EntrePass Singapore 2026: Which Pass Fits a Founder?

Founders ask about the EntrePass as if it were the entry ticket to Singapore. It is not. You can own 100% of a Singapore company from anywhere in the world with no pass at all, and plenty of owners should do exactly that. The pass question is really a relocation question: do you need to live and work in Singapore? If yes, four doors exist – EntrePass, an Employment Pass from your own company, the ONE Pass, or a Letter of Consent on a Dependant's Pass. Each has different thresholds, and picking the wrong one wastes months. The figures below are from the Ministry of Manpower's current pages, verified in September 2026.

First decision: do you need a pass at all?

ACRA is clear on this: a foreigner can hold every share in a Singapore private limited company and remain overseas. The company simply needs one locally resident director: a citizen, permanent resident, or a valid EntrePass, EP, Personalised Employment Pass or ONE Pass holder. Most non-relocating founders satisfy that through a nominee director service from their registered filing agent. If you are running the business from Dubai or Mumbai and flying in quarterly, that structure works, costs are in our Singapore cost guide, and no pass application ever happens. The rest of this page is for founders who genuinely need to be on the ground.

Quick summary: passes for Singapore founders

• No relocation, no pass: 100% foreign ownership works from overseas with a locally resident (often nominee) director.
• EntrePass: for venture-backed or innovative-tech founders holding at least 30% of a company less than 12 months old. No minimum salary; renewals demand real business spending and local hires.
• Employment Pass from your own company: legal and common, but you must pay yourself at least S$5,600 a month (S$6,200 financial services) and clear the 40-point COMPASS test.
• ONE Pass: S$30,000 a month, five-year validity, run several companies at once – for a small senior tier.
• Spouse on a Dependant's Pass: a Letter of Consent lets a DP holder run an ACRA-registered business with at least 30% shareholding.
• Costs are uniform: S$105 to apply and S$225 on issuance for EntrePass, EP and ONE Pass alike.

EntrePass: the founder's pass

The EntrePass is built for one profile. You hold at least 30% of a private limited company registered with ACRA – or are about to register one – and the business is venture-backed or owns innovative technology. Apply before incorporation or within six months of it; once the company is more than 12 months old, you are assessed under renewal criteria instead.

You must also clear at least one of five qualifying routes:

• Funding: S$100,000 or more raised in a single round from a recognised investor.
• Incubation: backing from a government-recognised or internationally renowned incubator or accelerator.
• Track record: you founded and sold a venture-backed or innovative-technology business before.
• Intellectual property: registered IP that gives the business a real competitive edge.
• Research: an ongoing collaboration with a Singapore institute of higher learning or research institution.

Everyday trading businesses do not qualify, and MOM maintains an explicit exclusion list – coffee shops, bars, employment agencies and similar.

The mechanics are light. S$105 to apply, S$225 per pass on issuance, processing within six weeks for most cases, and the in-principle approval gives you six months to enter Singapore. There is no minimum salary, no levy and no quota. A new pass and the first renewal each run up to one year; later renewals run up to two.

The renewal ladder nobody reads before applying

EntrePass renewals are where casual applicants fail, because the pass demands an escalating commitment to Singapore's economy. Renewal is measured on annual Total Business Spending and local workforce. The first renewal has no minimum. The second requires S$100,000 of spending and one local hire. The ladder then climbs each cycle – S$200,000 and two, S$300,000 and three – reaching S$1.15 million and ten locals by the eleventh renewal.

Two definitions matter. A counted local professional must be a Singaporean or PR earning at least S$3,900 a month (rising to S$4,700 from the sixth renewal cycle) with three months of CPF contributions. Lower-paid locals count fractionally against the Local Qualifying Salary, now S$1,800 a month since 1 July 2026. And Total Business Spending excludes what founders most want to count: your own remuneration, overseas outsourcing, and royalties or fees paid abroad. Model the ladder before you apply, not at renewal time.

Employment Pass through your own company

Nothing stops your Singapore company employing you. The EP route is the standard choice for profitable founders who do not fit the EntrePass innovation criteria – but it prices entry. You must pay yourself at least the qualifying salary: S$5,600 a month in general sectors, S$6,200 in financial services, rising with age to S$10,700 and S$11,800 at 45 and above. These tiers hold for applications made before 1 January 2027, after which they rise to S$6,000 and S$6,600.

Salary is only stage one. The application must also score 40 points on COMPASS, MOM's complementarity framework. Here small new companies get a real head start: firms with fewer than 25 professional employees automatically score 10 points on diversity and 10 on local-employment support – half the requirement – so your profile must find the remaining 20 elsewhere: salary against the sector benchmark (10 points at the 65th percentile, 20 at the 90th), qualifications (10 for a degree, 20 for a top-tier university), or the shortage-occupation bonus. Pay yourself S$22,500 or more and COMPASS is waived entirely.

Processing runs about 10 business days online, the pass is valid up to two years first time, and one procedural detail catches founders: an EP holder who wants to sit as the company's local resident director needs a Letter of Consent from MOM first.

The other doors: ONE Pass, PEP and the Dependant's Pass route

The Overseas Networks & Expertise Pass is the premium tier: a fixed salary of at least S$30,000 a month (overseas applicants must also have spent 12 consecutive months with an employer of US$500 million market capitalisation or US$200 million revenue), five-year validity, renewable, and the freedom to start and run several companies at once. For the founders who qualify, it beats everything else on flexibility.

The Personalised Employment Pass looks tempting and is the wrong answer: MOM excludes sole proprietors, partners, and directors who are also shareholders of an ACRA-registered company, and points entrepreneurs to the EntrePass or ONE Pass instead.

And if your spouse already holds an Employment Pass, a Dependant's Pass with a Letter of Consent quietly covers many family businesses: the DP holder must own at least 30% of an ACRA-registered company, and the first LOC renewal expects one Singaporean or PR hired at the Local Qualifying Salary for at least three consecutive months.

The four doors, side by side

Which pass for which founder

• Venture-backed or deep-tech founder, moving now: EntrePass – you fit the profile it was written for. Model the renewal ladder first.
• Profitable services or trading founder: incorporate first, then an EP from your own company at S$5,600+ – the innovation routes were never meant for you.
• Senior operator earning S$30,000+: ONE Pass, and keep the freedom to run multiple ventures.
• Spouse holds an EP: Dependant's Pass with a Letter of Consent, 30% shareholding.
• Staying in Dubai or India: no pass. Nominee director, quarterly visits – the mechanics are in the UAE corridor guide and the from-India guide.

Where Singapore fits against the UAE's own founder visas – including the golden visa – is mapped in Dubai vs Singapore.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the EntrePass in Singapore?

A work pass for foreign founders who hold at least 30% of a venture-backed or innovative-technology company registered with ACRA, applied for before incorporation or within six months of it. It has no minimum salary, costs S$105 to apply and S$225 on issuance, and is processed within six weeks for most cases.

What are the EntrePass requirements in 2026?

At least 30% shareholding in a company less than 12 months old, plus one qualifying route: S$100,000 raised in a single round from a recognised investor, support from a recognised incubator or accelerator, a sold venture-backed business, registered intellectual property, or a research collaboration with a Singapore institution.

Can I get an Employment Pass from my own Singapore company?

Yes. The company applies as your employer. You need the qualifying salary – at least S$5,600 a month in general sectors, S$6,200 in financial services, before the 1 January 2027 rise – and 40 COMPASS points, though firms under 25 professionals start with 20 automatic points. To also act as the local resident director, an EP holder needs a Letter of Consent from MOM.

How hard is EntrePass renewal?

Progressively harder. The first renewal has no minimum, then annual Total Business Spending and local hiring climb each cycle: S$100,000 and one local at the second renewal, up to S$1.15 million and ten locals by the eleventh. Your own salary and overseas outsourcing do not count as business spending.

Do I need any Singapore visa just to own the company?

No. A foreigner can own 100% of a Singapore private limited company from overseas. The company needs one locally resident director – commonly a nominee provided by your filing agent – and you can direct the business from abroad and visit as needed.

Sources and official references

• MOM – EntrePass eligibility (30% shareholding, five qualifying routes, exclusions; page updated 14 August 2026, verified September 2026)
• MOM – EntrePass renewal (Total Business Spending and local workforce ladder; updated 1 January 2026)
• MOM – Employment Pass eligibility (S$5,600/S$6,200 qualifying salary and the 1 January 2027 rise)
• MOM – COMPASS framework (40-point test, small-firm defaults, S$22,500 exemption)
• MOM – Overseas Networks & Expertise Pass (S$30,000 salary and employer thresholds)
• ACRA – local residency requirements (ownership without a pass; who qualifies as a locally resident director)