The BCA builder licence and contractor registration, explained.
For a construction business the licence is not just permission to tender. It decides how many foreign workers you can hire, and since June 2025 it decides whether you can hire them at all. If you run a trade like air-conditioning, that single point can make or break the business.
By Veronica Tan, Managing Director · Updated July 2026. BCA criteria change; we confirm the current requirements for your workhead.
To carry out building works in Singapore you generally need the right licence, and to tender for public projects you need to be registered with the Building and Construction Authority under the relevant workhead. The licence also shapes your foreign-worker quota, and since 1 June 2025 a construction company must be registered in the BCA Contractors Registration System even to apply for or renew Work Permits. For the entry grade, Grade L1, the minimums are modest: around SGD 50,000 in paid-up capital and net worth, the latest management accounts, and a qualified Technical Controller. We handle the company, the licence and the Employment Pass together, because in construction they have to fit each other.
Why the licence matters: your foreign-worker quota
For many trades the licence is not only about being allowed to tender. It decides which sector your company sits in for foreign-worker limits, and that changes everything about how you can staff a project. The Ministry of Manpower caps foreign Work Permit and S Pass holders relative to your local workforce, and the cap depends on your sector.
| Services (no BCA registration) | Construction (with BCA registration) | |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign-worker limit | Work Permit and S Pass holders capped at 35% of your total workforce | Up to 5 Work Permit holders for every local employee earning the Local Qualifying Salary |
| In practice | Locals must make up about two-thirds of your headcount | Each local lets you hire up to 5 foreign workers, a 1:5 ratio (since January 2024) |
Take an air-conditioning business. Without a BCA licence it is treated as a Services company and capped at 35 percent, so you would need a large local headcount just to bring in the technicians the work depends on. Registered with the BCA, for example at Grade L1 in workhead ME01 for air-conditioning, refrigeration and ventilation works, the same business is classified under Construction, where each local employee lets you hire up to five foreign workers. For a trade that runs on foreign tradesmen, that is the difference between staffing your projects and being throttled by quota.
Since 1 June 2025 there is a further reason this is not optional: a construction company must be registered in the BCA Contractors Registration System even to apply for or renew its workers' Work Permits. No registration, no Work Permits.
Grade L1: the entry-level requirements
The BCA grades contractors by financial capacity. In the CR and ME workhead groups the ladder runs from L1 up to L6; in the CW group it starts at C3 and rises to A1. The full picture is in our guide to BCA workheads. For a new construction business, L1 is the starting point, and its minimums are achievable.
| Requirement | Grade L1 |
|---|---|
| Paid-up capital | From SGD 50,000 |
| Net worth | At least SGD 50,000, shown from the company bank statement for a Pte Ltd, or a personal account for a sole proprietor |
| Financial statements | Latest management accounts; audited accounts are not required at L1 |
| Technical personnel | A relevant diploma from BCA Academy or one of the five local polytechnics. Grade L1 in the ME group also asks for three years of relevant experience |
Higher grades require larger capital, audited accounts and a track record, so the grade you aim for should match the size of work you intend to take on. We cover how this ties to capital in how much capital a new company really needs.
The Technical Controller
Every licensed builder must appoint a Technical Controller: the qualified person under whose personal supervision the building works are carried out. What that person needs depends on the licence class. A General Builder Class 1 licence requires a bachelor's or postgraduate degree in a construction-related field with five years of experience; a diploma does not qualify. A General Builder Class 2 licence accepts a diploma on the same five years. A Specialist Builder licence requires a degree specifically in civil or structural engineering. BCA's recognised fields are architecture, civil or structural engineering, mechanical or electrical engineering, construction or project management, quantity surveying or building science, and facilities or estate management. We set all of this out, alongside the separate Approved Person requirement, in our guide to the Approved Person and the Technical Controller.
If you do not have a suitable person in-house, this is usually the first thing to solve, because without a Technical Controller the licence cannot proceed. And if you do not yet hold a qualifying diploma yourself, a relevant engineering diploma through a recognised Singapore Private Education Institution can meet the requirement, which is where our academic upgrading service connects to the licence.
General builder, specialist builder, and workheads
Licences split broadly into the General Builder licence, for general building works, and the Specialist Builder licence, for specialist work such as piling, structural steelwork or certain mechanical and electrical works. Contractor registration then places you under specific workheads, the codes that describe what you are registered to do, like ME01 for air-conditioning work. Which licence and workhead you need depends on the work you will actually carry out and its value, so the right first step is to map your intended scope to the correct licence, grade and workhead before you apply.
Questions people ask
What does a BCA licence actually do for my business? +
It lets you carry out and tender for building works, and it determines your foreign-worker quota. Registered under Construction you can hire up to five Work Permit holders per local employee, versus a 35 percent cap under the Services sector. Since 1 June 2025 a construction company also needs BCA registration even to apply for Work Permits.
What is the minimum to register at Grade L1? +
Typically paid-up capital of around SGD 50,000 and a net worth of around SGD 50,000, shown from the company bank statement for a Pte Ltd or a personal account for a sole proprietor, plus the latest management accounts and a qualified Technical Controller. Audited accounts are not required at L1.
What qualifications does the Technical Controller need? +
It depends on the licence class. General Builder Class 1 requires a bachelor's or postgraduate degree in a construction-related field with five years of experience, and a diploma is not accepted. General Builder Class 2 accepts a diploma. A Specialist Builder licence requires a degree in civil or structural engineering. BCA's recognised fields are architecture, civil or structural engineering, mechanical or electrical engineering, construction or project management, quantity surveying or building science, and facilities or estate management.
Do I need a BCA licence for an air-conditioning business? +
If you want the construction foreign-worker quota rather than the 35 percent Services cap, yes. Registered under workhead ME01 you are classified under Construction and can hire up to five foreign workers per local. Without it, hiring the technicians the trade depends on is sharply limited.
Can you handle the company and Employment Pass too? +
Yes, and in construction that matters, because the EP salary is benchmarked to a sector that often pays modestly, so the licence and the pass have to be planned together. We set up the company, plan the Employment Pass for the sector, and handle the BCA licence and registration as one piece of work.
Setting up a construction business in Singapore?
Book a consultation and we will map the company, the licence and the Employment Pass together, so the whole thing fits.