The main entry point
PSA Singapore Terminal is one of the world's busiest container ports, with ocean transit from Foshan running roughly 4 to 5 days and among the most reliable schedules in the region.
What's commonly imported
Higher-spec finishes and materials for Singapore's premium retail and showroom market, furniture for the city's dense restaurant, café and hotel sector, and office furniture for corporate and co-working fit-outs are the main categories.
Using Singapore as a re-export hub
Because PSA Singapore is such a major transhipment point, some buyers route furniture through Singapore for onward distribution to smaller regional ports — worth discussing with your freight forwarder if you're supplying multiple markets from one distribution point.
Why reliability matters here
Singapore's shipping schedules are consistently among the most dependable in the region, which suits time-sensitive retail launches where a fixed delivery date matters more than shaving a small amount off freight cost.
How to import furniture to Singapore: the 5 steps
For a first-time importer, the sequence is: (1) register your business and activate a Singapore Customs account under your Unique Entity Number (UEN); (2) set up Inter-Bank GIRO for duty/GST payment; (3) get your supplier's commercial invoice, packing list and bill of lading with matching HS codes; (4) have your freight forwarder or declaring agent file the IN import permit through TradeNet before arrival — approval is usually within hours; (5) clear, pay 9% GST, and arrange inland delivery from PSA. Keep all trade documents for at least five years; Singapore Customs audits retrospectively.
What documents you need
Commercial invoice (product description, quantity, value), packing list matching the invoice line for line, bill of lading (sea) or air waybill (air), the TradeNet import permit, and a Certificate of Origin if you are claiming preferential tariff treatment under a free-trade agreement. Product-specific permits apply only to controlled goods — furniture itself needs none, but solid-wood packaging must carry ISPM 15 treatment marks or it will be treated, returned or destroyed at your cost. Confirm the full document set in our Southeast Asia import duties guide and cost it with the landed-cost calculator.
How much it costs: GST, freight and a worked example
Singapore charges 9% GST on nearly all imports, calculated on CIF value (cost + insurance + freight) — not just the product price. Furniture itself attracts zero import duty. A $10,000 FOB order with $1,200 freight and insurance gives a CIF of $11,200, duty of $0, and GST of $1,008 — $12,208 landed before local delivery. If your business is GST-registered in Singapore, that GST is generally recoverable as input tax, and deferment schemes let qualifying importers pay later rather than at import. Sea freight (FCL/LCL) suits almost all furniture; compare options in LCL vs FCL for furniture and what makes up a freight quote. For longer lead-time planning see shipping times to Southeast Asia.
PSA and the Tuas transition
Almost all containerised imports into Singapore move through PSA's terminals, with the Tuas mega port progressively taking over from the older city terminals as it is built out in phases. The practical effect for buyers is that the terminal named on your booking can change over time, and inland delivery distances vary with it.
Transit from Foshan is among the shortest in the region. What makes Singapore fast is not distance alone, however — it is the clearance system, which is largely electronic and often completes within a day for a clean submission.
Almost no duty, but GST applies
Singapore levies import duty on very few categories — alcohol, tobacco, motor vehicles and petroleum — and furniture is not among them, so most furniture imports attract no customs duty at all. Goods and services tax (GST) does apply, assessed on the CIF value plus any duty.
If your business is GST-registered in Singapore, GST paid at import is generally recoverable as input tax, which changes the landed-cost arithmetic compared with every other market on this list. There are also deferment schemes that let qualifying importers pay GST later rather than at the point of import. Confirm both with your accountant rather than assuming.
Why clearance is usually the easy part
Singapore's customs environment is the most efficient of our six markets: declarations are electronic, most shipments clear without physical inspection, and general goods need no import licence. That reliability is why several of our buyers use Singapore as a consolidation and redistribution hub for the wider region.
The flip side is that Singapore is an expensive place to fix a mistake. Demurrage, storage and re-export costs are all high, so the paperwork still has to be right — it simply fails less often than elsewhere.
Controls that do still apply
Singapore's openness is not unlimited. Restricted and controlled goods can require permits, and solid-wood packaging must still carry ISPM 15 treatment marks. The same rule applies here as everywhere else in the region: untreated wood packaging will be treated, returned or destroyed at the importer's cost, and the delay is yours.
Where first shipments usually slip
Delays here are rarely the port's fault. The usual causes are a consignee name that does not match the customs account, an under-declared CIF value that triggers a query, and inland transport booked without allowing for the terminal's actual release time. Because clearance is fast, a one-day error is proportionally more visible in your schedule.