Singapore expat tax: 24% tax cap and foreign income exemption

Singapore is one of the lowest-tax places in Asia to earn a salary. A foreigner on a work pass earning US$100k pays about 7%, with no social security on top. Foreign income, capital gains and most investment income aren't taxed at all.

This guide covers Singapore personal tax for people moving to or working in Singapore in 2026: the 183-day rule, the rates, what isn't taxed, CPF and work passes.

The key question is simple. Will you be in Singapore for 183 days or more, and where do you physically do your work?

What's changed: the income tax rates haven't changed since Year of Assessment 2024, when the top rate rose to 24%. Residents got one-off rebates of up to S$200 for Years of Assessment 2024 and 2025. IRAS lists none for Year of Assessment 2026, and Budget 2026 didn't add one. The CPF ordinary wage ceiling rose to S$8,000 a month on 1 January 2026. The Employment Pass qualifying salary rises from S$5,600 to S$6,000 a month for new applications from 1 January 2027. The Not Ordinarily Resident (NOR) scheme has ended, with the last status running to Year of Assessment 2024, so new arrivals can't apply.

📋 Singapore tax at a glance for 2026

US dollar figures use about S$1.28 to US$1, the rate in late September 2026.

Resident or non-resident: the 183-day line

Why does residence matter so much in Singapore? Because it changes your rate, not what's taxed. Residents and non-residents are both taxed on income earned in Singapore.

Image 1 — resident or non-resident decides your tax rate

• Tax resident: you pay progressive rates from 0% to 24% and can claim personal reliefs. Foreign income you bring into Singapore is exempt, unless you receive it through a Singapore partnership.

• Non-resident: your employment income is taxed at a flat 15% or at the resident rates, whichever gives the higher tax. Director's fees and most other income are taxed at 24%, with no personal reliefs.

• Short visits: if you're non-resident and work in Singapore for 60 days or fewer in a year, that employment income is exempt. This doesn't cover company directors, public entertainers or professionals such as consultants.

There's one trap for remote workers. The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) treats working in Singapore for a foreign employer as taxable income. It doesn't matter where your employer is or where you're paid.

👉 IRAS: working out your tax residency

When you become tax resident in Singapore

Singapore citizens and permanent residents are tax resident if they normally live in Singapore, apart from temporary absences. For foreigners, the test is about days. You're resident for a Year of Assessment if, in the calendar year before it, you stayed or worked in Singapore for at least 183 days.

IRAS also applies two concessions:

• Two-year concession: if your employment straddles two calendar years and your continuous stay is at least 183 days in total, you're resident for both years. It applies to foreign employees, but not to company directors, public entertainers or professionals.

• Three-year concession: if you stay or work in Singapore for three consecutive years, you're resident for all three, even if you were there for fewer than 183 days in the first and third years.

Days of employment include weekends, public holidays, holidays abroad and business trips that are part of your Singapore job.

If your work pass is valid for at least a year, IRAS treats you as resident from the start. Your status is checked again when you leave, and if your stay was under 183 days you're treated as a non-resident.

How you stop being resident

Residence is tested year by year, so it ends in the first year you don't meet any of the tests. Singapore has no capital gains tax, so there's no general exit charge on your assets when you go.

What you can't skip is tax clearance. When a foreign employee stops work in Singapore, starts an overseas posting or leaves for more than three months, the employer has to:

• tell IRAS at least one month beforehand, on Form IR21

• hold back all money due to you from the day they know you're leaving, until IRAS clears your tax

This applies to all work pass holders. Permanent residents who aren't leaving Singapore for good are excluded. If you hold unvested shares or share options from your job, ask your employer how they'll be reported at clearance.

👉 IRAS: tax clearance for foreign employees (Form IR21)

Income tax rates for income earned in 2026

Singapore taxes on a preceding-year basis. Income you earn in calendar year 2026 is taxed in Year of Assessment 2027, and you file in early 2027. The resident rates below have applied since Year of Assessment 2024.

Singapore resident income tax rates for income earned in 2026 (YA 2027)

Source: IRAS resident tax rates from Year of Assessment 2024 onwards.

Worked example

• You're a foreigner on an Employment Pass and tax resident, earning S$128,000 in 2026 (about US$100k).

• The first S$120,000 carries tax of S$7,950.

• The remaining S$8,000 is taxed at 15%, which is S$1,200.

Your bill is S$9,150, or about 7% of your salary, before any reliefs. Earned income relief of S$1,000, given automatically if you're under 55, brings it down to S$9,000. You pay no CPF. If you were non-resident, the flat 15% would apply instead and the bill would be S$19,200.

👉 IRAS: individual income tax rates for residents and non-residents

Freelancing in Singapore

If you're self-employed, your business profit is added to your other income and taxed at the same resident rates as a salary. There's no separate freelancer regime.

If you're a non-resident professional, such as a consultant, trainer or coach, your income for services performed in Singapore is taxed at 15% of the gross fee or 24% of the net income.

The bigger hurdle for foreigners is immigration. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) says every foreigner who intends to work in Singapore needs a valid pass first. An Employment Pass is tied to an employer, and the Personalised Employment Pass can't be used to freelance or run a sole proprietorship.

👉 IRAS: basic guide for self-employed individuals

Crypto, investments and pensions

What does Singapore leave untaxed? For most individuals, quite a lot:

• Capital gains: gains from selling shares, other financial instruments and property are generally not taxable.

• Dividends: dividends from Singapore resident companies aren't taxed in your hands, because the company's tax is final. Foreign dividends received by resident individuals are also exempt.

• Interest: interest on deposits with approved banks and licensed finance companies in Singapore isn't taxable, and nor is foreign-sourced interest.

• Foreign income: overseas income you receive in Singapore, including money paid into a Singapore bank account, is generally not taxable. The exceptions include income received through a Singapore partnership and overseas work that's part of your Singapore job.

How is crypto taxed in Singapore? IRAS says profits from buying and selling digital tokens are generally viewed as personal investments, so they aren't taxed. If you trade as a business, the profit is taxable as income. IRAS looks at your purpose, how often you trade and how long you hold.

A foreign pension you receive in Singapore falls under the same overseas income exemption. A pension from an approved Singapore pension fund is taxable on the part paid from contributions made after 1992.

Estate duty was removed for deaths on or after 15 February 2008, so there's no inheritance tax. Property is taxed more heavily: a foreigner buying any residential property generally pays Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty of 60%. Under free trade agreements, nationals of the United States, and nationals and permanent residents of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, get the same treatment as Singapore citizens.

👉 IRAS: income received from overseas

👉 IRAS: gains from the sale of property, shares and financial instruments, including digital tokens

👉 Ministry of Finance: Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty rates from 27 April 2023

👉 Ministry of Finance: stamp duty treatment under free trade agreements

Social security: CPF

Singapore's social security system is the Central Provident Fund (CPF). Whether you pay depends on your immigration status.

• Foreigners on work passes: no CPF. The CPF Board says contributions are only payable for Singapore citizens and permanent residents.

• Citizens and permanent residents aged 55 and under: you pay 20% and your employer pays 17%, on ordinary wages up to S$8,000 a month. That caps your own contribution at S$1,600 a month.

• New permanent residents: lower graduated rates apply for your first two years. Full rates start in the third year.

If you're a self-employed citizen or permanent resident, you don't pay full CPF. You pay MediSave contributions once your net trade income is more than S$6,000 a year.

👉 CPF Board: the ordinary wage ceiling

👉 CPF Board: contributions for new permanent residents

Double tax treaties

Does Singapore have double tax treaties? Yes. In October 2026 the IRAS list showed 98 comprehensive double tax agreements signed and 94 in force. The four not yet in force are with Bhutan, Cabo Verde, Gabon and Tanzania.

Partners include the UK, Australia, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Japan, China, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Canada and New Zealand. There's no comprehensive treaty with the United States, only a limited agreement and an exchange of information arrangement.

👉 IRAS: list of Singapore's double tax agreements

Work passes: there's no digital nomad visa

Singapore has no digital nomad or remote work visa. To live and work there, you need one of MOM's work passes.

Singapore work passes for professionals in 2026

From 1 January 2027, the Employment Pass qualifying salary for new applications rises to S$6,000 a month, or S$6,600 in financial services. Renewals follow from 1 January 2028.

👉 Ministry of Manpower: Employment Pass eligibility

👉 Ministry of Manpower: Overseas Networks and Expertise Pass eligibility

Who is Singapore good for?

How does Singapore compare for different kinds of mover? Ratings are relative to the 150+ countries TaxPilot covers, based on income earned in 2026. The Employees and Freelancers ratings assume a foreigner on a work pass who is tax resident and pays no CPF.

☑️ Who is Singapore good for? Tax ratings for expats in 2026

Filing and deadlines

You file online between 1 March and 18 April for the income you earned in the previous calendar year. For income earned in 2026, that means 18 April 2027. If you file on paper, check the date on your filing notice.

You generally have to file if any of these apply:

• your total income for the year was more than S$22,000

• you had self-employment income with a net profit of more than S$6,000

• you're a non-resident who earned income in Singapore

• IRAS has sent you a letter, form or text message telling you to file

Employers in the Auto-Inclusion Scheme send your salary details straight to IRAS by 1 March. If IRAS tells you you're on the No-Filing Service, you don't need to file, but check the pre-filled figures by 18 April. Your tax bill, the Notice of Assessment, then arrives from the end of April. Some people get their bill directly from mid-March without filing.

👉 IRAS: individuals required to file tax

Frequently asked questions

Does Singapore tax foreign income?

Generally no. Overseas income you receive in Singapore, including money paid into a Singapore bank account, is not taxable for individuals. The main exceptions are income received through a Singapore partnership and work you do in Singapore for a foreign employer.

How many days make you tax resident in Singapore?

A foreigner is tax resident if they stay or work in Singapore for at least 183 days in a calendar year. You can also qualify if your employment covers a continuous 183 days across two calendar years, or you stay for three consecutive years.

What are the income tax rates in Singapore for 2026?

Residents pay progressive rates from 0% on the first S$20,000 up to 24% on income above S$1 million. Non-residents pay a flat 15% on employment income, or the resident rates if that gives more tax, and 24% on most other income.

Do foreigners pay CPF in Singapore?

No. CPF contributions are only payable for Singapore citizens and permanent residents. If you become a permanent resident, you pay lower graduated rates for the first two years, then 20% on ordinary wages of up to S$8,000 a month.

Does Singapore tax capital gains or crypto?

Singapore has no capital gains tax. Gains on shares, other financial instruments and digital tokens are generally treated as personal investment and not taxed. If you trade as a business, the profit is taxed as income.

Does Singapore have a digital nomad visa?

No. Every foreigner who intends to work in Singapore needs a valid work pass. The main route is the Employment Pass, which needs a job with a Singapore employer and a salary of at least S$5,600 a month.