Can you run a business from your HDB flat?
Yes, if it is small and run by the people who live there. 2 schemes decide which kind, and four more checks can still apply.
Which checks apply to you?
Pick your business, who works in it and whether you own or rent. Everything below changes with your picks. Rules as read from URA, SFA and ACRA on 12 Oct 2026.
What do you want to run?
Who will work in the flat?
Do you own or rent?
Can you do it?
Desk-based administrative work fits the Home Office Scheme: accountancy, architecture, consultancy, design, insurance and financial planning, real estate agencies and technology businesses are on its list. Register with HDB through GoBusiness (S$20 fee).
No clients visiting the flat, no signs, ads or posters, and no selling of physical goods in or around the flat. Install a fire extinguisher and a battery smoke detector. Domestic workers cannot work for the business.
The answer follows the published URA, SFA and ACRA rules for the picks above. It is not legal advice, and HDB decides how a rule applies to your flat.
Who else has a say?
Passing HDB's test does not clear you everywhere. These are the checks for your picks.
HDB and URA
Home Office Scheme: register through GoBusiness (S$20 fee, non-refundable). Up to 2 non-residents (sources differ on co-owners). No client visits, no signs or ads. HDB can revoke the approval.
URA: Home-Based Business Scheme (opens in a new tab), Home Office Scheme (opens in a new tab), HDB: home business pages (opens in a new tab)
ACRA
Register if you trade under a business name. Your own full name as on your NRIC needs no registration. ACRA says you can use your home address under the Home Office Scheme once HDB or URA approves. ACRA's fee is S$100 for one year.
Fire safety (SCDF)
An 8A/34B ABC dry chemical powder fire extinguisher and a battery-operated smoke detector, as URA's page requires.
Owner or landlord
This step is for tenants. A foreigner on a Work Permit cannot own a home-based business, even as an occupant. Any co-owner or lender terms were not checked.
Is what you see around you allowed?
Some of what looks like rule-breaking is legal. Some is not. Hover or tap a row for the rule behind it.
A business that is visible and unchallenged is not a business that is permitted.
We found no official data on how often these rules are enforced or what penalties apply. HDB says it can revoke Home Office approval and then act to revert the flat to residential use. URA says a business that breaks the conditions must stop or move, and SFA's rules apply to food.
More finds
The short version
Home business rules in Singapore: an HDB flat can run a small business under 2 schemes, with no approval for hands-on work by the people who live there and S$20 registration for desk work with up to 2 outside people, and signs and ads banned under both, from URA, SFA and ACRA rules read on 12 Oct 2026.
The Home-Based Business Scheme covers small, hands-on work such as baking, private tuition for not more than three students at a time, hairdressing, sewing and freelance work. It needs no approval from URA, but only people who live in the flat may work in it: non-resident employees and third parties are barred.
The Home Office Scheme covers desk-based administrative work such as accountancy, consultancy, design and IT. You register with HDB through GoBusiness (S$20), may have up to 2 non-residents, cannot have clients visit, must have a fire extinguisher and a battery smoke detector, and can use the flat as your registered business address once approved. The sources differ on whether business co-owners may live elsewhere. Domestic workers cannot work for a home business.
Both schemes ban signs, ads and posters at the flat, and require that the flat stays a home. SFA adds rules for food: no catering, no selling to cafés, restaurants or temporary fairs. Tenants need the owner's consent. We found no official source on guests paying to eat at the flat, and no data on enforcement.
By Ben (opens in a new tab). Updated . Data: URA, SFA, ACRA, HDB and GoBusiness.
Questions people ask
Can you run a business from an HDB flat?
Yes, a small one. The Home-Based Business Scheme needs no approval for small, hands-on work run by the people who live in the flat, such as baking, tuition, hairdressing, sewing and freelance work. The Home Office Scheme covers desk-based administrative work with up to 2 outside people, and needs registration. The flat must stay a home, and neighbours must not be disturbed.
Do you need HDB approval to run a home business?
Not under the Home-Based Business Scheme: URA says residents may run small-scale activities without its approval. Under the Home Office Scheme you register with HDB through GoBusiness and pay an administrative fee of S$20 (non-refundable). Other regulators, such as SFA for food, still apply, and tenants need the owner's consent. GoBusiness adds that foreigners on Work Permits cannot own a home-based business, even as occupants or tenants.
What is the difference between the two schemes?
The Home-Based Business Scheme is for small, hands-on work done by the people who live in the flat, and bars non-resident employees and third parties. The Home Office Scheme is for administrative work only, allows up to 2 non-residents, bars client visits, bars selling physical goods in or around the flat, and bars beauty, hairdressing, massage, tuition centres and food preparation.
Can you put up a sign or poster for a home business?
No. Advertisements, signages and posters at the flat are not allowed under either scheme, and SFA repeats the ban for home food businesses. SFA does not restrict delivery apps, and online promotion is not restricted.
Can you sell cakes or buns from your HDB flat?
Yes, if it stays small. Small-scale baking is on the Home-Based Business Scheme's list and SFA does not require a licence, but there is no catering, no selling to cafés, restaurants or temporary fairs, no ready-to-eat raw seafood, and ingredients must come from legal or licensed sources.
Can customers visit your HDB flat?
It depends on the scheme. The Home Office Scheme bars all client and customer visits. URA's Home-Based Business Scheme page says nothing about customer visits. HDB says no extraneous traffic should be introduced to the site, and GoBusiness lists high human or vehicular traffic as a nuisance to avoid, so a few students at a time is different from a stream of customers. Customers collecting orders is a grey area.
Can you hire help for a home business in an HDB flat?
Under the Home-Based Business Scheme only people who live in the flat may work in the business: HDB says third parties and non-resident employees are not allowed to work in the flat. Under the Home Office Scheme, up to 2 non-residents. URA and HDB include employees, directors and business co-owners in the 2, while GoBusiness says business co-owners and contributors must be full-time residents of the flat. The sources differ, so ask HDB. Under both schemes, GoBusiness says domestic workers cannot work for the business.
Do you need to register a home business with ACRA?
Register the business if you trade under a business name. A person trading under only their full name as on their NRIC need not register. ACRA says you can use your home address under the Home Office Scheme once HDB or URA approves, and registration is S$100 for one year. We found no published answer for a home baker or tutor trading under a brand name, whose work is not desk-based.
Which businesses can you not run from an HDB flat?
HDB says massage services and animal-related businesses, such as keeping animals for sale, pet grooming and boarding, are not allowed in HDB flats, and GoBusiness lists massage, pet grooming and pet boarding as not allowed. The Home Office Scheme also bars shops and any retail (pet shops included), car trading, courier, repair, contractor, catering and restaurant businesses.
How often are home business rules enforced?
We found no official data on how often the rules are enforced or what penalties are used. HDB says it can revoke the approval for a Home Office, and if the flat is still used as a home office after that, it can take the appropriate action to revert the flat to residential use. URA says a business that breaks the conditions must stop or move to other premises, and a Home Office registration may be cancelled for a breach.
The numbers behind it
| Home-Based Business Scheme | Home Office Scheme | |
|---|---|---|
| For | Small-scale, hands-on work: baking, hairdressing, tuition, sewing, freelance work | Administrative work only: accountancy, consultancy, design, IT, real estate agencies |
| Approval | None from URA | Registration with HDB through GoBusiness; administrative fee S$20, non-refundable |
| Who can work in the flat | Only the people who live there: no non-resident employees or third parties, and no domestic workers | Up to 2 non-residents (URA and HDB: employees, directors and business co-owners; GoBusiness: co-owners must live in the flat). No domestic workers |
| Foreigners on Work Permits | Cannot own a home-based business, even as occupants or tenants (GoBusiness) | Same GoBusiness rule for a home-based business |
| Customers or clients visiting | Not stated on URA's page; HDB: no extraneous traffic; GoBusiness: high human or vehicular traffic is a nuisance to avoid | Not allowed |
| Signs, ads, posters at the flat | Not allowed | Not allowed |
| Selling goods | Small-scale food and the other listed activities | No selling of physical goods in or around the flat |
| Use as registered business address | Not covered on the scheme page | ACRA says you can use your home address under this scheme after approval |
| Safety | Comply with other authorities' rules; fire safety is named | 8A/34B ABC fire extinguisher and a battery smoke detector |
| Business | Fits? | Scheme and the catch |
|---|---|---|
| Freelance writing, photography or art | Yes | Home-Based Business Scheme, no approval |
| Consulting, accountancy, design, IT, real estate agency | Yes | Home Office Scheme; no client visits; up to 2 outside people |
| Baking or small-scale food sales | Yes, if small | Home-Based Business Scheme plus SFA rules; no catering, no selling to cafés, restaurants or fairs |
| Hairdressing, facials, manicure, pedicure | Yes, if small | Home-Based Business Scheme only; barred under the Home Office Scheme |
| Private tuition | Up to 3 students at a time | Home-Based Business Scheme; a tuition centre or commercial school is barred under the Home Office Scheme |
| Sewing services | Yes | Home-Based Business Scheme; dress-making or embroidery classes are barred under the Home Office Scheme |
| Massage | No | Excluded from the Home-Based Business Scheme's beauty services; HDB and GoBusiness list it as not allowed; barred under the Home Office Scheme |
| Pet grooming, pet boarding or keeping animals for sale | No | HDB and GoBusiness list animal-related businesses as not allowed in HDB flats; the Home Office Scheme also bars pet shops and veterinary clinics |
| Shop or any retail, car trading, courier, repair, contractor | No | On the Home Office Scheme's barred list; none is a Home-Based Business Scheme example |
| Catering or a restaurant | No | SFA bars home catering; the Home Office Scheme bars restaurants |
The boring bit
Where the information comes from
The scheme rules come from URA's Home-Based Business Scheme (opens in a new tab) and Home Office Scheme (opens in a new tab) pages. The food rules come from SFA's requirements for home-based food businesses (opens in a new tab). The registration rules come from ACRA's sole proprietorship page (opens in a new tab) and ACRA's Business Names Registration Act FAQ (opens in a new tab). The S$20 Home Office fee comes from HDB's registration page (opens in a new tab). The rules on who may work in the flat, domestic workers, business co-owners, Work Permit holders, pet grooming, extraneous traffic and revoking approval come from HDB's home business pages (opens in a new tab), GoBusiness's Home-Based Business Scheme page (opens in a new tab), Home Office Scheme page (opens in a new tab) and scheme comparison page (opens in a new tab). All were read on 12 Oct 2026. HDB and GoBusiness refuse scripts, so their pages were read by hand in a browser and are not re-checked by the prep script.
What is not claimed
- This is not legal advice. Rules change, and these are the rules as read on 12 Oct 2026. HDB, URA and the other regulators decide how a rule applies to your flat.
- HDB and GoBusiness moved their home business pages in October 2026. The links here are the new addresses. URA, HDB and GoBusiness agree on most conditions, but not on whether business co-owners may live elsewhere under the Home Office Scheme. Both versions are shown and we did not pick one.
- The scheme lists are examples, not complete. If your activity is not on them, ask HDB before you start.
- Whether guests paying to eat at the flat, or customers collecting orders at the door, are allowed is not addressed in any official source we found, and no page says whether an unpaid helper from outside counts as a third party. Those rows are marked grey or unresolved on purpose.
- We found no official data on how often the rules are enforced or what penalties are used. HDB says it can revoke Home Office approval and act to revert the flat to residential use.
- We found no published answer on which address a home baker or tutor trading under a brand name can register with ACRA, since ACRA ties the home address to Home Office Scheme approval, which is for desk work.
- Your estate's own rules, a lease, a lender's terms and co-owner agreements were not checked.
- Nothing here says anything about any person or business.
Coverage
Both URA scheme pages, SFA's requirements page and the two ACRA pages were read in full and each claim re-checked against its quote by script (44 claims). The HDB and GoBusiness pages were read by hand (19 claims).
Report an error. Corrections are logged publicly with a date.
How we did it
- Read the official pages. We copied each rule from URA, SFA, ACRA, HDB and GoBusiness, with a short verbatim quote and the date we read it.
- Sorted every rule by who enforces it. HDB and URA, SFA, ACRA, fire safety, and the owner or landlord.
- Marked what each source does and does not say. A rule the sources do not address is shown as unresolved, never guessed.
- Built the picker from the same table. Each answer comes from one business, one choice of who works there and one choice of own or rent.
Show the code
const ACT = D.acts, T = D.texts;
function verdict(a, who, home) {
let v;
if (a.fit === "no") v = {tone: "no", title: T.ban.title, lines: T.ban.lines.slice()};
else if (a.fit === "dine") v = {tone: "no", title: T.dine.title, lines: T.dine.lines.slice()};
else if (a.scheme === "hos") { const t = who === "out" ? T.hos_out : T.hos_res; v = {tone: "ok", title: t.title, lines: t.lines.slice()}; }
else if (who === "out") v = {tone: "no", title: T.hbbs_out.title, lines: T.hbbs_out.lines.slice()};
else v = {tone: a.fit === "yes" ? "ok" : "cond", title: a.fit === "yes" ? D.yes_title : a.title, lines: a.lines.slice()};
if (home === "rent" && v.tone !== "no") v.lines.push(a.scheme === "hos" ? T.rent_hos : T.rent_hbbs);
return v;
}
function authorities(a, who, home) {
const stop = a.fit === "no" || a.fit === "dine", hos = a.scheme === "hos", hbbs = a.scheme === "hbbs", blocked = stop || (hbbs && who === "out");
const hdb = a.fit === "dine" ? ["Says no", T.hdb.stop_dine] : a.fit === "no" ? ["Says no", T.hdb.stop_ban]
: hbbs && who === "out" ? ["Says no", T.hdb.hbbs_out] : hos ? ["Applies", T.hdb.hos] : ["Applies", T.hdb.hbbs];
const sfa = a.fit === "dine" ? ["Says no", T.sfa.dine] : a.food ? ["Applies", T.sfa.food] : ["Not for you", T.sfa.none];
const acra = blocked ? ["Not for you", T.acra.blocked] : hos ? ["Applies", T.acra.hos] : ["Check", T.acra.hbbs];
const fire = blocked ? ["Not for you", T.fire.blocked] : hos ? ["Applies", T.fire.hos] : ["Applies", T.fire.hbbs];
const owner = home === "rent" ? ["Applies", hos ? T.owner.rent_hos : T.owner.rent] : ["Not for you", T.owner.own];
return {hdb, sfa, acra, fire, owner};
}Source: URA, SFA, ACRA, HDB and GoBusiness, read 12 Oct 2026.