CPF applies by residency status, and foreign workers carry a separate levy instead. Headcount cost has to be modelled by category rather than averaged across the team.
- Local Qualifying Salary threshold
- CPF/foreign-workforce divide
- Is there a minimum wage in Singapore?
Singapore applies a flat 17% corporate tax rate and a one-tier system under which dividends are exempt from further tax in the shareholder's hands, alongside a 9% Goods and Services Tax (GST). Incorporation is fast — a Private Limited Company can be registered with ACRA in as little as one to three business days, with a minimum paid-up capital of S$1 — and there is no general statutory minimum wage, only sector-specific floors under the Progressive Wage Model and a Local Qualifying Salary threshold tied to foreign worker quota eligibility.
What an employee costs in Singapore. Every figure below is published on the Singapore country page.
| Singapore | |
|---|---|
| Minimum wage | No general statutory minimum wage — Progressive Wage Model sets sector-specific floors (cleaning, security, landscaping, lift maintenance, waste management, food services, retail, admin); Local Qualifying Salary S$1,600/month, rising to S$1,800 from 1 July 2026 |
| Currency | SGD (Singapore dollar) |
| Official language | English (Malay, Mandarin and Tamil are also official; English is the language of business and government) |
| Legal forms | Private Limited Company (Pte Ltd) |
| Corporate tax rate | 17% flat — one-tier system, no further tax on dividends |
What makes it complex in Singapore
- Local Qualifying Salary threshold — — S$1,600/month rising to S$1,800 from 1 July 2026, a precondition for foreign worker quota eligibility, distinct from CPF and from any general minimum wage (Singapore has none).
- CPF/foreign-workforce divide — — employer CPF (up to 17%) applies only to Citizens and Permanent Residents; Employment Pass, S Pass and Work Permit holders are excluded, requiring dual payroll tracks within the same headcount.
Is there a minimum wage in Singapore?
No general statutory minimum wage exists. The Progressive Wage Model sets sector-specific mandatory pay floors (cleaning, security, landscaping, lift maintenance, waste management, food services, retail and administrative roles), and the Local Qualifying Salary — S$1,600/month, rising to S$1,800 from 1 July 2026 — is a separate precondition for hiring foreign workers under quota.
What salary is required for an Employment Pass in 2026?
The floor is S$5,600/month (S$6,200 for financial services), but under the COMPASS points framework most applicants also need to score at least 40 points on criteria including salary benchmark, qualifications and workforce diversity. Candidates earning S$22,500/month or above are generally exempt from COMPASS scoring and assessed on a streamlined basis.
Local Qualifying Salary threshold is one of the points HTLC Network handles for clients operating in Singapore, within a single engagement that covers every other country they operate in — executed locally, governed centrally.
In Singapore the scope is: Dual-track payroll administration separating CPF contributions for Citizens and Permanent Residents from Foreign Worker Levy obligations for Work Pass holders, within the same monthly cycle.
See Payroll & Workforce Management in Singapore for the full scope, or the Singapore country page for the statutory framework across every service.
Figures as published on the HTLC Network country pages, reviewed September 2026 and collected from public sources. They are not a substitute for advice on a specific case and should be verified before being relied on.