including security in the form of a banker’s guarantee.
- Financial services — the Monetary Authority of Singapore sets base capital requirements that vary by regulated activity. A payment institution, a fund manager and a capital markets intermediary each face a different figure.
Construction, security services and moneylending carry their own conditions. Check with the regulator that licenses your activity before you incorporate, and set your capital to meet it from the start. Applying and then discovering you need to recapitalise costs you weeks.
How to Increase Paid-Up Capital After Incorporation
Starting low and raising later is legitimate, and the process is straightforward. You increase paid-up capital by allotting new shares and having them paid for:
- Obtain shareholder authority to allot. Directors need the authority of the company in general meeting to issue new shares, unless the constitution already provides it. This is usually a written resolution of the shareholders.
- Pass a directors’ resolution approving the allotment, recording the number of shares, the class, the price per share and the allottee.
- Receive the money. The subscriber transfers the funds into the company’s bank account. This is the step that makes the capital paid-up rather than merely issued.
- Update the register of members to reflect the new shareholding, and issue share certificates.
- File the Return of Allotment with ACRA through BizFile within 14 days of the allotment. Your company secretary normally handles this filing.
Filing fees are set out in the ACRA fee schedule. Confirm the current fee for a return of allotment there before you budget for it, since the schedule is updated from time to time.
The Money Is Real, and It Is Not Locked Up
Two misconceptions cause most of the confusion here.
The first is that paid-up capital is a fee. Declaring S$50,000 means S$50,000 must actually be paid into the company by its shareholders, and a declaration without the transfer is a false filing.
The second is that the money sits frozen in the bank as a deposit. It does not. Once paid in, it is the company’s working capital and can be spent on rent, salaries, equipment, inventory or professional fees. What you cannot do is quietly reduce the recorded capital figure. A formal reduction of share capital under the Companies Act follows a prescribed procedure involving a solvency statement or a court order, which is separate from simply spending the money.
Choosing Your Number
Work backwards from what the company must do in its first year. If you are applying for an Employment Pass, opening a traditional bank account, signing a lease or bidding for contracts, capitalise at a level that matches the story you are telling those parties. If you are testing an idea with no pass application and no external counterparties, a smaller figure is defensible and you can raise it later.
The figure should also be one you can genuinely fund, since there is no advantage in declaring capital you have not transferred. For the surrounding costs, see our breakdown of the full cost of incorporating in Singapore as a foreign founder, and our guide to Singapore incorporation for how capital is declared during registration.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum paid-up capital for a Singapore company?
S$1. A private limited company can be incorporated under the Companies Act 1967 with a single share of S$1, fully paid. There is no higher statutory minimum for a standard private company. Licensed and regulated activities are the exception, where the relevant regulator sets its own capital requirement as a condition of the licence.
Is S$1 paid-up capital a problem?
Legally, no. Commercially, often yes. Banks assessing an account application, MOM assessing an Employment Pass, landlords running credit checks and procurement teams onboarding vendors all see the figure on your ACRA business profile. A S$1 company gives them nothing to work with, so they ask for evidence elsewhere.
Do I have to actually transfer the money?
Yes. Paid-up capital is money shareholders have genuinely paid into the company in exchange for shares. Declaring a figure you have not transferred is a false filing. Once the money is in, the company can spend it on ordinary business expenses. It is working capital, not a frozen deposit.
What happened to authorised capital?
Singapore abolished authorised capital and par value on 30 January 2006 under the no-par-value regime. You no longer declare a ceiling at incorporation, and you no longer need to raise it before issuing new shares. If a document still refers to authorised capital, it predates 2006 or was drafted for another jurisdiction.
How do I increase paid-up capital later?
Get shareholder authority to allot, pass a directors’ resolution approving the allotment, receive the subscription money into the company’s bank account, update the register of members, and file the Return of Allotment with ACRA through BizFile within 14 days. Your company secretary normally files it. Check the ACRA fee schedule for the current filing fee.
Can paid-up capital be in a currency other than Singapore dollars?
Yes. Share capital can be denominated in a foreign currency, and companies with overseas shareholders sometimes do this to match their funding currency. Most use Singapore dollars, which keeps the ACRA filings, the bank account and the annual accounts consistent and avoids translation questions later.
Deciding what figure to register with? Our incorporation team can size it against your bank, pass and licensing plans before you file. See our Singapore incorporation services.
