An office in Singapore needs premises whose planning use allows it. Commercial buildings, shophouses on URA's allowable list and white-site commercial units are the candidates. Residential units in mixed developments and industrial buildings do not qualify. A URA change of use application takes about 10 working days and costs S$500 (URA, 23 July 2026). Island-wide office vacancy fell to 10.0% at the end of the third quarter of 2026 (URA, 23 October 2026).
Accurate as of 5 November 2026. Every figure, date and rule on this page was checked against its source on that date, and the page is rechecked monthly.
URA decides which buildings accept an office
URA decides which buildings accept an office, and URA advises against committing to a tenancy or renovation before it gives a decision.
This guide covers conventional leased offices in Singapore. Serviced offices, coworking and virtual offices are outside its scope, and fit-out cost is left to contractor quotes because no dated official per-square-foot figure was available on 5 November 2026. Planning permission is required for development and building works, including changing the use of premises (URA, 18 August 2026). URA defines an office as premises used as a place of business and for conducting administrative work. The allowable uses for a specific unit appear in URA SPACE, based on planning guidelines and records at the date of enquiry.
Which building types allow an office?
Commercial buildings, shophouses, HDB commercial premises and white-site commercial units are the routes to an office, while residential units in mixed developments, industrial buildings and Business Park units are closed.
| Building type | Office use | What URA requires | Approval guaranteed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial building | Possible | Instant-approval check first, otherwise a change of use application | No |
| Mixed development, commercial unit | Possible | Instant-approval check first, otherwise a change of use application | No |
| Mixed development, residential unit | Not allowed | Not in line with the planning intention of the site | Not applicable |
| Shophouse | Depends on location | Check the Allowable Use for Shophouses list | Not stated |
| HDB commercial premises | Possible | HDB consent; no planning permission | Not applicable |
| State property on interim tenancy | Possible | SLA consent; no planning permission | Not applicable |
| Business Park commercial unit, JTC land | Possible | JTC consent; no planning permission | Not applicable |
| Business Park commercial unit, private land | Possible | Instant-approval check and owner's consent, otherwise a change of use application | No |
| Business 1-White or Business 2-White, commercial unit | Possible | Change of use application | No |
| Industrial building, or industrial unit in a White building | Not allowed | Not in line with the planning intention of the site | Not applicable |
| Business Park unit | Not allowed | Not in line with the planning intention of the site | Not applicable |
URA assessment outcomes for office use by property type, page last updated 3 August 2026. In Business Park cases inside an Activity Generating Use area, URA does not support office use.
How much office space does a B1 industrial unit allow?
A B1 industrial unit allows at most 40% of its floor area for ancillary uses such as an ancillary office and meeting rooms, and at least 60% stays industrial.
URA's use quantum rule applies to each strata unit and to the whole development (URA, 6 June 2026). The 40% ancillary share also covers other supporting uses, so the office share is smaller than 40% whenever the unit has other ancillary space. In a 500 sq m B1 unit, ancillary uses reach at most 200 sq m (500 x 0.40) and industrial use is at least 300 sq m (500 x 0.60). The 500 sq m unit is an example input, not a benchmark.
A URA change of use application costs S$500 and takes about 10 working days
Budget about two weeks and S$500 for URA's assessment, then separate time for the clearances that follow.
URA states that it generally takes 10 working days to assess a change of use application, which is two calendar weeks when no public holiday falls in the period. The processing fee is S$500 and is non-refundable. More time is needed when the submission is incomplete or other agencies are consulted. The application is filed through GoBusiness Singapore, described in the GoBusiness Singapore Explained guide. After URA approves, separate permits such as SCDF's fire safety clearance are obtained through GoBusiness. In some cases the Singapore Land Authority also collects a Land Betterment Charge for the change of use.
Who files a change of use application, the tenant or the landlord?
The business owner, the landlord, a consultant or a Qualified Person files it, and the owner's consent is among the supporting documents.
URA lists a floor plan, a location plan for multi-unit developments, the owner's consent and any applicable agency clearances as supporting documents (URA, 23 July 2026). A tenant who is not the owner needs the landlord's consent before the application goes in, so ask for it before the letter of offer is signed.
URA's third-quarter figures show office vacancy at 10.0% and rentals up 0.8%
Office vacancy fell one percentage point to 10.0% in the third quarter of 2026 while URA's office rental index rose 0.8% for the second quarter running.
URA released the figures on 23 October 2026. Stock fell by 72,000 sq m (nett) while occupied space rose by 17,000 sq m (nett), so the vacant pool shrank by 89,000 sq m (72,000 + 17,000). This guide gives no per-square-foot district table because it reads only dated official figures, and the URA release gives index changes, not unit quotes. A landlord's written quote for the specific unit is the price that matters.
| Metric | 3Q 2026 | 2Q 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Office rental index, Central Region (quarterly change) | +0.8% | +0.8% | Same pace |
| Office price index, Central Region (quarterly change) | +0.8% | +0.4% | Up 0.4 percentage point |
| Island-wide vacancy rate (end of quarter) | 10.0% | 11.0% | Down 1.0 percentage point |
| Occupied office space (nett change) | +17,000 sq m | +8,000 sq m | Up 9,000 sq m |
| Stock of office space (nett change) | -72,000 sq m | +19,000 sq m | Down 91,000 sq m |
| Office space in the pipeline (GFA) | About 875,000 sq m | About 848,000 sq m | Up about 27,000 sq m |
URA real estate statistics for office space, 3rd Quarter 2026, released 23 October 2026.
Is the office supply pipeline growing?
Yes: the pipeline grew from about 848,000 sq m to about 875,000 sq m of GFA, a rise of about 3.2%, and 47,936 sq m of office space completed in the first three quarters of 2026.
The rise is 27,000 sq m (875,000 - 848,000), and 27,000 / 848,000 is 3.18%. URA reports completions as space granted TOP (Temporary Occupation Permit) in 1Q to 3Q 2026. The release gives no quarter-on-quarter comparison for completions.
Peak headcount multiplied by area per person sizes your floor
Multiply peak daily headcount by area per person, use your own attendance data for hybrid teams, and check the result against a designer's plan.
Knight Frank's Guide to Office Leasing in Singapore (undated) gives floor area per employee by trade, in square feet. Its method multiplies area per employee by headcount, and its by-function method adds 15% to 20% for corridors and circulation. The guide describes its figures as for guidance and reference only. The table applies its ranges to an example team of 20.
| Trade (Knight Frank) | Sq ft per employee | 20 staff, low (sq ft) | 20 staff, high (sq ft) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Representative office | 100 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| Banking and finance | 100 to 150 | 2,000 | 3,000 |
| Consultancy, sales and professional services | 80 to 100 | 1,600 | 2,000 |
| Technology, media and telecommunications | 130 to 200 | 2,600 | 4,000 |
Floor area per employee by trade from Knight Frank's undated Guide to Office Leasing in Singapore, multiplied by an example headcount of 20; the headcount is illustrative.
Source: Knight Frank Singapore, November 2026
How many desks does a hybrid team need?
Plan seats for the peak day, not for headcount: 30 staff with a 60% peak need 18 seats, which cuts the floor by 40% at the same area per person.
The worked example uses a consultancy range of 80 to 100 sq ft. Seats are 30 x 0.60 = 18. A floor sized for 18 seats is 18 x 80 = 1,440 sq ft at the low end and 18 x 100 = 1,800 sq ft at the high end. A floor sized for all 30 staff is 2,400 to 3,000 sq ft. The saving is 960 to 1,200 sq ft, which is 40% of the full-headcount floor. The 30 staff and the 60% peak are example inputs. Replace them with measured badge or booking data, and multiply the final area by the landlord's quoted rent per square foot to see the monthly effect.
Lease stamp duty equals 0.4% of total rent and stops rising after four years
Stamp duty on an office lease is 0.4% of total rent for terms up to four years and 0.4% of four years' average annual rent beyond that, due within 14 days of the date of the lease.
These rates come from the Council for Estate Agencies Practice Circular PC 03-14 of 6 March 2014, which applies the rates effective 22 February 2014 and cites the IRAS e-Tax Guide. IRAS's Renting a Property page, checked 5 November 2026, states that lease duty is based on the higher of the contractual rent or the market rent, but its rate table did not load for this guide, so confirm the rate on IRAS before signing. Total rent includes base rent, variable rent, service, maintenance and advertising charges and other lease-related charges, and excludes GST, so service charges sit inside the stamp duty base.
| Lease term | Total rent at S$8,000 a month | Rent base for duty | Stamp duty (0.4%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | S$96,000 | S$96,000 | S$384 |
| 2 years | S$192,000 | S$192,000 | S$768 |
| 3 years | S$288,000 | S$288,000 | S$1,152 |
| 4 years | S$384,000 | S$384,000 | S$1,536 |
| 5 years | S$480,000 | S$384,000 (4 x S$96,000) | S$1,536 |
| 6 years | S$576,000 | S$384,000 (4 x S$96,000) | S$1,536 |
Lease stamp duty for an example all-in rent of S$8,000 a month, GST excluded, using the rates in CEA Practice Circular PC 03-14 (6 March 2014).
Source: Council for Estate Agencies, March 2014
Who pays stamp duty on an office lease, and by when?
The tenant is liable, and the full duty is due within 14 days of the date of the lease, or within 30 days of receipt in Singapore if the lease is signed overseas.
The circular's attached IRAS guide states the tenant is liable on a tenancy agreement, and late or unpaid duty attracts a penalty of up to four times the unpaid duty under the Stamp Duties Act. The 14-day period runs from the date on the instrument.
A fixed sequence of approvals takes an office from lease to opening day
Check use first, apply to URA if needed, secure the SCDF clearance, stamp the lease within 14 days, and keep MOM's accident-reporting deadlines on file.
| Step | Trigger or deadline | Authority | Time or cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Check the allowed use in URA SPACE | Before any tenancy or renovation commitment | URA | Result reflects records at the date of enquiry |
| Apply for change of use if the unit needs it | Before committing to the unit | URA through GoBusiness | About 10 working days; S$500 non-refundable |
| Obtain fire safety clearance | After URA approval | SCDF through GoBusiness | Not stated on URA's page |
| Stamp the lease | Within 14 days of the date of the lease | IRAS | 0.4% of total rent, up to four years of rent |
| Report an employee injury with leave, light duty or hospitalisation, or an occupational disease | Incident report within 10 days of first notice or diagnosis | MOM (iReport) | Online submission |
| Report a death or dangerous occurrence | Notify the Commissioner as soon as reasonably practicable, report within 10 days | MOM | Online submission |
Office set-up approvals in order of deadline, from URA (23 July 2026), IRAS and CEA (6 March 2014) and MOM (28 July 2026) pages checked 5 November 2026.
The Workplace Safety and Health Risk Management and Incident Reporting Regulations apply to all workplaces, and the WSH (Exemption) Order covers Singapore Armed Forces premises and domestic premises (MOM, 14 January 2026). An office is a workplace, so the incident-reporting deadlines above apply from the first day of occupation. The How to Start a Business in Singapore guide covers the company registration that comes before a lease.
A 25°C air-conditioning setting cuts cooling energy by about 12% per degree
Raising an office from 23°C to 25°C reduces cooling energy by about 12% per degree, according to the Singapore Green Building Council's Go 25 page.
The page estimates annual savings of around $6,400 for a typical 3,000 sq m office. That is about $2.13 per sq m a year (6,400 / 3,000), or roughly $0.20 per sq ft (2.13 / 10.76 sq ft per sq m). The setting is a choice of the occupier in spaces it directly controls, so ask the landlord which spaces the tenant controls before counting on it. The Go 25 pledge is voluntary.
Source: Singapore Green Building Council, October 2026
General guidance as of 5 November 2026, not legal advice.