Market Readiness Assistance Grant

Get support for business development, promotion and set-up costs when you expand into a new overseas market

The enhanced MRA grant cap of up to S$100,000 is extended until 31 March 2025. All successful applications will be subjected to prevailing grant conditions.

Due to high volume of applications, you may encounter a longer processing time than usual. To check on the status of your application, please visit the Business Grant Portal.

Incomplete applications will be rejected, and applicants may re-apply with all the complete set of required information.

Apply now

About this programme

The Market Readiness Assistance (MRA) grant helps companies expand into new markets overseas by defraying the costs of overseas market promotion, business development and set-up.

Up to 50% of eligible costs for local SMEs
For supported activities, capped at S$100,000 per company per new market, which include:
- Overseas market promotion (capped at S$20,000)
- Overseas business development (capped at S$50,000)
- Overseas market set-up (capped at S$30,000)
Each application is limited to one activity in a single overseas market

Note:

There are no pre-approved vendors for this grant (except those on EnterpriseSG’s list of FTA and Trade Compliance consultants).
The previously-enhanced grant support levels were extended for a time-limited period given the exceptional disruptions brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, to encourage the transformation of the economy and to help businesses emerge stronger from the pandemic.
All MRA claims are subject to audit, by an auditor from EnterpriseSG’s Pre-Qualified Panel. The cost of audit starts from $230, dependent on the audit’s scope. Audit costs are supported by EnterpriseSG, as per the Letter of Offer.
Prior to the submission of claims via the Business Grant Portal, applicants should ensure all necessary documents (such as the Letter of Offer and all addendum letters) are submitted to their selected auditor.

Eligibility

Business entity registered and operating in Singapore
Company has at least 30% local equity held directly or indirectly by Singaporean(s) and/or Singapore PR(s), determined by the ultimate individual ownership
New to target overseas market
The company’s annual sales in the target market must not have exceeded S$100,000 in any of the preceding three years
Company has a Group Annual Sales Turnover not exceeding S$100 million OR a Group employment size not exceeding 200 employees

Note: Employers eligible for the SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit can qualify for additional subsidies under the scheme.

How to apply

Identify your target overseas country

Sales in that market must not have exceeded S$100,000 in any of the preceding three years.

Identify the activity you are applying for

Click here for full list of eligible activities.

Overseas Market Promotion
This covers activities that help companies create brand visibility in the target country and raise awareness among potential clients, such as:

Overseas physical trade fairs
Includes space rental and booth design and construction, capped at 36 square metres

Virtual trade fairs
Includes virtual exhibition hall and booth access, marketing collateral creation and business meeting/matching sessions
Virual trade fairs checklist

Overseas marketing and PR activities
Includes in-store promotions, road shows, pop-up stores and ads, as part of holistic marketing/PR campaign.
Overseas Business Development
This covers activities that help companies secure new business in the target country, such as:

Business matching
To identify potential partners and/or B2B customers such as licensees/franchises, agents and distributors, joint venture partners and cross-border logistics partners

Overseas marketing presence
Includes marketing and business development conducted by an employee based in the target market

In-market business development
Includes training in-market business development personnel, reaching out to new business leads, implementing market entry activities, and reviewing market strategy
Overseas Market Set-up
This covers activities that help companies establish themselves in a new market, such as:

Market entry support
Covers advisory, legal and documentation expenses relating to intellectual property application, filing and registration for sales/representative offices or equity entity, and import and export licences

FTA and Trade Compliance consultancy
Covers consultancy, advisory and legal expenses relating to customs compliance, export controls and sanctions, and product HS classification

Prepare your documents

Please refer to the MRA Application Checklist for the documents and information that you will need.

For overseas marketing promotion (S$20,000 cap per new market)
Overseas marketing and PR activities:

Event write-up accompanied by supporting materials such as publicity materials and photos or screenshots of the campaign or activities. The write-up should include the number of event or campaign attendees and the profile of the target audience.

Overall roadmap/communications plan of activities that have been completed

Overseas trade fairs not supported under LEAD International Fairs & Missions (LEAD):

Physical fairs

Event write-up accompanied by supporting materials, such as exhibitor listing, photos of booth setup, publicity materials which reflect the company’s name

Virtual fairs

Screenshots of exhibitor listing, publicity materials, virtual booths, virtual business meetings/matching sessions, post-event analytics report, product samples for virtual fairs (where available and/or applicable)

Soft copies of certificates, permits, licences obtained
For overseas business development (S$50,000 cap per new market)
Business matching

Detailed profile report of potential customers/partners for the company in the selected market and business matching outcomes

List of potential partners and their profiles for selection

Documentation of the scheduled business meetings with selected partners, including pictures of meetings and the name cards of potential partners

Outcome and assessment of the suitability of the selected partner(s)

Overseas marketing presence

Set-up of overseas marketing presence

Documentation as proof that the marketing activities have been conducted in-market

Documentation of deploying employee overseas*

In-market business development

Updates on local in-market business development personnel’s progress, and documentation and outcomes of business meetings

Report on the market, including observations for future strategy and setting up in the market
For overseas marketing set-up (S$30,000 cap per new market)
Market entry

Relevant filing documents submitted to authorities

Copies of certificates, permits, licenses obtained

Copies of franchise/joint venture agreements

Report on assessment of financial and recommendation

In-depth FTA and trade compliancy consultancy^

Assessment/Analysis report

Soft copies of customised manual, guidelines and standard operating procedures

Note:
Where applicable, EnterpriseSG may seek clarifications on the choice of vendor and/or alternative quotation source.
^You may only engage companies from this list of approved FTA and trade compliance consultants for in-depth FTA consultancy services.

Apply on the Business Grants Portal (BGP)

Sign in to your Corppass account to transact on the BGP portal. Sign up if you do not have a Corppass account yet and refer to this guide for help.

Third party companies are not allowed to apply or manage the grant on behalf of applicant companies.

Note: Each complete application usually takes 8-12 weeks to process. We may contact you via the BGP for clarifications.

After you apply

Receive your Letter of Offer

If your grant is awarded, your company will receive a Letter of Offer with the following details:

Conditions of support
Amount of grant awarded
Project qualifying period

You will need to accept the Letter of Offer within the specified timeline.

Submit your claims

Once you have completed your project and achieved your project deliverables, engage an auditor under EnterpriseSG’s Pre-Qualified Panel. After the completion of audit, submit a claim on the BGP by the claim submission deadline specified in your Letter of Offer.

How to submit claims
Prepare the documents required for your claims submissions, including audit documents

Submit GIRO form if no GIRO details have been submitted to Enterprise Singapore previously

Log on to BGP and select ‘File a New Claim’
Step-by-step guide

An EnterpriseSG officer may contact you after your submission for further information/documantations if required

*For all claims, an audit grant fee, capped at S$500 or 50% of the audit fee will be given to companies to engage an EnterpriseSG-appointed auditor to verify the expenses.

Receive your disbursement

You will be notified via email when your grant has been approved. The approved claim amount will be disbursed within 6-8 weeks via GIRO to your designated bank account.

Ready to apply?

If you are eligible for the Market Readiness Assistance (MRA) Grant, submit your application on the Business Grants Portal now.

Apply now