AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE REPUBLIC OF 

SINGAPORE FOR THE EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION RELATING TO TAXES

The United States of America (the “United States”) and the Republic of Singapore (“Singapore”),

desiring to facilitate the exchange of information with respect to taxes, have agreed as follows:

ARTICLE 1

Object and Scope of this Agreement

The competent authorities of the Parties shall provide assistance to each other through 

exchange of information that is foreseeably relevant to the administration and enforcement of 

the domestic laws of the Parties concerning taxes covered by this Agreement. Such 

information shall include information that is foreseeably relevant to the determination, 

assessment and collection of such taxes, the recovery and enforcement of tax claims, or the 

investigation or prosecution of tax matters. Information shall be exchanged in accordance with 

the provisions of this Agreement and shall be treated as confidential in the manner provided 

in Article 9 (Confidentiality).

ARTICLE 2

Jurisdiction

A requested Party shall not be obligated to provide information that is neither held by its 

authorities nor in the possession or control of persons who are within its territorial jurisdiction.

With respect to information held by its authorities or in the possession or control of persons 

who are within its territorial jurisdiction, however, the requested Party shall provide information 

in accordance with this Agreement regardless of whether the person to whom the information 

relates is, or whether the information is held by, a resident or national of a Party. 

ARTICLE 3

Taxes Covered

1. This Agreement shall apply to the following taxes imposed by the Parties:

(a) in the case of the United States, all federal taxes; and

(b) in the case of Singapore:

i) Income Tax;

ii) Property Tax;
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iii) Goods and Services Tax; and 

iv) Stamp Duties.

2. This Agreement also shall apply to any identical or substantially similar taxes that are 

imposed after the date of signature of this Agreement in addition to, or in place of, the existing 

taxes. The competent authorities of the Parties shall notify each other of any significant 

changes that have been made in their taxation laws or other laws that relate to the application 

of this Agreement. 

ARTICLE 4

Definitions

1. For the purposes of this Agreement, unless otherwise defined:

a) the term “Party” means the United States or Singapore as the context requires;

b) the term “competent authority” means

i) in the case of the United States, the Secretary of the Treasury or his 

delegate, and

ii) in the case of Singapore, the Minister for Finance or his delegate;

c) the term “person” includes an individual, a company and any other body of 

persons;

d) the term “company” means any body corporate or any entity that is treated as 

a body corporate for tax purposes;

e) the term “national” of a Party means any individual possessing the nationality 

or citizenship of that Party, and any legal person, partnership or association 

deriving its status as such from the laws in force in that Party; 

f) the term “publicly traded company” means any company whose principal class 

of shares is listed on a recognized stock exchange if the purchase or sale of its 

listed shares is not implicitly or explicitly restricted to a limited group of 

investors;

g) the term “principal class of shares” means the class or classes of shares 

representing a majority of the voting power and value of the company;
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h) the term “recognized stock exchange” means any stock exchange agreed upon 

by the competent authorities of the Parties;

i) the term “public collective investment fund or scheme” means any pooled 

investment vehicle, irrespective of legal form, if the purchase, sale or 

redemption of the units, shares or other interests in the investment vehicle is 

not implicitly or explicitly restricted to a limited group of investors;

j) the term “tax” means any tax to which this Agreement applies and does not 

include customs duties;

k) the term “applicant Party” means the Party requesting information;

l) the term “requested Party” means the Party requested to provide information;

m) the term “information gathering measures” means laws and administrative or 

judicial procedures that enable a Party to obtain and provide the requested 

information; and

n) the term “information” means any fact, statement or record in any form 

whatever.

2. For purposes of determining the geographic area within which jurisdiction to compel 

production of information may be exercised:

a) the term “United States” means the territory of the United States of America, 

including American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, 

the U.S. Virgin Islands and any other U.S. possession or territory; and

b) the term “Singapore” means the Republic of Singapore and, when used in a 

geographical sense, includes its land territory, internal waters and territorial 

sea, as well as any maritime area situated beyond the territorial sea which has 

been or might in the future be designated under its national law, in accordance 

with international law, as an area within which Singapore may exercise 

sovereign rights or jurisdiction with regard to the sea, the sea-bed, the subsoil 

and the natural resources.

3. As regards the application of this Agreement at any time by a Party, any term not 

defined therein shall, unless the context otherwise requires or the competent authorities of the 

Parties agree to a common meaning pursuant to the provisions of Article 11 (Mutual 

Agreement Procedure), have the meaning that it has at that time under the law of that Party, 

any meaning under the applicable tax laws of that Party prevailing over a meaning given to 

the term under other laws of that Party.
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ARTICLE 5

Exchange of Information Upon Request

1. The competent authority of the requested Party shall provide information for the 

purposes referred to in Article 1 (Object and Scope of this Agreement) upon request by the 

competent authority of the applicant Party. Such information shall be exchanged without 

regard to whether the requested Party needs such information for its own tax purposes or 

whether the conduct being investigated would constitute a crime under the laws of the 

requested Party if such conduct occurred in the requested Party.

2. If the information in the possession of the competent authority of the requested Party

is not sufficient to enable it to comply with the request for information, the requested Party

shall use all relevant information gathering measures to provide the applicant Party with the 

information requested, notwithstanding that the requested Party may not need such 

information for its own tax purposes. Privileges under the laws and practices of the applicant 

Party shall not apply in the execution of a request by the requested Party and the resolution 

of such matters shall be solely the responsibility of the applicant Party.

3. If specifically requested by the competent authority of the applicant Party, the 

competent authority of the requested Party shall, to the extent allowable under its domestic 

laws:

a) specify the time and place for the taking of testimony or the production of books, 

papers, records and other data;

b) place the individual giving testimony or producing books, papers, records or

other data under oath;

c) permit the presence of individuals designated by the competent authority of the 

applicant Party as being involved in or affected by execution of the request, 

including an accused, counsel for the accused, individuals charged with the 

administration or enforcement of the domestic laws of the applicant Party

covered by this Agreement or a commissioner or magistrate for the purpose of 

rendering evidentiary rulings or determining issues of privilege under the laws 

of the applicant Party;

d) provide individuals permitted to be present with an opportunity to question, 

directly or through the executing authority, the individual giving testimony or 

producing books, papers, records and other data;

e) secure original and unedited books, papers, records and other data;

f) secure or produce true and correct copies of original and unedited books, 

papers, records and other data;

g) determine the authenticity of books, papers, records and other data produced, 

and provide authenticated copies of original books, papers, records and other 

data;
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h) examine the individual producing books, papers, records and other data 

regarding the purpose for which and the manner in which the item produced is 

or was maintained;

i) permit the competent authority of the applicant Party to provide written 

questions to which the individual producing books, papers, records and other 

data is to respond regarding the items produced; 

j) perform any other act not in violation of the laws or at variance with the 

administrative practice of the requested Party; and

k) certify either that procedures requested by the competent authority of the 

applicant Party were followed or that the procedures requested could not be 

followed, with an explanation of the deviation and the reason therefor.

4. Each Party shall ensure that its competent authority for the purposes specified in 

Article 1 (Object and Scope of this Agreement) of this Agreement, has the authority to obtain 

and provide upon request:

a) information held by banks, other financial institutions, and any person acting in 

an agency or fiduciary capacity including nominees and trustees; and

b) information regarding the ownership of companies, partnerships, trusts, 

foundations, “Anstalten” and other persons, including, within the constraints of 

Article 2 (Jurisdiction), ownership information on all such persons in an 

ownership chain; in the case of trusts, information on settlors, trustees and 

beneficiaries; and in the case of foundations, information on founders, 

members of the foundation council and beneficiaries. 

Notwithstanding subparagraph 4(b), this Agreement does not create an obligation on the 

Parties to obtain or provide ownership information with respect to publicly traded companies 

or public collective investment funds or schemes unless such information can be obtained 

without giving rise to disproportionate difficulties to the requested Party.

5. The competent authority of the applicant Party shall provide the following information 

to the competent authority of the requested Party when making a request for information under 

this Agreement, with the greatest degree of specificity possible:

a) the identity of the person or ascertainable group or category of persons under 

examination or investigation;

b) a statement of the information sought, including its nature and the form in which 

the applicant Party wishes to receive the information from the requested Party;

c) the period of time with respect to which the information is requested;
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d) the matter under the applicant Party’s tax law with respect to which the 

information is sought;

e) grounds for believing that the information requested is foreseeably relevant to 

tax administration or enforcement of the applicant Party with respect to the 

person or group or category of persons identified in subparagraph 5(a);

f) grounds for believing that the information requested is held in the requested 

Party or is in the possession or control of a person within the jurisdiction of the 

requested Party;

g) to the extent known, the name and address of any person believed to be in 

possession or control of the requested information;

h) a statement that the request is in conformity with the law and administrative 

practices of the applicant Party, that if the requested information was within the 

jurisdiction of the applicant Party then the competent authority of the applicant 

Party would be able to obtain the information under the laws of the applicant 

Party or in the normal course of administrative practice and that it is in 

conformity with this Agreement; and

i) a statement that the applicant Party has pursued all means available in its own 

territory to obtain the information, except those that would give rise to 

disproportionate difficulties.

6. The provisions of the preceding paragraphs shall not be construed so as to impose on 

a Party the obligation to supply information requested by the applicant Party to administer or 

enforce a provision of the tax law of the applicant Party, or any requirement connected 

therewith, which discriminates against a national of the requested Party. A provision of tax law 

or connected requirement will be considered to be discriminatory against a national of the 

requested Party if it is more burdensome with respect to a national of the requested Party than 

with respect to a national of the applicant Party in the same circumstances. For purposes of 

the preceding sentence, a national of the applicant Party who is subject to tax on worldwide 

income is not in the same circumstances as a national of the requested Party who is not 

subject to tax on worldwide income. The provisions of this paragraph shall not be construed 

so as to prevent the exchange of information with respect to the taxes imposed by the Parties

on branch profits or on the premium income of nonresident insurers or foreign insurance 

companies.
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ARTICLE 6

Automatic Exchange of Information

The competent authorities of the Parties may automatically transmit information to each other 

for the purposes referred to in Article 1 (Object and Scope of this Agreement). The competent 

authorities of the Parties shall determine the items of information to be exchanged pursuant 

to this Article and the procedures to be used to exchange such items of information.

ARTICLE 7

Spontaneous Exchange of Information

The competent authority of a Party may spontaneously transmit to the competent authority of 

the other Party information that has come to the attention of the first-mentioned competent 

authority and that the first-mentioned competent authority supposes to be foreseeably relevant 

to the accomplishment of the purposes referred to in Article 1 (Object and Scope of this 

Agreement). The competent authorities of the Parties shall determine the procedures to be 

used to exchange such information.

ARTICLE 8

Possibility of Declining a Request

1. The requested Party shall not be required to obtain or provide information that the 

applicant Party would not be able to obtain under its own laws for purposes of the 

administration or enforcement of its own tax laws. The competent authority of the requested 

Party may decline to assist where the request is not made in conformity with this Agreement.

The competent authority of the requested Party may decline to assist where the applicant 

Party has not pursued all means available in its own territory to obtain the information, except 

those that would give rise to disproportionate difficulties.

2. The provisions of this Agreement shall not impose on a Party the obligation to supply 

information which would disclose any trade, business, industrial, commercial or professional 

secret or trade process. Notwithstanding the foregoing, information of the type referred to in 

Article 5 (Exchange of Information Upon Request), paragraph 4 shall not be treated as such 

a secret or trade process merely because it meets the criteria in that paragraph.

3. The provisions of this Agreement shall not impose on a Party the obligation to obtain 

or provide information that would reveal confidential communications between a client and an 

attorney, solicitor or other admitted legal representative where such communications are:

a) produced for the purposes of seeking or providing legal advice; or

b) produced for the purposes of use in existing or contemplated legal proceedings.
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4. The requested Party may decline a request for information if the disclosure of the 

information would be contrary to public policy (ordre public).

5. A request for information shall not be refused on the ground that the tax claim giving 

rise to the request is disputed.

6. A request for information shall not be refused on the ground that the period of 

limitations in the requested Party has expired. Instead, the statute of limitations of the applicant 

Party pertaining to the taxes to which this Agreement applies shall govern a request for 

information.

ARTICLE 9

Confidentiality

Any information received by a Party under this Agreement shall be treated as 

confidential and may be disclosed only to persons or authorities (including courts and 

administrative bodies) in the jurisdiction of the Party concerned with the assessment or 

collection of, the enforcement or prosecution in respect of, or the determination of appeals in 

relation to, the taxes covered by this Agreement, or the oversight of such functions. Such 

persons or authorities shall use such information only for such purposes. They may disclose 

the information in public court proceedings or in judicial decisions. The information may not 

be disclosed to any other person, entity, authority or jurisdiction. Notwithstanding the 

foregoing:

a) where the competent authority of the Party that provided the information

provides, on a case-by-case basis, prior written consent, the information may 

be disclosed for:

i) counter-terrorism purposes, when information received by a Party

under this Agreement may be disclosed for such purposes under the 

laws of both Parties; or

ii) purposes permitted under the provisions of an international agreement 

governing legal assistance in criminal matters that is in force between 

the Parties that allows for the exchange of tax information; and

b) the competent authority of a Party may disclose information received under this 

Agreement not relating to a particular person where the competent authority of 

the Party that provided the information provides prior consent.
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ARTICLE 10

Costs

Unless the competent authorities of the Parties otherwise agree, ordinary costs incurred in 

providing assistance shall be borne by the requested Party and extraordinary costs incurred 

in providing assistance shall be borne by the applicant Party. 

ARTICLE 11

Mutual Agreement Procedure

1. Where difficulties or doubts arise between the Parties regarding the implementation or 

interpretation of this Agreement, the competent authorities of the Parties shall endeavor to 

resolve the matter by mutual agreement.

2. The competent authorities of the Parties may adopt and implement procedures to 

facilitate the implementation of this Agreement.

3. The competent authorities of the Parties may communicate with each other directly for 

purposes of reaching agreement under this Article.

ARTICLE 12

Mutual Assistance Procedure

The competent authorities of the Parties may agree to exchange technical know-how, develop 

new audit techniques, identify new areas of non-compliance and jointly study non-compliance 

areas.

ARTICLE 13

Entry Into Force

This Agreement shall enter into force one month from the date of Singapore’s written 

notification to the United States that Singapore has completed its necessary internal 

procedures for entry into force of this Agreement. The provisions of this Agreement shall have 

effect for requests made on or after the date of entry into force of this Agreement concerning 

information for taxes relating to taxable periods beginning on or after January 1 of the calendar 

year immediately following the year in which this Agreement enters into force; or where there 
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is no taxable period, for all charges to tax arising on or after January 1 of the calendar year 

immediately following the year in which this Agreement enters into force.

ARTICLE 14

Termination

1. This Agreement shall remain in force until terminated by a Party. 

2. Either Party may terminate this Agreement by giving notice of termination in writing to

the other Party. Such termination shall become effective on the first day of the month following 

the expiration of a period of six months after the date of the notice of termination.

3. If this Agreement is terminated, both Parties shall remain bound by the provisions of 

Article 9 (Confidentiality) with respect to any information obtained under this Agreement.

In witness whereof, the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto by their respective 

Governments, have signed this Agreement.

Done at _________ in duplicate, in the English language, this __ day of ___________, 20__.

FOR THE UNITED STATES 

OF AMERICA:

FOR THE REPUBLIC 

OF SINGAPORE: