Office reinstatement cost Singapore
2026 sourced per-sqft cost ranges for office, retail and F&B reinstatement in Singapore. Every figure on this page carries a source citation — click any chip to audit.
Headline cost ranges per sqft
Reinstatement cost varies most by office grade, finish-removal complexity, and night-works requirement. A CBD Grade-A tenant restoring premium joinery, glass-walled cabins and integrated AV at the end of lease pays nearly double a suburban Tier-B floor with simple drywall partitions.
Tier-B / suburban office — remove partitions, patch & paint, base-build carpet.
CBD A-grade — strip-out of premium finishes, M&E reinstated to base-build spec, ceiling and floor reinstated.
Mall retail strip-out — shop-front, M&E, flooring back to bare shell.
F&B reinstatement is the costliest — exhaust, grease traps, kitchen M&E, oil-stained flooring all replaced.
Reinstatement line-items
For a typical 5,000–10,000 sqft CBD office reinstatement, expect the cost to break down approximately as follows. Industry-standard percentages from BCA submissions and quantity-surveyor benchmarks Source: JLL Asia Fit-Out Cost Guide .
| Line-item | % of total | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Strip-out (partitions, joinery, FF&E) | 30–40% | Labour-heavy |
| M&E reinstatement | 20–30% | Specialist Builder required |
| Ceiling & flooring reinstatement | 10–15% | Carpet, tile, ceiling grid |
| Painting & making good | 8–12% | Landlord colour spec |
| Wet areas (pantry, toilet) | 5–10% | If tenant alterations to plumb |
| Disposal & waste | 5–8% | Bin-truck and tipping fees |
| Permits / submissions | 2–5% | BCA, building works permit |
| Contractor preliminaries & profit | 8–12% | Site management, supervision |
What pushes reinstatement cost up
- Premium finishes installed by the previous fit-out. Glass walls, custom carpentry, integrated AV and statement lighting all take longer to remove cleanly than drywall partitions and carpet tile.
- CBD night-works restriction. Most CBD Grade-A buildings only permit reinstatement work after 7pm and on weekends. Productivity drops, unit rates rise.
- M&E re-routing. If the previous tenant moved sprinkler heads, smoke detectors or AC ductwork, reinstating to base-build needs a Specialist Builder.
- Floor-tile lift & replacement. Raised access floors with worn tiles often need replacement, not just re-laying.
- F&B grease-trap reinstatement. The reason F&B reinstatement costs 2–3× office: years of oil-stained flooring, fully-installed exhaust hood removal, and grease-trap pit reinstatement.
- Liquidated damages if you over-run. Most leases impose two to three months of holdover rent if you miss the end-of-lease handover date. The cost of missing the date often exceeds the cost of doing the reinstatement.
Tax: IRAS section 14N does not cover reinstatement
Important distinction: IRAS section 14N Renovation & Refurbishment deduction (capped at S$300,000/cap Source: IRAS — Renovation or Refurbishment works (S$300k cap, 3 YA) ) applies to qualifying R&R works on the incoming fit-out, not to reinstatement of the outgoing lease.
Reinstatement costs are generally deductible as a revenue expense in the year incurred (assuming the lease imposes the obligation) but check the specific treatment with your tax adviser. Source: IRAS s14N Renovation & Refurbishment
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