Fractional and interim CFOs in Singapore
Singapore is usually the holding company, the treasury centre and the entity investors look at first, which means its numbers carry the whole group. We work with Singapore incorporated SMEs and with regional groups that need one person holding a consolidated view across several Asian entities.
- Reporting standard
- SFRS, or SFRS for
Small Entities - Filing
- XBRL to ACRA
- Audit
- Exempt if small
company criteria met - GST registration
- Above S$1m turnover
- Corporate tax
- 17% headline
- Common role
- Group holding and
treasury entity - We work in
- English, French, Thai
What the rules require of your finance function
| Obligation | Deadline or threshold |
|---|---|
| Estimated chargeable income, ECI | Within 3 months of the financial year end, unless the waiver applies. |
| Corporate income tax return, Form C-S or Form C | By 30 November each year. |
| Annual general meeting | Within 6 months of the financial year end, for a private company. |
| Annual return to ACRA | Within 7 months of the financial year end, for a private company. |
| Statutory audit | Required unless the company qualifies as small: two of three thresholds, revenue not above S$10m, total assets not above S$10m, not more than 50 employees. |
| GST registration | Compulsory once taxable turnover exceeds S$1 million on a retrospective or prospective basis. |
| GST returns | Within 1 month of the end of each accounting period. |
| Transfer pricing documentation | Required for the year where gross revenue exceeds S$10 million, or where prescribed transaction thresholds are met. |
Summarised for orientation and reviewed in August 2026. Deadlines, thresholds and rates change. Confirm the current position with your auditor or tax agent before acting on it.
What catches companies out in Singapore
Assuming the audit exemption is permanent
The small company thresholds are tested on the group as well as the entity, and a growing company crosses them quietly. Discovering in month eleven that the year needs an audit, with no reconciliations prepared, is expensive.
Transfer pricing left until the tax return
Intercompany management fees, cost recharges and loans between the Singapore holding company and the operating entities need contemporaneous documentation. Written afterwards, it reads exactly like it was written afterwards.
Consolidation done in a spreadsheet nobody can audit
Multi-entity, multi-currency consolidation built by one person in Excel is the most common single point of failure we find in regional groups. It works until that person leaves or an investor asks for the workings.
Substance that does not match the structure
A holding company that claims to make decisions in Singapore should be able to show that it does. Board minutes, resolutions and where decisions are actually taken all matter more than they used to.
Deferred revenue and contract accounting handled loosely
Subscription, project and milestone billing under SFRS 15 is where fast growing Singapore companies most often restate, usually during the diligence for the round they were counting on.
What we do here
Own the ACRA and IRAS calendar
ECI, Form C-S or C, the AGM, the annual return and XBRL filing all tracked, with the corporate secretary and tax agent coordinated rather than chased.
Build and maintain the group consolidation
One auditable consolidation across entities and currencies, with intercompany eliminated properly and a reconciliation you can hand to an auditor or a buyer.
Prepare for funding and diligence
Financial model, data room, quality of earnings preparation, and the questions answered before they are asked.
Set the intercompany framework
Management fee and recharge policies documented at the time, priced defensibly, and consistent with what the entities actually do.
Treasury and banking
Cash pooling across the region, foreign exchange exposure that is measured before it is hedged, and facilities negotiated on your numbers rather than the bank's assumptions.
Singapore specifics
How much does a fractional CFO cost in Singapore?
A CFO-only advisory retainer starts from around USD 6,000 per month and the standard two-person team from around USD 9,000, rising where group consolidation is in scope. A full-time CFO in Singapore generally costs S$180,000 to S$350,000 a year before bonus and CPF. Our pricing page sets out the schedule.
Does my Singapore company need an audit?
Not if it qualifies as a small company. A private company is exempt where it meets at least two of three criteria in each of the two preceding years: revenue not above S$10 million, total assets not above S$10 million, and not more than 50 employees. If the company is part of a group, the group has to qualify as a small group as well.
Can you cover a Singapore holding company with operations elsewhere in Asia?
That is one of the most common shapes we work with. The Singapore entity holds and consolidates, the operating companies sit in Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong or elsewhere, and the difficulty is producing one reliable group view. We work at both levels.
Do you replace our corporate secretary or tax agent?
No. They keep their statutory roles. We coordinate them, hold them to a calendar and make sure the numbers they file agree with the numbers you manage the business on.