Unpaid invoice in Singapore: from reminders to a small claim

To chase an unpaid invoice in Singapore, our suggested sequence is a reminder the day after the due date, a statement and a call about a week later, and a final notice with a deadline, then a decision on whether to claim. If the claim is one the Small Claims Tribunals (SCT) can hear, the Singapore Courts’ limit is S$20,000, or S$30,000 if both sides sign a Memorandum of Consent, and it must be filed within 2 years of the event that created the claim. Entities other than individuals pay a filing fee of S$50, S$100 or 3% of the claim, depending on its size.

One caveat comes first. The Singapore Courts describe the SCT as resolving “specific types of low-value disputes between consumers and suppliers”, so a company-to-company invoice should be tested with the Courts’ own pre-filing assessment before you rely on it. The limits, fees and documents come from the Courts’ pages as read on 17 October 2026; the day counts and reminder wording are this publication’s own suggestions, not a legal requirement. This is general information, not legal advice.

What are the steps for an unpaid invoice, day by day?

Count from the due date on the invoice. This ladder is our suggestion and reaches a decision in about three weeks. The dates use a fictional S$8,400 invoice for signage work, due on Monday 2 November 2026.

1. Before the due date: check the paperwork. The invoice should match the quote or order and reach the person who approves payment. Note any complaint about the work now: a disputed invoice and a forgotten one need different messages.
2. Day 1 (Tuesday 3 November): reminder. Resend the invoice with the amount, due date and how to pay, and ask for a payment date. If a reminder by SMS or WhatsApp also pitches anything, see our Do Not Call guide.
3. Day 8 (Tuesday 10 November): statement and call. Send a statement of every open invoice, then phone, and follow the call with a short written note. The Courts list invoices, emails and messages as examples of supporting documents, so this trail is your evidence.
4. Day 15 (Tuesday 17 November): final notice. State the amount, the original due date, a payment deadline seven days away (Tuesday 24 November) and what you will do if it passes.
5. Day 22 (Tuesday 24 November): decide. If the deadline has passed with no payment and no written plan, take the SCT pre-filing assessment, buy the ACRA business profiles and gather the documents listed below. Buying the profiles now keeps them within the Courts’ one-month window.
6. Day 23 (Wednesday 25 November): file. File through the Community Justice and Tribunals System (CJTS) and pay the fee. The Courts then allow 7 days to serve the claim, here by Wednesday 2 December 2026.

None of the Courts’ pages read here lists a letter of demand among the filing requirements, so the ladder is our suggested practice and a way to build evidence, not a precondition. Whether your contract or another route expects a formal demand is a question for a lawyer. The pages read here say nothing about interest or late fees, so mention one only if your signed terms provide for it.

Day 1 reminder, to adapt: “Hello, invoice 0412 for S$8,400, due Monday 2 November 2026, shows as unpaid on our side. A copy is attached. When can we expect payment, or does anything on the invoice need correcting?”

Day 15 final notice, to adapt: “Invoice 0412 for S$8,400, due on Monday 2 November 2026, is still unpaid despite our messages of 3 and 10 November. Please pay by Tuesday 24 November 2026 or confirm in writing the date you will pay. Otherwise we intend to start a claim in the Small Claims Tribunals if they accept it, or take advice on other options.”

Both messages are fictional and not an official template.

Can a business use the Small Claims Tribunals for an unpaid invoice?

Possibly, and the sources point both ways. In favour, the Courts’ eligibility page lists contracts for the sale of goods and for services among the claims the SCT can hear, with a shopkeeper not paid after delivering goods as its example of a cause of action, and the Courts’ filing guide says an individual or a corporate entity with a claim the SCT can hear may file. The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore’s consumer protection FAQ, updated 1 October 2026, says the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act “does not extend to business-to-business transactions” and adds that a supplier with a problem with another supplier “may wish to seek your own legal advice or bring your case to the Small Claims Tribunal”. Its examples of such problems are misuse of a company’s name, failing to fulfil a contract, failing to deliver goods and providing defective goods; non-payment is not in that list.

Against that, the Courts’ overview of the SCT says it resolves “specific types of low-value disputes between consumers and suppliers”. None of these pages gives a one-line ruling on one company’s invoice to another.

So make the pre-filing assessment the first gate. The Courts offer it online in CJTS, call it “not conclusive” and “not intended to be legal advice”, and issue the ID you need to file. If you are unsure whether a claim is within the SCT’s jurisdiction, they say you may seek legal advice.

The Courts also say the SCT cannot take a claim above S$30,000, one filed more than 2 years after the event, one against a respondent outside Singapore, or an employment matter (see our employer guide to employment claims). If a party is bankrupt or a company is in liquidation, permission is needed first, from the Official Assignee, the Official Receiver or liquidator, or the High Court, depending on who is affected.

Which route fits the amount, and what does it cost?

• Up to S$20,000: the SCT, if it is a claim the SCT can hear.
• S$20,001 to S$30,000: the SCT only with a Memorandum of Consent signed by you and the respondent. The Courts also say you may abandon the excess to bring a claim within the limit.
• Above S$30,000: outside the SCT unless you abandon the excess. The Courts’ civil claims page, last updated 7 April 2022, is only an index to starting, answering and enforcing a civil claim, so take legal advice on this rung.

The filing fee for “other entities”, which the Courts say include sole proprietorships, partnerships, unincorporated associations and other corporate organisations, is S$50 for a claim up to S$5,000, S$100 for a claim above S$5,000 and up to S$10,000, and 3% of the amount claimed for a claim above S$10,000 and up to S$30,000. Individuals pay less. Our inference is that a limited company counts as an “other corporate organisation”; confirm the fee at the payment step in CJTS.

Three illustrative invoices, with our arithmetic on the Courts’ table:

• S$8,400: the invoice above, in the band above S$5,000 and up to S$10,000, so S$100.
• S$12,500: 3% × S$12,500 = S$375.
• S$24,000: above S$20,000, so it needs the respondent’s signed Memorandum of Consent. The fee is 3% × S$24,000 = S$720.

The fee steps up sharply at S$10,000: S$100 for a claim of S$10,000, about S$300 for S$10,001. For the S$24,000 invoice, the alternative to a Memorandum of Consent is abandoning S$4,000: a S$20,000 claim with a S$600 fee, giving up S$4,000 of the debt to save S$120. Our inference is that a customer who is not paying may also decline to sign a consent form. Weigh both options with advice.

If a customer owes several invoices, the Courts say no claim shall be divided into separate SCT proceedings for the sole purpose of bringing each one within the limit, and the Courts’ Guide to Small Claims, which says its information is correct as of 1 December 2022, says that where a claim consists of smaller parts such as multiple invoices, you will have to be able to explain every part in detail. A statement of account, as on Day 8, is the starting point. Filing fees are not refundable if you withdraw before an order is made. The Guide lists an order to pay costs and disbursements among the orders a Tribunal Magistrate may make, but none of the pages read here says a claimant gets the filing fee back, so do not budget on it.

What documents does a business need to file?

For a claimant representing a business entity, the Courts’ filing guide (updated 21 January 2026) lists:

• Your pre-filing assessment ID, from CJTS
• Your details, the respondent’s name and address (the Courts say you cannot submit a claim without them) and a summary of what you claim
• Supporting documents as PDFs, such as invoices, receipts, contracts, photographs, emails or messages, with an English translation of anything not in English
• A Letter of Authorisation on your entity’s letterhead, which you must present every time you go to court
• Your own ACRA business profile, and the respondent’s if it is a business entity, each obtained within 1 month of filing
• A Memorandum of Consent signed by both sides, if the claim is above S$20,000 and up to S$30,000

Lawyers are not allowed to represent parties at the SCT. The 2022 Guide lists who may appear for a business: the sole proprietor, an officer or full-time employee of a body corporate, or a partner or full-time employee of a partnership. It adds that business users log in to CJTS with Singpass.

What happens after you file?

Serve the claim and Notice of Consultation within 7 days of filing, by personal delivery or by registered post (to the ACRA registered address, for a company), then file a Declaration of Service in CJTS with proof of service before the first consultation. The 2022 Guide says 7 working days where the current page says 7 days, so use the shorter period. Either side can try eNegotiation or eMediation before court; otherwise a registrar holds a consultation and the claim may go to a hearing. The 2022 Guide says a settlement at the consultation may be recorded as a Consent Order; our inference is that a payment plan the customer offers could be recorded that way, so raise it at the consultation. The Courts say most cases conclude within 4 months of filing. An order is not payment, and enforcing one is a separate step this article does not cover.

What should you check before you file?

Copy this list for each claim:

• The invoice matches the order and the customer has not disputed it in writing
• Every reminder, statement and reply is saved with its date
• The amount claimed adds up every open invoice to this customer, and you have decided what to do if it exceeds S$20,000
• The date the claim arose is noted, and today is well inside 2 years of the earliest date that could apply
• The respondent’s name and address match its ACRA profile, it is in Singapore, and neither party is bankrupt or in liquidation
• The pre-filing assessment ID is saved
• The fee is worked out from the table and you accept it is not refunded on withdrawal
• Service is planned: who serves, how, by which date, and what proof you will keep

On the 2-year limit, the Courts’ example is a contract broken on 15 November 2020, giving a last filing day of 15 November 2022. Counting the same way, a claim arising on a 2 November 2026 due date would have a last day of 2 November 2028 (our inference); an earlier breach means an earlier date.

Before the next invoice goes out, state payment terms on the quote, issue an accurate invoice (see our GST quote and invoice examples) and record the agreed next step after each sales conversation (see a sales follow-up that helps). Today, put your oldest overdue invoice into the ladder and add a who-owes-us review to your month-end close checklist. More guides are under Sales.

Common questions