Singapore R&D tax incentive

Overview

Scheme	R&D tax deductions, including the Enterprise Innovation Scheme (EIS)
Administered by	Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS)
Benefit type	Enhanced tax deduction, with an optional cash payout
Rates	400% deduction on the first S$400,000 of staff costs and consumables for qualifying R&D carried out in Singapore, each Year of Assessment from YA 2024 to YA 2028. Expenditure above that gets 250%.
Cash payout	Optional. 20% of up to S$100,000 of qualifying expenditure across EIS activities, so up to S$20,000 per Year of Assessment.
Cash payout condition	At least three full-time local employees (Singapore Citizens or Permanent Residents with CPF contributions), each earning a gross monthly salary of at least S$1,400 employed for six months or more in the basis period
Budget 2026 change	Budget 2026 added AI adoption as an EIS qualifying activity for YA 2027 and YA 2028: 400% deduction on up to S$50,000 a year, with no cash payout option.
Before you claim	No registration
Claim deadline	Claim the deduction in the income tax return. Apply for any cash payout after filing and before the filing due date.

Who can claim. Businesses with qualifying R&D expenditure. The cash payout option also needs at least three full-time local employees, each earning a gross monthly salary of at least S$1,400.

Eligibility

R&D means systematic, investigative and experimental study that involves novelty or technical risk, carried out in the field of science or technology to acquire new knowledge, or to use the results to produce or improve materials, devices, products, produce or processes.

What is excluded

Activities such as quality control, routine testing, market research and efficiency surveys are excluded.

Documentation

Keep documents that show each project's objective, its novelty or technical risk, the work done and the qualifying expenditure. IRAS can ask for them when it reviews a claim.

Calculation and rates

Item	Detail
Enhanced deduction	400% deduction on the first S$400,000 of staff costs and consumables for qualifying R&D carried out in Singapore, each Year of Assessment from YA 2024 to YA 2028
Above S$400,000	250%, made up of the 100% base deduction and a 150% additional deduction
Cash payout	20% of up to S$100,000 of qualifying expenditure, up to S$20,000 per Year of Assessment
AI adoption (Budget 2026)	For YA 2027 and YA 2028, AI adoption is an EIS qualifying activity: 400% deduction on up to S$50,000 a year, with no cash payout option

How to claim

Identify qualifying R&DCheck projects against the definition of R&D and collect the qualifying expenditure.
Claim in the tax returnClaim the enhanced deduction in the corporate income tax return.
Apply for the cash payout if you want itUse the Apply for EIS Cash Payout service after filing the return and before the filing due date.

Event	When
Registration	None
Claim	In the corporate income tax return, by its filing due date
Cash payout	After filing the return and before the filing due date

Official sources

Educational content only, not tax advice. General information on the Singapore scheme, checked against the sources above on 1 October 2026. See the disclaimer.

Programs for Singapore

The definition of R&D, enhanced deductions under the Enterprise Innovation Scheme, the cash payout option and claiming in the tax return.

Program	For
R&D Tax Fundamentals The grounding every claimant needs, in any of the countries we cover: what research and development means for tax purposes, how a claim is built from project to filing, which records stand up to review, and how to work with an advisor from an informed position.	Companies & in-house finance teams	Register interest
Technical Teams Program For engineers, scientists and project leads whose work is the subject of a claim: why their input matters, how to identify uncertainty, record work as it happens and write the narrative.	Companies & in-house finance teams	Register interest
Startups and Scale-ups For founders and early finance hires: whether a claim is worth making, how to set up records from day one, how funding interacts with the incentive and what the first claim involves.	Companies & in-house finance teams	Register interest
In-House Finance Team Program For finance and tax teams that want to run R&D claims internally, or manage an external advisor from a position of knowledge: project identification workshops, time capture, cost allocation, the technical narrative, internal review and fee benchmarking.	Companies & in-house finance teams	Register interest
Advisor and Practitioner Program For accountants and advisors who prepare claims for clients: legislation and guidance, eligibility analysis, advanced calculations, technical interviews, reports, disputes, and ethics, integrity and fee arrangements.	Tax professionals	Register interest
Leadership Briefing: R&D Tax Relief for Executives A short, board-level overview for founders, directors and executives: what the incentive is worth to the business, the risks of a poorly prepared claim, how to govern the process, and what good advisors cost.	Companies & in-house finance teams	Register interest

Guides

05 Sept 2026How to document R&D activities as you go: a calendar for the financial yearContemporaneous records are the difference between a claim that is defended in an afternoon and one that is argued about for a year. Here is a documentation routine a busy team can actually keep.Documentation and compliance 14 Aug 2026Qualifying versus non-qualifying activities: where the line really sitsEvery R&D scheme draws a line between the work that qualifies and the work around it. The line is in a similar place in every country. Here is how to find it in your own projects, with examples.Eligibility

Singapore: R&D tax deductions under the Enterprise Innovation Scheme (EIS)