By KYN AI Advisory Team — AI implementation specialists, Singapore
A Singapore private company is exempt from statutory audit if it meets at least two of three tests in each of the two preceding financial years: revenue of S$10 million or less, total assets of S$10 million or less, and 50 employees or fewer. No regulator publishes an audit price, so this article does not invent one. It explains what sets the fee, how to get a comparable quote, and how clean books shorten the work. ACRA is also reviewing the thresholds, so check the current test before you rely on this one.
Who is exempt from a statutory audit?
ACRA states the rule in its announcement on the review of the audit exemption framework. A private company is exempt if it meets at least two of these three tests for each of the two financial years before the current one:
| Test | Threshold | |---|---| | Annual revenue | S$10 million or less | | Total assets | S$10 million or less | | Employees | 50 or fewer |
For a group, the whole group must meet at least two of the three tests on a consolidated basis. A small subsidiary of a large group is therefore not exempt on its own size.
Two points from the same ACRA page matter in practice.
- Exempt does not mean no accounts. An exempt company must still keep proper accounting records and prepare financial statements under the prescribed standards.
- Shareholders can ask for an audit. Shareholders holding at least 5% of issued shares can still require one.
Are the thresholds changing?
ACRA announced a review on 26 February 2026. It will look at raising the revenue and asset thresholds and at whether subsidiaries could qualify under specific conditions even if the group does not meet the thresholds. Industry consultations began in March 2026 and the feedback survey closed on 17 April 2026. The page gives no new figures.
Treat the S$10 million, S$10 million and 50 figures as current law, and the review as a possible change. If you sit near a threshold, re-test every year. Do not plan a fee budget on a future threshold that has not been published.
What does a statutory audit cost?
The honest answer is that it depends, and nobody publishes a list price. Audit firms quote against a scope. Five factors move the quote.
- Transaction volume. A company with 40 invoices a month and one bank account takes less testing than one with 4,000 invoices and six accounts.
- Complexity. Inventory, foreign currency, related-party balances, revenue recognised over time and group entities each add testing.
- Quality of the books. If the trial balance does not tie to the bank, the auditor's team reconciles it, and you pay for their time.
- Support schedules. Fixed asset registers, debtor ageing, loan schedules and payroll summaries that arrive ready save hours.
- Timing. Work requested close to a filing date, or outside the firm's quiet season, can cost more.
To compare firms on a like-for-like basis, send each the same pack: last year's financial statements, a trial balance, a list of bank accounts, a list of related parties and the number of invoices. Ask for a fixed fee for the stated scope, and for the rate charged if the scope grows.
What should you do if you sit near a threshold?
A company close to S$10 million of revenue, S$10 million of assets or 50 employees should test every year, because the exemption needs two of three tests in each of the two preceding years. Three habits keep the answer clear.
- Count the tests early. Calculate revenue, total assets and average headcount from the ledger and payroll at each quarter end, not only at year end.
- Watch the group. If the company has a parent or subsidiaries, the group test applies. A new subsidiary or a share transfer can change the answer for the entire group.
- Budget for both outcomes. If you may cross a threshold next year, ask an audit firm now for a fixed-fee quote on the current scope. A quote in hand turns a surprise into a line in the budget.
A company that stops meeting the tests needs an audit from the year the exemption no longer applies, so the first audit is also the first time an auditor sees the books. Clean monthly records matter most in that first year.
How does audit cost relate to whether you must be audited?
If you are exempt, you avoid the audit fee. You do not avoid the cost of preparing financial statements and keeping records. For many small companies the accounting work is the larger share of the cost, and it happens either way.
Some exempt companies still choose an audit. Common reasons are a bank or investor that asks for audited accounts, a tender that requires them, or a group that needs them for consolidation. In those cases the exemption is a right you choose not to use.
How do you cut the hours an audit takes?
An auditor's time goes to testing balances and chasing support. You cannot remove the testing. You can remove the chasing.
- Monthly bank reconciliation. Every bank line matched to a ledger entry, with differences explained. See how to automate bank reconciliation in Singapore.
- Documents attached to entries. A bill, receipt or contract linked to each transaction, so the sample request takes minutes.
- A schedule per balance. Debtors, creditors, accruals, fixed assets and loans, each reconciling to the ledger at year end.
- A log of who did what. Who posted, who approved, and when. Auditors test controls, and a log is evidence.
A ledger built this way is also what a lender or buyer asks for in due diligence, so the work pays twice.
What does an audit fail on most often?
From the company side, five patterns repeat.
- Bank balance and ledger balance do not agree and the difference is unexplained.
- Directors' loan balances have no agreement or movement schedule.
- Revenue cut-off errors at year end: invoices dated in the wrong period.
- Missing supporting documents for expenses paid personally and reclaimed later.
- Foreign currency balances not revalued at the closing rate. See how to record foreign currency expenses in Singapore.
None is exotic. All are cheaper to prevent monthly than to repair in the audit window.
Where KYN fits
KYN builds finance systems in your own cloud account. For a manufacturer, we moved eleven systems to three on one AWS account and built a ledger of 3,309 reconciled rows with zero duplicates. Every action in the system is logged with the actor. Postings, filings and deletions wait for a named person, which gives an auditor the control evidence they ask for.
KYN does not audit and does not set audit fees. The first 14 days are a review of your stack and interviews with your team. A full build ships in under 90 days. See finance systems and security.
Frequently asked questions
Does my company need an audit if it has no revenue?
Revenue is only one of three tests. A company with no revenue, assets of S$10 million or less and 50 employees or fewer meets all three and is exempt, if it is a private company that is not part of a larger group failing the group test.
Does an exempt company still file financial statements?
Yes. ACRA states that exempt companies must still keep proper accounting records and prepare financial statements under the prescribed standards. The exemption removes the audit, not the preparation.
Can a minority shareholder force an audit?
Shareholders holding at least 5% of issued shares can still require an audit, according to ACRA. Check your constitution and shareholder agreement for any additional rights.
Checked 30 October 2026.
Curious whether Marketing agents fits your business? Talk to KYN on WhatsApp — no forms, just a conversation.
