Wonderful Australians! I want to invite you to come to Singapore with your lovely business. It will be great for you and your family personally and provide excellent opportunities for your business to grow and prosper as well. Let me tell you more about the exciting investment possibilities in Singapore.

Australians Find Happiness in Singapore

If you thought Singapore was just a business place, you ain’t seen anything yet? You’ll soon fall in love with its people from different rich cultures and backgrounds. Discover why Aussie business investors can call Singapore their home.

1. Australians Can Easily Make Singapore Their Home

One thing you’ll notice when you get to Singapore is that its living standards are top-notch. Accommodation-wise, as an ex-pat, you can rent high-rise condos or apartments in excellent condition. What’s more, you can find time to relax and refresh at brilliant onsite workout facilities and pools around the residence.
Your transition will be smooth sailing; English is one of the many languages in Singapore. As a result, you won’t feel lost and alone—also, talk of a rich culture. The nation is a melting pot of local and overseas nationalities with diverse cultures. It’s definitely a place to be.

2. Australian School in Singapore

Should you happen to have kids in Singapore, you can enroll them at the Australian International School (AIS). It’s a well-known school with excellent academic achievements, offering a strong curriculum. Your kids will find it easy to blend with others as English is the key medium of learning.
Your children won’t notice the difference between Aussie schools and AIS because AIS offers a typical Australian curriculum. On its website, it says that it caters to students aged two months until 18 years. For example, AIS has a curriculum for 6 to 8-year-olds; Cambridge IGSCE for 9 to 10-year-olds; and the Higher School Certificate for older children from 11 to 12 graduate with an International Baccalaureate Diploma.
In a nutshell, AIS takes care of all your kids’ education.

3. Great Australian Food in Singapore

When it comes to tasty and real Australian food, Singapore won’t let you down. You can find eateries dotted around busy and even quiet places with great food for your enjoyment. Since I’m not sponsoring the restaurants, I’ll give you a list of some eating houses with a few details.
Boomerang Bistro and Bar is located on Robertson Quay, Singapore River. It serves Australian and German cuisine.
The Local serves Singaporean, Australian, and German cuisine. You can find it on Neil Road, Outran.
Canopy Garden Dining is located in Marymount, Bishan, and it serves cuisine, including Australian, Spanish, and Continental.
Quayside Fish Bar and Bistro serves Western, Australian, and Seafood cuisine. It’s located in Sentosa, Southern Islands.
Salt Tapas and Bar-serving Australian, Spanish, and Bar food- is located on Seah Street, Downtown Core.
Meat Smith is located on Telok Ayer Street, Outram, and serves Australian, American, and BBQ cuisine.
Open Farm Community is in Rideout, Tagline, and caters to Health Food, Fusion, Australian, and Italian cuisine.
Food Capital offers Australian and Japanese cuisine, and you can find it on Havelock Road, Singa River.
Bedrock Bar and Grill serves Australian food and is located on George Road, Orchard.
With all these eateries and many more, you won’t miss your delicious Australian dishes.
(Disclaimer: The inclusion of these restaurants isn’t an endorsement of their activities or a guarantee of their availability after this publication).

4. Finding Aussie Friends in Singapore

In a new country, you need people to connect with, spend some time with, and share some joys and challenges of being an ex-pat. Singapore has many community groups to help you link up with like-minded people. For example, you can be part of a Facebook group catering to Australians or an online community network like InterNations, provided they meet your needs and are safe for you. It’s critical to do your research into a social group to join.
In addition, there are popular places that Aussies choose for accommodation, such as Orchard, Tanglin, Holland Village, Bukit Timah, and more. You can make friends in these places.

5. Australians Find Love in Singapore

Single and looking to have a soul mate in Singapore? It’s doable. You can join a bona fide dating site that can match you with the love of your dreams. Some dating sites provide professional and personalized matchmaking services for highly-educated folks, for example.
If you need a premium service, you can find sites charging their clients a fee a month. On these online sites, you can create a personal profile highlighting the kind of people you want to hook up with. Other dating sites like IT’s JUST LUNCH make it easy for you to find dates sharing your interests and meeting your needs. So, yes, in Singapore, an Aussie can join other lovebirds.

6. Australians and Singapore Have Long Cultural and Friendly Ties Over 200 Years Old

For starters, Singapore and Australia have been buddies for a long time as there are Commonwealth members. October 1965 marks the day Singapore joined the Commonwealth after gaining its independence. Years later, in 1971, Singapore, as a newbie in the Commonwealth, hosted the first CHOGM in which Australia took part.
The two nations have maintained people-to-people links via arts, education, and culture. It wasn’t surprising that Singapore and Australia formed a team known as ASAG (Australian-Singapore Arts Group), made up of arts and culture gurus from the two countries. In 2018, ASAG visited Singapore to improve cultural relations and share ideas.
Further, the two nations signed an MOU in September 2017 to cooperate in Sports and Sports Administration. When it comes to education, thousands of Singaporeans have graduated from Australian universities. It shows that the ‘lions’ and ‘lionesses’ from the Lion City and the Aussies are no strangers.
Again, Australia and Singapore have strong bilateral relations dating to 2015. As an Aussie investor in Singapore, you’ll get a red-carpet experience as the two governments have already laid a good groundwork for your success.
How Australians Can Grow Their Businesses in Singapore
If you don’t believe that Singapore is ripe for your investment, wait a moment. Singapore is among the top countries globally where doing business is as easy as 123, says the World Bank. There are no further questions here. Find out more in the coming sections.

7. The Singapore Business Environment is great for Australians

As one of the world’s competitive economies, the Lion City makes it easy for Australians or foreigners to set up a business without any restrictions. Registration for your new company is straightforward and takes a short time. Here are some companies you can register in Singapore:

A. Subsidiary Company

It’s the type of business for those looking at starting a private limited company; it’s 100% foreign-owned and is incorporated in Singapore. It could be a small-to-medium-sized business.

B. Branch Office

You already have a company running in your native country and only want to extend its business in the Lion City. If this is the case, you should form a branch office, which you must register as an extension of the parent organization. The pro side of this is that you can repatriate the profits after paying tax on income earned in Singapore.

C. Representative Office

A Representative Office lets you test the waters to see if running an operation in Singapore makes business sense. However, this business type doesn’t allow you to operate with profit in mind.
A subsidiary company has 5 typical things it needs to fulfill.
* 1 shareholder
* 1 Resident Director
* 1 Local Company Secretary
* S $1M Paid-Up Capital
You can retain 100% ownership as a foreigner. Another critical issue to note is that you can invest in any of the following hottest verticals:
* Logistics and Transportation
* BioTech
* Enterprise Solutions (manufacturing, warehousing, etc.)
* Prop Tech

8. Enjoy Low Taxes

Your business can do well in Singapore due to a tax-friendly system that leaves companies with surplus funds for expansion into other markets. For instance, Singapore uses a single-tier tax approach, meaning that your company pays tax only on chargeable income. Also, shareholders won’t pay tax when they receive their dividends, boosting their income.
In summary, there’s zero tax on capital gains or dividends.
Another pro side of Singapore’s tax system is that there’s double-tax relief, which means that you’re not taxed twice on company profits in the two countries.
You can see that by locating or setting up a business in Singapore you’ve got greater chances of making it. Apart from these attractive tax rates, Singapore offers an array of industry-specific tax benefits for Australian firms. Let’s dive into a few of them.

A. Tax Incentives for Global Trading

It’s also called the Global Trade Scheme and it provides a discount rate of 5%-10% for 5-10 years. To benefit from this favorable tax scheme, your business must be involved in transportation, global trade, and procurement of products that qualify.

B. Tax Incentives for Shipping and Maritime Industry

It’s a tax relief from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) to encourage shipping companies to grow and improve their operations.

C. Tax Incentive for R&D, Innovation, and Product Development

There are several schemes under this tax break, such as development and expansion incentives, an investment allowance, and a pioneer incentive scheme, etc.

9. Grants for Start-ups in Singapore

Besides the super tax reliefs that you can enjoy in Singapore, there are other brilliant programs for young industries or start-ups. Let’s consider them.

A. Start-up SG Equity

With this scheme, the Singapore government will co-invest in your venture if your business deals with creative, deep technology.

B. Start-up SG Tech

For this program, your start-up needs to show proof-of-concept (POC) and proof-of-value (POV) for innovative technologies that can be commercialized.

C. Start-up SG Founder

As a first-time company with extraordinary ideas, you can get a $30, 000 capital grant and mentorship.

D. Start-up SG Accelerators

Singapore has strategic growth sectors and if your business can incubate and speed up a business idea, you’ll receive support. You’ll benefit from mentoring, nurturing programs, and funding for part of the running expenses.

E. Start-up Talent

It’s a scheme for attracting international talent to start creative businesses in Singapore. On this program, you’ll get an EntrePass and SME Talent Program (STD) for start-ups.

10. The High Quality Singapore Workforce

Please check out the stat below about the workforce in Singapore: 47% of the labor force hold diplomas and degrees. It’s a plus for your business because you can find highly-educated and skilled people. As a result, you can have confidence in setting up a business in Singapore.
Another merit is that English is the chief language for business, making it easy for Aussie investors to operate their enterprises. One more pro is that Singapore workers are known for being dedicated and supportive.

11. Huge Mobile and Online Penetration

Here’s another great stat about internet access through mobile devices in Singapore: In 2018, 82% of the Singapore population accessed the internet via their phones. The good news for businesses is that the number will balloon to about 84% in 2025, creating endless possibilities for digital marketing. Your business can leverage these online opportunities through aggressive eCommerce.

12. Robust Financial and Technical Infrastructure

When it comes to fintech, Singapore is one of the top countries encouraging fintech start-ups to work alongside traditional banks. Further, there are various financial services available for Australian businesses, including:
* Traditional banking
* Capital markets
* Wealth and asset management
* Insurance
* Equity and bonds
* Foreign exchange and derivative markets
“Today Singapore is one of the most established capital markets in the Asia-Pacific and notably, the Singapore Exchange (SGX) is the preferred listing location of close to 800 companies,” says Austrade.gov.au

13. Intellectual Property Protection (IPP)

According to the World Bank, Singapore is No. 4 in the world in protecting minority investors and No. 2 in making sure that contracts are followed. Even the Global Competitive Report (GCR) agrees that Singapore is No.2 globally and in Asia as having the best IPP. Another recognition comes from the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy Report (2011) and the Intellectual Rights Index (2012) that ranked Lion City top.
All these brilliant stats prove that Singapore should be your first port of call when it comes to investment.

14. Strong Trading Relationship with Australia

Singapore is Australia’s biggest trade and investment partner in South East Asia, giving you limitless business opportunities. Furthermore, Australia and Singapore created a free trade agreement called SAFTA, which became effective on 28 July 2003. What’s in it for your Aussie business? Here are the key features of SAFTA:
* Removing tariffs on particular goods
* Opening market access to various sectors
* Enabling paperless trading and e-commerce
* Making it possible for businesses to access both markets
SAFTA opens a wide door for nation-to-nation trade, creating an environment for success.

Conclusion: Aussie Business and Singapore belong together

Well, Aussies, Singapore is beckoning with wide-open arms, saying come and see for yourself. With high living standards, a growing economy, loads of tax incentives, and business grants, etc., you’ll grow and thrive in the Lion City. Besides, Singapore has eating houses offering a wide variety of Australian foods. Friends. Love. Name it, Singapore will satisfy your needs.
What are you waiting for?