Guides
4 September 2026
Private diploma or local university: what actually gets recognised
Singapore has no authority that "recognises" qualifications. Once you understand that sentence, the whole market looks different.
Read MoreWE ARE
Xinran International
Education, business and relocation in Singapore, handled end to end by one team. You deal with us, not with five separate vendors.
BUSINESS | EDUCATION | RELOCATING
Whatever brings you to Singapore, we manage what comes next.
Starting a business in Singapore?
For overseas founders and business owners who need more than company registration. We coordinate incorporation, corporate secretary, an online multi-currency business account, Employment Pass, payroll, GST and annual filings—so you can launch and operate through one accountable team.
Choosing a Singapore school for your child?
For parents planning a move or a new education pathway. We assess your child’s needs, compare suitable government, international and private-school options, manage applications and deadlines, and coordinate Student Pass and guardianship arrangements.
Moving to Singapore for work or with family?
For professionals, business owners and families who want the move handled in the right order. We coordinate passes, housing, banking, insurance, school arrangements and licence conversion, with one adviser accountable from planning through your first month in Singapore.
WHY CHOOSE XINRAN
We are not agents. We are responsible for your whole journey.
Many providers complete one task, refer you to the next agent and leave you managing the gaps. Xinran stays at the centre—planning, coordinating and following through from your first assessment to the final handover.
We see the whole picture
We consider your business, pass, banking, education, housing and family needs together—before one decision creates problems elsewhere.
One plan across every specialist
When licensed specialists are needed, we select and brief them. You do not repeat your story, chase updates or manage separate providers yourself.
Every detail kept moving
We check documents, coordinate submissions, manage handovers, follow up on delays and keep you informed before an issue becomes a surprise.
Accountable all the way
We do not disappear after an introduction or submission. One named adviser remains responsible until the agreed work is complete and you know what comes next.
Sharing our knowledge
Knowledge sharing is an essential part of our philosophy. Our insights and guides bring together the latest industry analysis and international business news, along with updates about the Xinran International group and our people.
Guides
Guides
4 September 2026
What year one costs a family — school fees, deposit, passes, setup, and the four costs people forget
The obvious costs are large and easy to budget. The forgotten ones are larger, and they arrive without warning.
Read More Insights
4 September 2026
Why European founders pick Singapore over Dubai — an honest comparison, including where Dubai wins
Dubai wins on money. Singapore wins on institutions. Which matters depends on two questions about your business, and most comparisons…
Read More
Guides
4 September 2026
Moving a family from Europe to Singapore: schools, passes and the calendar
Three processes, three different clocks, and only one of them waits for you. Here is the order they have to…
Read More
Insights
30 August 2026
Moving a family and a business at once: how the pieces actually fit together
Company, pass, school and home are four separate processes with four different clocks. The order you do them in decides…
Read More
Guides
30 August 2026
Moving to Singapore for your child’s education: the full planning timeline
Most families start too late. Here is the honest timeline, working backwards from the intake you are aiming for.
Read More
Guides
30 August 2026
What happens after you register a Singapore company: the first twelve months explained
Incorporation takes a day. The twelve months that follow are what actually determine whether your Singapore company runs properly.
Read MoreClient Case Study
How we work, shown through the engagements we handle: what the client needed, what we did, and what it took to get there.
2026 caseSingapore Business
Germany
A software founder in Berlin, 34, and the only employee of his own company.
What client wanted
A Singapore entity to sell into South-East Asia, with himself on the pass.
Problem
He believed a one-man company was the weakest possible sponsor for its own pass.
2026 caseSingapore Business
China
A Shanghai bakery owner with a three-year diploma and years of building and running a business.
What client wanted
To extend the bakery to Singapore and use it as the centre of a wider international trading strategy.
Problem
A three-year diploma sits below what most people assume an Employment Pass requires.
2026 caseSingapore Business
Netherlands
Two Dutch founders running a profitable online homeware business, with no venture funding.
What client wanted
To base themselves in Singapore and run the business from here.
Problem
They were planning around EntrePass, which is built for venture-backed businesses, not profitable trading.
2026 caseSingapore Business
China
Mr Zhao spent years in electronic components trading in Shenzhen, with two sons the family planned to school in Singapore.
What client wanted
To move the business in as well, not just the children's schooling.
Problem
The application had to argue the move was genuine, not only for the children's schooling.
2026 caseSingapore Business
Italy
A restaurateur from Milan with years of running kitchens and margins, and no degree.
What client wanted
To open a single outlet in Singapore and hold the pass himself as owner-director.
Problem
A degree is not required, but COMPASS awards points for one, so those points had to come from somewhere else.
2026 caseSingapore Relocation
China
Ms Zhao and her husband run a large investment company from Beijing, drawn by Singapore's operating environment, tax treatment, investment access and bilingual education.
What client wanted
Permanent residence for the family, not simply a pass.
Problem
An Employment Pass ties the household to one employer, which is the wrong instrument for a PR route.
2026 caseSingapore Business
Australia
An Australian fintech consultant who owns and invoices through his own Hong Kong company.
What client wanted
To move the business to Singapore and keep serving the same clients.
Problem
An entity that exists only to sponsor its own director is exactly what MOM scrutinises.
2026 caseSingapore Business
China
Mr Liu studied in Singapore, took an MBA at a private university here, worked for a private consultancy, and owns property here.
What client wanted
To start his own company rather than continue as an employee.
Problem
Starting a company means proving a credible plan and the capacity to create local employment.
2026 caseSingapore Education
China
Mr Huang ran his own IT company, with two children then in international kindergarten.
What client wanted
Room for the business to develop, and an international education for his children.
Problem
The business and the family requirements had to be solved as one sequence, not two.
2026 caseSingapore Business
United States
An American founder of a small SaaS company, working remotely and already spending most of the year in Asia.
What client wanted
To move himself and the company's centre of gravity to Singapore, and stop living on tourist entries.
Problem
A brand-new company with no trading history starts thin on the employer criteria.
2026 caseSingapore Business
Vietnam
A Ho Chi Minh City business owner who has never been to Singapore and knows nobody there.
What client wanted
A Singapore entity inside a fortnight, to satisfy a customer contract.
Problem
The real timeline was banking, at four to eight weeks, and usually an in-person visit.
2026 caseSingapore Business
China
Mr Guan ran a logistics import/export company in Shanghai with ten years in the trade, and came to Singapore in 2016 to develop the business here.
What client wanted
To build the import/export business out of Singapore's position, and broaden what it did.
Problem
The company was new here, so the case rested on his record and the MBA.
2026 caseSingapore Business
United Arab Emirates
A founder who set up in a Dubai free zone four years ago, with most of his customers now east of him.
What client wanted
To move the operating centre to Singapore while keeping the UAE entity for Middle East contracts.
Problem
Dubai's tax and property advantages are real, and Singapore does not match them.
2026 caseSingapore Business
Malaysia
A Johor family components business whose founder's daughter, 31, has run the Malaysian operation for six years.
What client wanted
To hold the Singapore company in her own name and be resident here to run it.
Problem
Succession inside a family business is documented differently from a first-time setup.
2026 caseSingapore Education
Indonesia
A Jakarta business-owning family with three children, aged 8, 11 and 14.
What client wanted
To move for education, arriving in June and enrolling for the new school year.
Problem
The school year starts in January, and AEIS has no rolling admission and no appeal.
2026 caseSingapore Education
India
A Chennai family with a son finishing school, about to pay a deposit at a Singapore private institution.
What client wanted
A diploma at that institution, then a transfer into NUS or NTU.
Problem
No Singapore authority recognises the diploma the family was about to pay for.
2026 caseSingapore Education
Spain
A Madrid family with a daughter born in August, who is at the top of her year in Spain.
What client wanted
To move to Singapore without disrupting her schooling.
Problem
An August birthday can land a child in an entirely different cohort.
2026 caseSingapore Relocation
France
A French couple three years in Singapore, where he runs the company he incorporated on arrival and she runs its European side.
What client wanted
Permanent residence, having been told to just apply.
Problem
PR is not a form, it is an argument about the family's depth of attachment.
2026 caseSingapore Relocation
India
A Bangalore business owner with a wife and two school-age children.
What client wanted
To move alone first and bring the family later.
Problem
The Dependant's Passes depend on a salary figure set at incorporation, not adjusted later.
2026 caseSingapore Relocation
South Korea
A Seoul couple who jointly own their trading business, with her as the majority shareholder and the one running it day to day.
What client wanted
To relocate together, with the company incorporated in Singapore.
Problem
They assumed the family would be awkward to sponsor, though the rules are neutral on which spouse does.
2026 caseSingapore Relocation
United Kingdom
A British executive, 46, appointed chief executive of a group's Asia business.
What client wanted
To take up the role sometime next year.
Problem
The threshold is assessed on fixed pay, so bonus and long-term incentives do not count.
How we work with you in 5 easy steps
Five steps, one team, one point of contact throughout. You brief us once.
Step 1
Understand your plans
Contact us to arrange a call with a Xinran consultant, so we understand the business, the family and the dates you are working to.
Step 2
Confirm scope and fees
We put the scope and the price in writing before any work starts, so you know the cost and the timeline before you commit.
Step 3
Incorporate your company
We check name availability, register the company under the right structure (Sole Prop, LP, LLP or Pte Ltd) and work with local banks to open your account.
Step 4
Coordinate your move
We prepare the owner-director pass, dependant passes and school applications as one file, so the family and the business move together.
Step 5
Provide ongoing support
We provide corporate secretary, registered office address, accounting, payroll and tax services, with renewals tracked on an annual calendar.
Who you are working with
3
Markets
Singapore, Hong Kong and mainland China
15
years of expertise
Registered & Recognised Consultancy (Reg. No. 201916046H)
1
Accountable contact
From the first call to the last document
3
Service lines
Business, education and relocation
Where our clients come from
Hong Kong
Mainland China
Australia
India
Indonesia
Malaysia
Thailand
Vietnam
United Kingdom
United States
United Arab Emirates
South Africa
Contact our experts
One call, thirty minutes, no charge. Tell us the goal and the deadline, and we will tell you what it takes.
TELL US WHAT YOU NEED
Talk to our planning specialist!
Free, no-obligation, 30-minute call with our friendly team!