IDA Singapore - Infocomm Adoption - Small & Medium Enterprises

Small & Medium Enterprises (SMEs)

The Infocomm@SME Programme aims to help SMEs grow and expand their business through infocomm adoption. Under this programme, various initiatives are designed and put in place to cater to the infocomm needs of SMEs:

Acquire accounting software to improve your business's financial and book-keeping practices (New)
Purchase your packaged infocomm solutions and enjoy a one-stop service at affordable prices;
Find the infocomm solutions provider with the suitable products or services for your business;
Expand your customer reach with your very own website and enjoy a discount of up to S$30 for the first-year registration of your first domain name;
Get help on commonly used software or try out new technology ideas before implementing them for your business;
Apply for grant to defray up to 50% of the qualifying costs of your infocomm project; and
Hire a consultant to help in your infocomm implementation and have the consultancy cost subsidised up to 50%.

For more details on the Infocomm@SME Programme, click here.

1. Accounting Software Assistance Scheme

Accounting software is a tool to assist businesses to improve their financial and book-keeping practices. From 1 July 2009 till 31 March 2012, you can apply for a grant to defray the costs of using accounting software that complies with the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore's (IRAS) e-Tax Guide. IDA partners IRAS in this scheme to assist SMEs that are registered for Goods-and-Services Tax (GST), to purchase and put into use the accounting software listed in the IRAS Accounting Software Register.

Scope of scheme

The assistance scheme defrays up to 50% of the qualifying costs of the following items, capped at S$1,500 per SME:

Accounting software listed in IRAS Accounting Software Register
Installation/deployment of the accounting software, and
Training on the use of the accounting software.

The grant is on a reimbursement basis in which you will have to incur the costs and submit the necessary invoices and documents to IDA for the costs to be reimbursed.

How to qualify and apply?

Your business must be registered or incorporated in Singapore with:
- At least 30% local shareholding;
- Group fixed assets worth less than S$15 million*; and
- Group employment of less than 200 employees* (for companies in the services sector)
Your business is GST-registered and will remain GST-registered for 12 months or more after your application for this assistance scheme. For information on getting your business registered for GST, you can refer to the IRAS website to find out the pre-requisites and process for GST registration.
Your business has not applied for or obtained or will be obtaining any other financial assistance (i.e. subsidy/ grant) for purchase or use of accounting software, including SPRING Singapore’s GST Assistance Scheme which ran from 1 March 2007 to 30 June 2009.

Businesses that are interested in the scheme need to submit an application form to IDA and await for IDA’s reply before proceeding to purchase the accounting software. To apply for the subsidy, please complete the application form.

Footnotes:
* Computed on a group basis i.e. checking up to three levels for corporate shareholders holding 20% or more of the total shareholding in the company and one level down where the company holds more than 50% of the shareholding in a subsidiary company.

2. SME Infocomm Package (SIP) - One-Stop Service. Packaged Solutions. Hassle-Free Experience.

Under this initiative, you can seek useful advice on how to introduce infocomm technology into your business, purchase affordable infocomm solutions packaged to your business needs, and enjoy one-stop support from the companies who are part of this IDA-led venture.

Your purchase will be subsidised if this is the first time you are developing a web presence for your business. The subsidy is available to 5,000 SMEs on a first-come-first-served basis.

For more information on SIP and the subsidy, click here.

To get started, simply contact any of the following companies before 30 April 2010:

DP Bureau Pte Ltd
Website : www.dpbureau.sg
Tel : +65 6829 9800
Fax : +65 6829 9818
Email : bureau@dpgroup.com.sg
Walk-in Centre : 10 Anson Road #05-17
International Plaza
Singapore 079903
iCELL Network Pte Ltd
Website : www.icellwireless.net/sme
Tel : +65 6309 4520
Fax : +65 6773 4264
Email : enquiries@icellnetwork.com
Walk-in Centre : 109 North Bridge Road #03-38
Funan DigitalLife Mall
Singapore 179097
SingTel
Website : business.singtel.com/onestop/default.asp
Tel : +65 1800 763 1111
Fax : +65 6835 3838
Email : g-sipprogram@singtel.com
Walk-in Centre : Business@hello! ComCentre
31, Exeter Road,
Singapore 239732

3. Online Infocomm Directory for SMEs (i-Directory)

With i-Directory, you can search for specific infocomm solution for your business by product or service, company name or industry quickly and conveniently. Search results will indicate short profiles of infocomm solutions providers, their contact information and details of available infocomm products and services.

In addition, i-Directory encourages infocomm solution providers to join the portal. Companies that wish to get listed on the i-Directory must meet one of the following criteria:

S/No.	Category	Description of Criteria
1	Category A	A company registered in Singapore and is a business partner of the awarded SME Infocomm Package (SIP¹) initiative.
2	Category B	A company registered in Singapore and is listed on the Infocomm Singapore Portal.
3	Category C	A company registered in Singapore with two or more years of operations, offering infocomm products and services.
4	Catergory D	A company registered in Singapore with less than two years of operations, offering infocomm products and services. The application needs to be supported in writing by a company from Category A, B or C.

¹ The SIP is an IDA initiative that provides one-stop, affordable packaged infocomm solutions to SMEs through DP Bureau Pte Ltd, iCELL Network Pte Ltd and SingTel. For details on SIP, please refer to: www.ida.gov.sg/sme.

i-Directory is under the Infocomm Singapore Portal at infocommsingapore.sg/idirectory.

For more information on i-Directory, click here.

4. SME Domain Name Reservation (SDR)

From end 2007 to December 2010, all ACRA-registered businesses, like yours, can save up to S$30 for the first-year registration of your first domain name. If you are a new start-up, you can now reserve a ".com.sg" and ".sg" domain name when you register your business entity electronically with ACRA's BizFile. This initiative is brought to you by IDA, in collaboration with Accounting & Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) and Singapore Network Information Centre (SGNIC).

For more information on SDR, click here or you can check out the frequently asked questions.

For detailed instructions on how to reserve a domain name, click here.

To get started, simply register with any of the following participating registrars:

Adicio Pte Ltd
Website: www.adicio.net
Tel : +65 6441 8863
Fax : +65 6441 9902
Email : sales@adicio.net
Cybersite Pte Ltd
Website: www.cybersite.com.sg
Tel : +65 6224 3770 ext 103
Fax : +65 6227 8370
IP Mirror Pte Ltd
Website: www.ipmirror.com
Tel : +65 6222 0105
Fax : +65 6222 0210
Email : sales@ipmirror.com
NewMedia Express Pte Ltd
Website: www.newmediaexpress.com
Tel : +65 6873 0128
Fax : +65 6873 0129
Email : sales@newmediaexpress.com
Vooju Pte Ltd
Website: www.vooju.com
Tel : +65 6881 0310
Fax : +65 6881 0309
Email : sales@vooju.com
Web Commerce Communications (Singapore) Pte Ltd
Website: cms.webnic.cc/SDR/enew_jan08_SGNIC
Tel : +65 9134 6568
Fax : +65 6225 3248
Email : sales@webnic.cc
Webvisions Pte Ltd
Website: www.webvisions.com/smednr/
Tel : +65 6773 9555
Fax : +65 6773 9389
Email : sales@webvisions.com

5. SME Infocomm Resource Centre (SIRC)

At SIRC, You can seek help on commonly used software such as email, IP telephony (Skype), anti-spyware, anti-virus and how to set up wireless in your office. You can also try out new ideas or develop proof-of-concept for untested innovative solutions. The centres are located at:

Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry
Website : www.sccci.org.sg/sirc
Tel : +65 6337 8381
Email : sirc@sccci.org.sg
Address : 47 Hill Street #09-09, Singapore 179365
Singapore Polytechnic
Website : sp.edu.sg/sirc
Tel : +65 6879 0368
Email : gohkm@sp.edu.sg
Address : School of Media and Info-communications Technology
Block T19, Level 1
500 Dover Road, Singapore 139651
(Refer to map for directions)
Opening hours : Mondays-Fridays, 8:30am-6pm, Closed on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays

For more information on SIRC@SCCCI, click here.

For more information on SIRC@SP, click here.

For schedule on technology workshops at SIRC@SP, click here.

6. Technology Innovation Programme (TIP)

If you have innovative ideas on how infocomm can value add to your business or increase your revenue, you can apply for a grant under TIP, a S$5-million initiative jointly administered by IDA and SPRING Singapore to help SMEs grow using infocomm. The funds can be used to defray up to 50% of the qualifying costs of manpower, professional services, hardware and software needed for your infocomm project.

All local SMEs can apply if you have:

At least 30% local shareholding;
No more than S$15m fixed assets investment; and
No more than 200 employees (for non-manufacturing)

In addition, you need to show a commitment to technology innovation as part of your overall business strategy and the project must be carried out in Singapore.

For more information on TIP, click here or you can email to info@ida.gov.sg.

7. Local Enterprise Technical Assistance Scheme (LETAS)

You can now get a grant to engage an external consultant to assist you in implementing infocomm systems. The grant will help to defray up to 50% of external consultancy cost, subjected to a cap of $10,000.

For more information on LETAS, click here or you can email to info@ida.gov.sg.

Enquiries

Please email to info@ida.gov.sg.