Are taxes due upon import / purchase of bullion in Singapore?

Singapore Precious Metals & GST – Overview

Starting on 1 October 2012, certain investment grade gold, silver and platinum can be imported or sold GST (tax) free in Singapore. Singapore tax authorities define non taxable bullion as "Investment Precious Metals" or "IPM" whereas taxable bullion is referred to as "non-IPM".

There are no capital gains taxes in Singapore so this page focuses purely on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) - similar to VAT- which applies upon import or purchase of bullion. The completed GST exemption rules have been published as an IRAS e-Tax Guide titled GST: Guide on Exemption of Investment Precious Metals (IPM). - Sixth Edition

The tax exemptions are meant to encourage the trading and storage of physical investment grade bullion but are limited to a clearly defined subset of the bullion market.  Numismatic coins, jewellery,  gold / silver gift items or any bullion not defined as "IPM" are not tax exempted and will still be subject to GST (currently 7%).

In broad terms the bill states four basic qualifying criteria which must be fulfilled:

1. Purity of silver, gold, and platinum should be 99.9%, 99.5% and 99% respectively
2. Is capable of being traded on the international bullion market (see detailed criteria below)
3. Bears a mark or characteristic that is internationally accepted as guaranteeing its quality
4. Trades at a price based on the spot price of the metal it contains.

In addition the following detailed criteria apply:

1. Only a subset of investment coins are tax exempt: See SINGAPORE TAX FREE BULLION COINS
2. Only bars refined by current or past LBMA / LPPM accredited refiners are tax free: See SINGAPORE TAX FREE BULLION BARS
3. Furthermore IE Singapore (a Singapore government entity) can qualify additional bullion refiners to be tax exempt

As a Singapore Bullion Market Association (SBMA) member Silver Bullion Pte Ltd, along with the Singapore Mint, had been selected in the second quarter 2012 by the Ministry of Finance to provide feedback on the type of investment grade coins that will be tax exempt. We are proud to note that with our subscribers' help and submitted feedback (see July 2012 newsletter) the Ministry of Finance has re-instated the Silver & Platinum American Eagle coins as tax exempt. The gold american eagles remain non-exempted due to the minimum purity requirement.

Singapore Tax Free Bullion Coins

These investment coins are classified as Investment Precious Metals (IPM) and are GST exempt:

GOLD

1. American Buffalo
2. Australia Kangaroo Nugget
3. Australia Lunar
4. Austria Philharmonic
5. Canada Maple Leaf
6. China Panda
7. Malaysia Kijang Emas
8. Mexico Libertad
9. Singapore Lion
10. United Kingdom Britannia
11. Canada Call of the Wild 4-coin series
12. United Kingdom Lunar
13. United Kingdom The Queen's Bests 10-coin series

SILVER

1. American Eagle
2. Australia Kookaburra
3. Australia Koala
4. Australia Lunar
5. Austria Philharmonic
6. Canada Maple Leaf
7. China Panda
8. Mexico Libertad
9. United Kingdom Britannia
10. Australia Saltwater Crocodile
11. Canada Wildlife 6-coin series
12. Canada Birds of Prey 4-coin series
13. United Kingdom Lunar
14. Armenia Noah's Ark
15. Australia Kangaroo
16. United Kingdom The Queen's Beasts 10-coin series

PLATINUM

1. American Eagle
2. Australia Koala
3. Australia Platypus
4. Canada Maple Leaf
5. Austria Philharmonic

Singapore Tax Free Bullion Bars

IPM status and tax exemptions for bars is determined according to the refiner (producer) of the bar as follows:

• For gold and silver, a refiner included in the current or former Good Delivery list of the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA)
  • See List of Silver and Gold LBMA members
• For platinum, a refiner included in the current or former Good Delivery list of the London Platinum & Palladium Market (LPPM)
  • See List of LPPM members

Please note that IPM Status applies to all qualifying (see Basic Qualifying Criteria above) bars made by these refiners and is not limited to the bulky (1,000 oz t silver and 400 oz t gold) good delivery bars.

For example the popular 100 oz Johnson Matthey silver bars are tax exempt as they fulfill all basic qualifying criteria and Johnson Matthey is a refiner in the LBMA list.

Credit Suisse branded gold bars are also tax exempt as they fulfill the basic qualifying criteria and are refined by "Valcambi SA" which uses the logo "Essayeur Fondeur" - see mark on bar - and is a refiner on the LBMA list.

Beside the above list IE Singapore can add additional refiners.

• As of October 2012, there are no additional refiners qualified by IE Singapore.

Goods and Services Tax by Product (Effective October 1st, 2012)

Below we list the IPM Status by product for Local Pickup and Bonded S.T.A.R. Storage.

GOLD, PLATINUM & PALLADIUM BULLION
Item & IPM Status			Options	Taxation	Stock
		Gold 1 kg Metalor bar	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	2 0
		Gold 1 oz PAMP Suisse bar	Local Pickup	0% GST	10
		Gold 10 gram PAMP Suisse bar	Local Pickup	0% GST	12
		Gold 10 oz Credit Suisse bar Valcambi SA (the refiner of CS bars) is a refiner in the current ‘Good Delivery’ list of the LBMA	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold 100 Gram Metalor bar	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	10 0
		Gold 2.5 gram PAMP Suisse bar	Local Pickup	0% GST	20
		Gold 5 gram PAMP Suisse bar	Local Pickup	0% GST	11
		Gold 50 gram Heraeus minted bar	Local Pickup	0% GST	1
		Gold Coin Britannia 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Britannia 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	3 0
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf - Maplegram 8	Local Pickup	0% GST	14
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf (Random Year) - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 1993 - 1/2 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	6
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2010 - 1 oz Canadian Maple Leafs are included in the list of qualified gold coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2010 - 1/20 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	3
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2012 - 1 oz Canadian Maple Leafs are included in the list of qualified gold coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	2 0
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2013 - 1 oz Canadian Maple Leafs are included in the list of qualified gold coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2014 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2015 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	3 0
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	1 0
		Gold Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2017 - 1/10 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	0
		Gold Coin Chinese Panda 2014 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	2 0
		Gold Coin Chinese Panda 2015 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	11 0
		Gold Coin Chinese Panda 2017 - 15 gram	Local Pickup	0% GST	20
		Gold Coin Kangaroo 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	13 0
		Gold Coin Kangaroo 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	32 0
		Gold Coin Kangaroo 2017 - 1/4 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	70
		Gold Coin Queen's Beasts Griffin 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	2
		Gold Coin Queen's Beasts Red Dragon 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	7
		Gold Coin Vienna Philharmonics (Random Year) - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Vienna Philharmonics 1992 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Vienna Philharmonics 1995 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Vienna Philharmonics 1997 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Coin Vienna Philharmonics 2009 - 1/4 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	4
		Gold Coin Vienna Philharmonics 2014 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	10 0
		Gold Coin Vienna Philharmonics 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Gold Credit Suisse bar - 1 oz Valcambi SA (the refiner of CS bars) is a refiner in the current ‘Good Delivery’ list of the LBMA	Local Pickup	0% GST	94
		Gold Lunar Coin 2013 - Year of the Snake - 10 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	1
		Gold Lunar Coin 2017 - Year of the Rooster - 1/10 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	28
		Gold Lunar Coin 2017 - Year of the Rooster - 1/2 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	10
		Gold Lunar Coin 2017 - Year of the Rooster - 1/20 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	20
		Gold Lunar Coin 2017 - Year of the Rooster - 1/4 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	6
		Gold Nadir (Pebble Series) Bar - 1 gram	Local Pickup	0% GST	2,197
		Gold Royal Canadian Mint bar - 1 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	8
		Gold Valcambi 50 gram CombiBar [1 gram units]	Local Pickup	0% GST	1,650
		Gold Valcambi Suisse bar - 1 Ounce Valcambi SA (the refiner of CS bars) is a refiner in the current ‘Good Delivery’ list of the LBMA	Local Pickup	0% GST	6
		Platinum Bar Argor-Heraeus - 1 kg	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	1 0
		Platinum Bar Argor-Heraeus - 500 gram	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Platinum Bar Credit Suisse - 10oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	2 0
		Platinum Valcambi Suisse bar - 1 Ounce	Local Pickup	0% GST	17

SILVER BULLION
Item & IPM Status			Options	Taxation	Stock
		Argor-Heraeus Silver Bar - 15 kg	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 1
		Chinese Silver Panda 2016 - 30 gram	Local Pickup	0% GST	2,479
		Chinese Silver Panda 2017 - 30 gram	Local Pickup	0% GST	785
		Johnson Matthey Silver Bar - 100 Ounce Johnson Matthey is a refiner in the current ‘Good Delivery’ list of the LBMA	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 55
		Metalor Silver Bar - 1 kg	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	18 295
		Nadir Minted Silver Bar - 100 gram	Local Pickup	0% GST	747
		Nadir Minted Silver Bar - 50 gram	Local Pickup	0% GST	912
		Nadir Silver Bar - 1 kg	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	30 295
		Nadir Silver Bar - 10 Ounce	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	204 280
		Nadir Silver Bar - 100 Ounce	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	3 0
		Nadir Silver Bar - 15 kg	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	5 6
		Nadir Silver Bar - 250 g	Local Pickup	0% GST	18
		Nadir Silver Bar - 5 kg	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	12 57
		Perth Mint Silver Bar - 1 kg The Perth Mint is a refiner in the current ‘Good Delivery’ list of the LBMA	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	9 0
		Perth Mint Silver Bar - 10 Oz The Perth Mint is a refiner in the current ‘Good Delivery’ list of the LBMA	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	1 20
		Perth Mint Silver Bar - 100 Ounce The Perth Mint is a refiner in the current ‘Good Delivery’ list of the LBMA	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	3 0
		Republic Metals 100 Ounce Silver Bar	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	12 0
		Royal Canadian Mint Silver Bar - 10 Ounce	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	39 500
		Royal Canadian Mint Silver Bar - 100 Ounce Royal Canadian Mint is a refiner in the current ‘Good Delivery’ list of the LBMA	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	25 5
		Silver 1000 oz* LBMA Good Delivery bar LBMA good delivery bars	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 17
		Silver Coin American Eagle (Random Year) - 1 oz American Silver Eagles are classified as IPM in Singapore. (Gold eagles are not).	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 500
		Silver Coin American Eagle 2009 - 1 oz American Eagles are included in the list of qualified silver coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 500
		Silver Coin American Eagle 2010 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 1,000
		Silver Coin American Eagle 2011 - 1 oz American Eagles are included in the list of qualified silver coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	100 6,000
		Silver Coin American Eagle 2013 - 1 oz American Silver Eagles are classified as IPM in Singapore. (Gold eagles are not).	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	100 0
		Silver Coin American Eagle 2015 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 2,500
		Silver Coin American Eagle 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 5,000
		Silver Coin American Eagle 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	620 2,500
		Silver Coin Armenia Noah’s Ark 2016 - 1 kg	Local Pickup	0% GST	0
		Silver Coin Armenia Noah’s Ark 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	380 2,000
		Silver Coin Britannia 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	250 0
		Silver Coin Britannia 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	1,980 3,000
		Silver Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2012 - 1 oz Canadian Maple Leafs are included in the list of qualified silver coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	50 0
		Silver Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2013 - 1 oz Canadian Maple Leafs are included in the list of qualified silver coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	50 3,500
		Silver Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2014 - 1 oz Canadian Maple Leafs are included in the list of qualified silver coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 8,500
		Silver Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2015 - 1 oz Canadian Maple Leafs are included in the list of qualified silver coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 500
		Silver Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	375 500
		Silver Coin Canadian Maple Leaf 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	1,600 5,000
		Silver Coin Kangaroo 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 0
		Silver Coin Kangaroo 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	800 3,500
		Silver Coin Vienna Philharmonics 2012 - 1 oz Austrian Vienna Philharmonics are included in the list of qualified silver coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	260 0
		Silver Coin Vienna Philharmonics 2013 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	0 1,000
		Silver Coin Vienna Philharmonics 2015 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	860 2,500
		Silver Coin Vienna Philharmonics 2016 - 1 oz	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	800 1,000
		Silver Koala Coin 2011 - 1 kg	Local Pickup	0% GST	2
		Silver Koala Coin 2011 - 1 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	460
		Silver Koala Coin 2012 - 1 kg	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	3 0
		Silver Koala Coin 2013 - 1 kg	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	4 0
		Silver Koala Coin 2013 - 1 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	97
		Silver Koala Coin 2015 - 1 kg	Local Pickup	0% GST	62
		Silver Koala Coin 2017 - 1 kg	Local Pickup	0% GST	11
		Silver Koala Coin 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	2,303
		Silver Kookaburra Coin 2012 - 10oz Australian Kookaburras are included in the list of qualified silver coins	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	9 0
		Silver Kookaburra Coin 2015 - 1kg	Local Pickup	0% GST	32
		Silver Kookaburra Coin 2017 - 1 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	4,082
		Silver Kookaburra Coin 2017 - 10 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	59
		Silver Lunar Coin 2015 - Year of the Goat - 1 kg	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	45 0
		Silver Lunar Coin 2016 - Year of the Monkey - 1 kg	Local Pickup	0% GST	19
		Silver Lunar Coin 2017 - Year of the Rooster - 1 kg	Local Pickup	0% GST	10
		Silver Lunar Coin 2017 - Year of the Rooster - 1/2 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	22
		Silver Lunar Coin 2017 - Year of the Rooster - 10 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	206
		Silver Lunar Coin 2017 - Year of the Rooster - 2 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	131
		Silver Lunar Coin 2017 - Year of the Rooster - 5 oz	Local Pickup	0% GST	76
		Silver Nadir Wafer 10 Dirham - 29.75 gram	Local Pickup S.T.A.R. Storage	0% GST 0% GST	900 2,520

Legend:

• Local Sale= Over the counter sale in Singapore
• S.T.A.R. Bonded Storage= Option of Tax free Storage in a bonded vault
• Stock= Nr. of units avaialable for immediate purchase for Local and S.T.A.R. Storage

Find out more on:

• DUX Bullion Testing Services

• Bullion Storage Options in Singapore

Note: If you paraphrase or copy portions of the above information ensure that you include an origin link back to http://www.silverbullion.com.sg/AboutSingaporeInvestmentPreciousMetals.aspx.