The prospect of starting a business in Singapore is glamorous, until you get in a position where you are staring at a government portal at 11pm, in a desperate attempt to figure out what an SSIC code is. Singapore has a long history of boasting of its reputation as having one of the most convenient locations in the world to establish a business. And deservedly so. But easy is not to say obvious and there is a great distinction between the two. The following is the actual lay of the land. Full report!

The first one is ACRA – Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority, which registers all businesses in Singapore. Majority of the founders, whether establishing sole proprietorships or Private Limited companies will do this via the BizFile+ portal. It may not take much more than an hour, when you really know what you are about.

The Pte. Ltd. structure is the preferred option of the majority of founders, and with a reason. It restricts personal liability, creates credibility among the clients and opens up access to government grants not enjoyed by the other business structures. There are few requirements: one director must be a local, the company must have a registered address in Singapore and the minimum amount of paid-up capital is only Sg 1.

Foreign founders are often struck at here, nonetheless. No registration at all of a local director. Others go about it by contracting a nominee director – this is quite legal, but not a decision to be taken lightly. It is eventually a trust-relationship, not a paper work.

The SSIC code should not be underestimated. This six-digit industry classification number will determine which banks will deal with you, which grants you can apply to and even whether you can hire a foreign worker. Making a bad choice of the code will not make a crime, yet it will silently shut the doors you were not aware of.

The patience is put to the test when it comes to corporate bank account opening. Checks on compliance are comprehensive. Banks would like to know your business model, client base and volumes of transactions that you expect. Be armed with paperwork,–take more.

The most mistaken belief about being a new registrants: GST registration is not compulsory unless your annual turnover is more than S $1 million. It is free of charge until that limit. There are those businesses that are first registered to indicate credibility and there are those that wait. There is nothing wrong with either of them, it all depends on your customer profile.