Statute Details
- Title: Income Tax (Oasis LNG No 1 Pte. Ltd., etc. — Section 13(4) Exemption) Notification 2025
- Act Code: ITA1947-S98-2025
- Type: Statutory Legislation (SL) / Notification
- Authorising Act: Income Tax Act 1947
- Authorising Provision: Section 13(4) of the Income Tax Act 1947
- Enacting Formula: Minister for Finance makes the Notification in exercise of powers under section 13(4)
- Citation: No. S 98 (as shown in the legislation interface)
- Deemed Commencement: Deemed to have come into operation on 14 August 2023
- Date Made: 3 February 2025
- Status: Current version as at 27 Mar 2026
- Key Provision: Section 2 (Exemption)
What Is This Legislation About?
The Income Tax (Oasis LNG No 1 Pte. Ltd., etc. — Section 13(4) Exemption) Notification 2025 is a targeted tax exemption instrument issued under Singapore’s Income Tax Act 1947. In plain terms, it provides that certain fees paid by specific Singapore companies (the “borrowers”) to specified financial institutions (the “lenders”) under specified loan facility agreements are exempt from tax.
The exemption is not general. It is confined to named entities—Oasis LNG No 1 Pte. Ltd. through Oasis LNG No. 7 Pte. Ltd.—and to named lenders, and it applies only to particular fee types and payment dates. The Notification is therefore best understood as a bespoke tax relief measure supporting a particular financing arrangement, rather than a broad policy change affecting the public at large.
Crucially, the Notification is deemed to have come into operation on 14 August 2023, meaning the exemption is intended to apply retroactively to fees paid on or after that date (and, as the text shows, to specific fees paid in August 2023 and September 2023). This retroactive effect is significant for tax computation, compliance, and potential refund or adjustment discussions.
What Are the Key Provisions?
1. Citation and commencement (Section 1)
Section 1 provides the formal title/citation of the Notification and states that it is “deemed to have come into operation on 14 August 2023.” This is a legal mechanism commonly used in tax notifications to align the exemption with the commercial timeline of the underlying transaction. For practitioners, the deemed commencement date is often the first issue to check when advising on whether tax treatment should be applied to already-paid amounts, and whether any filing positions need correction.
2. The exemption itself (Section 2(1))
Section 2(1) sets out the operative exemption. It provides that “the fees mentioned in the third column of the following table” are exempt from tax. The table is structured around four elements: (i) the borrower (first column), (ii) the lender(s) (second column), (iii) the fee type and amount (third column), and (iv) the agreement (fourth column).
In substance, the Notification exempts two categories of fees for each Oasis LNG borrower under a loan facility agreement dated 15 June 2023 for the construction of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier. The fee types and amounts are:
- Upfront fee paid on 14 August 2023 (amounts vary by borrower, e.g., $1,887,637 for Oasis LNG No 1; $1,890,535 for Oasis LNG No 2; up to $1,903,224 for Oasis LNG No. 6 and No. 7).
- Commitment fee paid on 11 September 2023 (amounts vary by borrower, e.g., $324,855 for Oasis LNG No 1; $316,054 for Oasis LNG No 2; up to $327,535 for Oasis LNG No. 6 and No. 7).
The lenders listed for Oasis LNG No 1 (and similarly structured for the other borrowers, as reflected in the table) include multiple banks and financial institutions: Bank of China Limited Qatar Financial Centre Branch; Bank of China Limited (Shanghai Branch and Tokyo Branch); Caixabank, S.A.; Development Bank of Japan Inc.; MUFG Bank, Ltd.; SBI Shinsei Bank, Limited; SMBC Bank International plc; and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Limited. The Notification’s drafting indicates that the exemption applies to fees paid by the borrower to those lenders under the specified agreement.
3. Conditions and an IRAS/MOF letter (Section 2(2))
Section 2(2) is a critical limitation. It states that the exemption in Section 2(1) is “subject to the conditions specified in the letter from the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore dated 6 January 2025” issued on behalf of the Minister for Finance and addressed to the Oasis LNG companies.
For legal practitioners, this is where the real compliance and risk management work often lies. The Notification itself does not set out the conditions in the text provided; instead, it incorporates them by reference to an external letter dated 6 January 2025. This means that the exemption is conditional and may depend on matters such as documentation, reporting, use of funds, withholding tax treatment, or other administrative requirements. In practice, counsel should obtain and review the referenced IRAS letter to confirm:
- the exact conditions imposed;
- who must comply (each borrower, or a lead entity);
- the compliance timeline and whether there are ongoing obligations;
- the consequences of non-compliance (e.g., loss of exemption, tax reassessment, penalties); and
- whether any conditions require actions by the lenders or only by the borrowers.
4. Scope is transaction-specific
Although the Notification is issued under a general statutory power (section 13(4) of the Income Tax Act 1947), the exemption is drafted to be transaction-specific. It identifies the borrowers, the lenders, the fee amounts, the payment dates, and the loan facility agreement (dated 15 June 2023) tied to the construction of specific LNG carriers with hull numbers 3395 through 3401. This specificity matters for interpretation: the exemption should not be assumed to extend to other fees, other agreements, other lenders, or other borrowers within the same corporate group unless expressly covered.
How Is This Legislation Structured?
The Notification is structured in a short, standard format:
- Section 1 (Citation and commencement): provides the name/citation and the deemed commencement date (14 August 2023).
- Section 2 (Exemption): contains the substantive exemption and its conditions.
- Section 2(1): sets out the exemption in a table format, specifying borrowers, lenders, fees, and the relevant loan facility agreement.
- Section 2(2): states that the exemption is subject to conditions in a referenced IRAS letter dated 6 January 2025.
There are also formal execution elements: the Notification is “Made on 3 February 2025” and signed by a senior official (Permanent Secretary (Development), Ministry of Finance). The presence of the AG/LEGIS reference indicates it is part of the official statutory legislation numbering and filing system.
Who Does This Legislation Apply To?
This Notification applies to the named Singapore borrowers: Oasis LNG No 1 Pte. Ltd., Oasis LNG No 2 Pte. Ltd., Oasis LNG No 3 Pte. Ltd., Oasis LNG No 4 Pte. Ltd., Oasis LNG No 5 Pte. Ltd., Oasis LNG No 6 Pte. Ltd., and Oasis LNG No. 7 Pte. Ltd. It also applies to the specific lenders listed in the table (including various branches of Bank of China and other named financial institutions).
However, the exemption is not “to the borrower” in a general sense; it is “to the fees” paid by the borrower to the lenders under the specified agreement. Accordingly, the practical applicability is limited to the particular upfront and commitment fees described, paid on the specified dates, under the loan facility agreement dated 15 June 2023 for the construction of the identified LNG carriers. Any deviation—different fee types, different payment dates, different lenders, or different financing documentation—could fall outside the exemption’s scope.
Why Is This Legislation Important?
For practitioners, the importance of this Notification lies in its direct impact on tax treatment of cross-border financing costs and the compliance posture of the borrowers. Fees such as upfront fees and commitment fees can be subject to withholding tax or other tax treatment depending on the statutory framework and the nature of the payment. By granting an exemption under section 13(4), the Minister for Finance effectively removes the tax charge for the specified amounts, thereby affecting the net cost of financing and the tax reporting obligations.
Second, the Notification’s deemed commencement date (14 August 2023) means it can affect amounts already paid and potentially already reported. This creates a need for careful review of tax filings, withholding tax computations, and any positions taken with IRAS. If the exemption was not applied at the time of payment, counsel may need to consider whether adjustments, amended filings, or refund/credit applications are required—subject to the conditions in the IRAS letter and the applicable administrative rules.
Third, the conditionality in Section 2(2) introduces a compliance dependency on the IRAS letter dated 6 January 2025. Even where the transaction appears to match the table, failure to satisfy the conditions could jeopardise the exemption. This makes the Notification a “two-layer” instrument: (i) the table-based eligibility and (ii) the letter-based conditions. In advising clients, lawyers should treat the IRAS letter as essential primary material, not an ancillary document.
Related Legislation
- Income Tax Act 1947 (Singapore) — in particular, section 13(4) (the enabling provision for this Notification)
- Income Tax Act 1947 (general framework for income tax and exemptions)
- Legislation timeline / versioning materials (to confirm the correct version as at the relevant date)
Source Documents
This article provides an overview of the Income Tax (Oasis LNG No 1 Pte. Ltd., etc. — Section 13(4) Exemption) Notification 2025 for legal research and educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult the official text for authoritative provisions.