How to open a restaurant in Singapore: the step-by-step guide

Opening a restaurant in Singapore is two projects in one. The first is the fun one: the concept, the fit-out, the name above the shophouse door. The second is the one that decides whether you actually open on time: the ACRA registration, the URA change of use approval for the premises, the SFA Food Shop Licence, the liquor licence with its own processing queue, and a manpower plan that respects the foreign worker quota. Miss one of these and your opening date slips, sometimes by months, while the rent keeps running.

The good news is that Singapore is one of the easiest places in the world to do the paperwork itself: almost everything runs through GoBusiness with a SingPass or CorpPass login, fees are published, and processing times are short by international standards. The hard part is the market. This guide puts every step in the right order, links the official source for each obligation, and ends with the part most guides skip: the tools to set up before opening night, from your Google Business Profile to a way to take direct bookings from day one without paying commission, because the first weeks of a new F&B business are decided by how quickly you can fill the room.

One scope note: this guide covers restaurants, cafés and bars. A hawker stall follows a different path (SFA licenses individual stalls, and NEA manages hawker centre tenancies), so if that is your project, start from the SFA's stall licensing pages instead.

The seven jobs, in order:

1. choose a business structure and register with ACRA;
2. check the premises: approved use, landlord consent, extraction;
3. get the SFA Food Shop Licence and train your food handlers;
4. sort the liquor licence, or deliberately go without;
5. become an employer properly: quotas, levies, CPF;
6. understand GST and how prices must be displayed;
7. set up your day-one tools: Google profile, website, online bookings.

Step 1: business structure and ACRA registration

Every business in Singapore must be registered with ACRA, the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority, before it starts trading. Most new F&B businesses choose between two structures:

• Sole proprietorship: the simplest and cheapest to run, but you are personally liable for the business's debts, and a restaurant carries real debts: a lease, suppliers, staff, equipment financing.
• Private limited company (Pte Ltd): a separate legal entity. Your personal liability is limited to what you invest, the company pays corporate tax on profits, and banks, landlords and investors generally take it more seriously.

Registration runs through ACRA's BizFile+ portal, and the fees are modest: a sole proprietorship or partnership costs S$115 in total (S$15 for the name application, S$100 for registration), per ACRA's registration guide, while a company costs S$315 (S$15 name, S$300 incorporation), per the GoBusiness start-up guide. Given the sums at stake in a commercial kitchen fit-out, many restaurateurs with staff choose a Pte Ltd, but this is a conversation to have with an accountant, not a decision to copy from a blog post, ours included.

Once registered, GoBusiness becomes your best friend: its e-Adviser and licence directory list every licence your exact concept needs, and almost all of the applications below are filed there.

Step 2: check the premises before you sign anything

A lease is much harder to change than a menu, so verify two things before signing.

Approved use: is the unit allowed to be a restaurant?

Land use in Singapore is controlled by URA, the Urban Redevelopment Authority. A unit must be approved for restaurant use before you can operate one in it; if the space was previously a shop or an office, you need a change of use approval, filed through URA's change of use process or the GoBusiness change of use application. For HDB commercial units the sequence is stricter still: HDB's approval as landlord comes first, then the planning clearance, and some uses are simply not allowed near residential floors. Ask before you commit, and make the lease conditional on the approvals you need.

The classic project killer is kitchen extraction. A full kitchen needs an exhaust duct, and installing a new one through an existing building can require the landlord's consent, professional engineering work and agency clearances all at once. A tired unit with working extraction and a grease trap is often a better buy than a beautifully renovated one without them. The SFA's premises requirements (floor traps, washing points, refuse handling) are listed in its Food Shop Self-Checklist on the licensing page below; walk the unit with that checklist before signing, not after.

The rent reality

Singapore rents are among the region's highest, and they are the line item that kills most F&B business plans. Be wary of any universal "cost to open" figure: taking over an equipped kopitiam unit in the heartlands and building out a shell unit in the CBD are different projects by an order of magnitude. The honest method is a forecast built line by line with an accountant, including three to six months of cash reserve, because almost no restaurant runs at cruising speed in month one.

Step 3: the SFA Food Shop Licence and food safety

You cannot legally sell food from the premises until the Singapore Food Agency has licensed it. The Food Shop Licence costs S$195 a year and is applied for on GoBusiness, per the SFA's application process and fees page. Before it is granted, the premises must comply with SFA's layout and hygiene requirements, and the use of the unit must already be approved (Step 2), which is why the order of these steps matters.

Two people-related requirements come with it, per the SFA's licensing requirements:

1. every food handler must have passed the WSQ Food Safety Course Level 1 (or met the retraining requirement) at the point of application, and new hires must be trained and registered as they join;
2. higher-risk establishments must appoint a trained Food Hygiene Officer; check SFA's current criteria for whether your format needs one, and book the course early either way, because it is cheap insurance and inspectors ask for certificates on the first visit.

SFA also grades and inspects food shops after opening. Prepare for the first inspection as if the certificate were going up in the window, because in practice it is: hygiene standards are part of how Singapore diners choose where to eat.

Step 4: the liquor licence, or a deliberate pass

Alcohol is licensed separately by the Singapore Police Force, and the licence class determines your serving hours. Applications run through the GoBusiness liquor licence application; the classes and fees, per the SPF's published fee schedule:

A typical full-service restaurant applies for Class 1A or 1B; a casual concept that only wants beer can save with 2A. Factor in the processing time (allow a few weeks, longer if there are objections or the premises raise questions) and remember that serving alcohol before the licence is granted is an offence.

Not serving alcohol at all is also a legitimate model in Singapore, where plenty of successful concepts run dry or dessert-led. Unlike Australia, there is no widespread BYO-with-corkage tradition to fall back on, so treat the licence decision as a real menu-margin decision: alcohol is high-margin, but the licence, stock and later closing hours all carry costs.

Step 5: becoming an employer in a manpower-crunched market

Staffing is the hardest operational problem in Singapore F&B, hard enough that the Ministry of Trade and Industry has addressed the manpower crunch in Parliament. Three sets of numbers belong in your business plan before you sign anything:

• The foreign worker quota. Restaurants sit in the services sector, where Work Permit and S Pass holders together may not exceed 35% of your total workforce, and S Pass holders alone are capped at 10%, per MOM's quota calculation rules and the S Pass quota and levy page. In practice: every foreign hire requires local hires on the payroll to hold up the ratio.
• The levy. Each Work Permit holder attracts a monthly foreign worker levy, tiered by skill level and how much of your quota you use; check the current services-sector rates on MOM's levy page and put the real figure in the payroll forecast, because it is a genuine per-head monthly cost.
• CPF for local staff. For Singapore citizens and permanent residents you pay employer CPF contributions on top of gross wages: 17% for employees aged 55 and below, per the CPF Board's contribution rate table. A S$2,600 salary costs you roughly S$3,042 before anything else.

One cultural point that surprises founders arriving from North America: tipping is not customary in Singapore. Most restaurants instead add a 10% service charge to the bill, which is a business decision rather than a legal requirement, and which belongs to the business unless you decide otherwise. Your menu prices and service charge together must carry the entire cost of the team; there is no tipped wage to plan around.

Step 6: GST, the "++", and how prices must be displayed

Singapore's GST has been 9% since 1 January 2024, per IRAS. GST registration becomes compulsory once your taxable turnover passes S$1 million over 12 months, or as soon as you can reasonably expect it to, per IRAS's registration rules. A full-service restaurant doing steady covers crosses that threshold faster than most founders expect, and you can also register voluntarily below it to claim input tax on your fit-out; ask your accountant which side of the line your forecast puts you on.

Registration triggers a display obligation with a Singapore twist. GST-registered businesses must display GST-inclusive prices, but F&B establishments that levy a genuine service charge may show GST-exclusive menu prices, the familiar "++", provided a prominent statement says prices are subject to service charge and GST. Get this wrong and the fine is real. The mechanics, the exemption conditions and the display wording are all covered in our dedicated guide to GST and service charge display rules for Singapore restaurants.

While you are setting up the money side, sort payments acceptance too. Singapore diners expect to pay by card, PayNow and the other rails behind SGQR, the national unified QR standard described on the MAS e-payments page. One SGQR sticker covers multiple schemes, and QR rails typically cost less per transaction than card acquiring, which matters at a 9% GST, 10% service charge and thin-margin price point.

Step 7: know the market you are entering

This is the honesty section, and in Singapore it needs to be honest indeed. The market is in a shakeout: 3,047 F&B establishments closed in 2024, a roughly two-decade high, and operators describe net margins of 5 to 7% at best, per reporting by Malay Mail in July 2025. Rents, the manpower quota and diners with world-class alternatives at every price point make Singapore one of the most competitive F&B markets anywhere.

The demand side is real, though. Singapore welcomed 16.9 million visitor arrivals in 2025 with record tourism receipts, per the Singapore Tourism Board, and the reservation peaks are predictable: Chinese New Year reunion dinners above all, year-end corporate dinners, Mother's Day, and event weekends like the F1 night race. A new restaurant that opens organised, with its licences in order and its booking book already filling, can ride those peaks from year one. One that opens late and improvises cannot.

The launch timeline: from six months out to opening night

Every project moves at its own pace, but this is the backbone of an opening that does not slip.

The logic throughout: front-load everything with an incompressible delay (change of use, the liquor licence, financing, the fit-out itself) and keep the fine-tuning for the end. It is always a forgotten form that delays an opening, never the colour of the banquettes.

Day-one tools: your restaurant must exist online before it opens

This is the chapter compliance guides skip, and it decides your first weeks of revenue.

Create your Google Business Profile before opening, not after. It is the first place future guests will look ("restaurant + your neighbourhood"), and verification can take time. A complete profile with photos, hours and an opening date puts you on Google Maps from day one; our guide to setting up a Google Business Profile for your restaurant walks through every step.

Put a simple website live. One page with the menu, hours, address and a booking button is enough to start; our restaurant website guide shows what actually matters. What counts is existing somewhere you own, not only on social platforms.

Open online bookings two or three weeks before opening night. Announcing "bookings open" ahead of the date converts local curiosity into confirmed covers for week one, and a soft opening with a real booking sheet tells you exactly how many covers your kitchen can handle. If you are comparing tools, our honest overview of restaurant reservation systems in Singapore maps the local market, which has been reshaped by consolidation and per-cover pricing.

That last point matters more in Singapore than almost anywhere: the dominant local platforms charge per diner seated or sell by subscription only. In an opening budget where every dollar is spoken for, the free version of ViteUneTable gives you unlimited online bookings with 0% commission, no per-cover fees, automatic confirmation emails and no lock-in contract. Let's be honest: on opening week you do not yet need advanced features, and our prices are in euros because we are European (about the only thing on this page not in S$). The free plan covers the launch, and you can move to the Standard pack (29 € excl. VAT per month) or add Anti No-Show (49 € excl. VAT per month) once the volume justifies it.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to open a restaurant in Singapore?

Be wary of any universal figure: rent, deposit, fit-out and equipment vary so much between taking over an equipped unit in the heartlands and building out a CBD shell that a single number is meaningless. The known fixed costs are small (S$115 to S$315 for ACRA registration, S$195 a year for the Food Shop Licence, S$285 to S$880 a year for a liquor licence); it is the rent, fit-out and working capital that decide the budget. Build the forecast line by line with an accountant, including three to six months of cash reserve.

What licences do I need to open a restaurant in Singapore?

At minimum: ACRA business registration, premises approved for restaurant use (with URA change of use approval if the unit was not one before), and an SFA Food Shop Licence with WSQ-trained food handlers. Add a liquor licence from the Singapore Police Force if you serve alcohol, and MUIS halal certification if you want to be halal-certified. The GoBusiness licence directory lists the exact set for your concept.

How long does it take to open a restaurant in Singapore?

Plan for roughly four to eight months from decision to opening. The incompressible delays to anchor the timeline around: any change of use approval, the fit-out itself (extraction work is the usual bottleneck), the liquor licence, and the Food Shop Licence inspection at the end. The administrative steps themselves are fast by international standards; it is the premises work that sets the pace.

Can foreigners open a restaurant in Singapore?

Yes, foreigners can own a Singapore company outright, but the operating rules still apply: the company needs a locally resident director, and hiring is bound by the services-sector quota, under which Work Permit and S Pass holders may not exceed 35% of the workforce. Engage a corporate services firm and read MOM's rules before building a staffing plan around foreign hires.

Do I need to charge GST from day one?

Only once you are GST-registered. Registration is compulsory when taxable turnover passes S$1 million over 12 months, or as soon as you reasonably expect it to; below that you may register voluntarily, which lets you claim input tax on the fit-out but obliges you to charge GST and file returns. Once registered, your menu display must follow IRAS's rules, including the "++" conditions covered in our GST and service charge guide.

Do restaurant staff in Singapore rely on tips?

No. Tipping is not customary in Singapore. Most restaurants add a 10% service charge to the bill instead, but it is a business decision, not a legal obligation, and no law requires it to be passed to staff. Wages, employer CPF contributions for local staff and the foreign worker levy are what the payroll actually runs on, so menu prices must carry the full cost of service.