Core Eligibility Criteria (SME Baseline)

Last reviewed: April 2026

Across Singapore's mainstream SME support schemes, a familiar baseline often appears: the business should be registered and operating in Singapore, have sufficient local equity where required, and fall within the relevant group turnover or employment thresholds for the scheme. The exact wording still varies by programme, so this page is a practical baseline rather than a substitute for the live scheme criteria.

Common baseline checks

Common checks include:

• business entity is registered and operating in Singapore
• minimum local equity threshold is met where required
• group annual sales turnover or group employment size fits the scheme definition
• project spend will be incurred in a supportable way
• project timing is valid and not already underway in a disqualifying manner

Frequent disqualifiers

Applications often run into trouble because:

• the company structure does not meet the required local ownership test
• the project was effectively committed before application
• the budget contains unsupported or weakly supported items
• the proposal does not match the purpose of the scheme
• the business cannot show operational or financial readiness

Pre-screen checklist

Use this internal pre-screen:

• entity and operating location are clear
• group structure and local ownership can be evidenced
• group turnover and employment numbers are available
• project start date has not compromised supportability
• quotations and vendor scope can be produced
• finance team understands reimbursement timing

Important note

Note
Eligibility is necessary but not sufficient. Many rejected applications technically meet baseline eligibility but still fail on fit, evidence, feasibility, or value-for-money concerns.

Next step

Continue to Project Fit Scoring Framework.