Insight · Grant Funding

The Enterprise Development Grant closes to new applications on 29 September 2026.

Until then it covers up to 50 percent of eligible management consultancy costs for an SME, when the consultant holds PMC accreditation and the scope is strategy rather than execution. EDGE replaces it on 30 September. Its terms for consultancy are not published. What is known, what is not, and what a management committee can decide this month.

Gary McRae, management consultant based in Singapore, PMC accredited and CAIG certified

By Gary McRae

Management consultant · Singapore · PMC accredited · CAIG certified

Last reviewed 11 September 2026 · 9 min read

For a firm deciding whether to fund a review or a rebuild of its business development, the grant question now has a date on it. Until 29 September 2026 the scheme is EDG. Its rules are published, and applications lodged before 30 September are assessed under them. From 30 September the scheme is EDGE. Enterprise Singapore has published its headline terms and not its activity list, so nobody can tell you today what it will pay for consultancy.

Two things follow. A firm that wants the known rules puts its application in this month. And the decision about whether the function needs fixing should not wait for October either way. A grant changes the price of the work. It does not change whether the work is needed.

Why applications fail

Three patterns account for almost every missed grant.

The consultant has no PMC accreditation. It is the eligibility rule for any management consultancy claimed under EDG. A capable consultant who has not been through the SBACC process is ineligible for the scope.
The scope is execution, not strategy. EDG funds the design layer: positioning, the business development plan, channel choice, how the firm’s selling and marketing fit together. It does not fund campaign delivery, media spend or agency-style production. An engagement that is really an agency retainer is largely out of scope.
The proposal has no worker outcomes. Since April 2020 the application must name the impact on Singaporean and PR staff: wages, hiring, redesign or training. A proposal that talks about pipeline and says nothing about people is deficient at evaluation.

Fixing each is mechanical. The hard part is doing all three at proposal stage rather than retrofitting them.

The seven-step application

Built from Enterprise Singapore guidance and current practice; sources at the end. Read in order. Each step closes a specific eligibility or evaluation gap.

01
Confirm SME eligibility (the entity test)
A Singapore-registered business with at least 30 percent local equity (Singaporean or PR shareholding, traceable through ACRA Bizfile). SME size: annual turnover of not more than SGD 100 million, or not more than 200 employees (financial services thresholds are higher: SGD 350 million or 500 employees). Financially able to complete the project, assessed on past financial statements. A loss-making firm can qualify if the losses are explainable and the cash flow is sound.
02
Confirm the scope fits (the work test)
Management consultancy on how the firm wins work fits the EDG category "formulate growth strategies and processes": diagnosis, gap analysis, roadmaps, frameworks, the design of the business development function. Strategy deliverables inside implementation (positioning, channel choice, the operating cadence) are in scope. Pure execution (campaign delivery, advertising operations, design production) generally is not.
03
Verify the consultant holds PMC accreditation
For management consultancy the consultant must hold the Practising Management Consultant (PMC) accreditation administered by the Singapore Business Advisors and Consultants Council (SBACC). This is the eligibility rule that disqualifies most non-accredited consultants and freelance marketers. Non-management scopes (pure market research, design) are exempt from it.
04
Define the outcomes (the worker-impact test)
Since April 2020, EDG applications must show worker outcomes alongside the deliverable: wage increases, job creation, job redesign, or training for Singaporean and PR employees. Build it into the proposal, not the appendix. The project must serve at least one of productivity, innovation, growth or internationalisation. Provide three-year projections: revenue, staff remuneration, depreciation, net operating profit before tax.
05
Prepare the documentation pack
ACRA business profile (under six months old), audited financial statements, the vendor quotation, the consultant’s certifications (the PMC certificate where it applies), and a project proposal with scope, deliverables, milestones, KPIs and the three-year impact. The proposal is the document Enterprise Singapore actually evaluates. Treat it as the work, not the paperwork.
06
Submit through the Business Grants Portal
Applications go through the Business Grants Portal (BGP) at apply.gov.sg and are reviewed on a rolling basis. Approval is at Enterprise Singapore’s discretion, on scope, outcomes and the provider’s competency. Approval typically takes 8 to 12 weeks. There is no fast track. Applications close on 29 September 2026.
07
Run the engagement, document everything, claim on completion
EDG reimburses; it does not prepay. Pay the consultant as the engagement progresses. Document deliverables against the approved milestones. Keep evidence of the worker outcomes (training records, payslip changes, hiring documents). Complete within 12 to 18 months of approval. Submit the claim at completion and expect a further 4 to 6 weeks for Enterprise Singapore to process and disburse.

What is published about EDGE

EDGE opens on 30 September 2026 and replaces EDG, the Market Readiness Assistance grant and the Productivity Solutions Grant, all of which stop taking applications on 29 September. Enterprise Singapore’s page gives the headline terms: support of up to 70 percent for SMEs and 50 percent for non-SMEs, with the note that support levels differ by activity; a cap of SGD 100,000 a year, of which SGD 30,000 is for digital and automation activities; reimbursement on completion; not supportable under SFEC.

The vendor model is per activity. Some activities require a pre-approved vendor; some require none. The activity list and the vendor rules publish on 30 September. PMC accreditation is not mentioned on either EDGE page. Whether it matters under EDGE, and for which activities, is not known. I will not guess, and neither should anyone selling you consultancy.

This page is rewritten the day the list publishes.

What a management committee can decide now

If the firm wants the known rules, the proposal and the application go in before 29 September. Approval takes 8 to 12 weeks, so an application lodged this month is assessed under EDG rules in the fourth quarter and runs to completion under them.

If the qualifying scope is under SGD 30,000, the application overhead, typically 15 to 30 hours of internal work plus the proposal, often exceeds the rebate. Above it, the arithmetic almost always favours applying.

Either way, decide about the function on its merits. A review sized so one managing partner can approve it from partnership investment does not need a grant to be worth doing. The grant is a discount on a decision, not the decision.

PSG and MRA close on the same day

EDG was one of three schemes a firm might have used, and they were not interchangeable. PSG covered pre-approved digital solutions and software, at up to 50 percent, faster and narrower than EDG. MRA covered overseas expansion costs (market research, setup, business matching) at up to 70 percent since April 2026, capped at SGD 100,000 per market. EDG covered the strategy and capability work. All three stop taking applications on 29 September 2026. EDGE consolidates them.

Frequently asked questions

How much of a consultancy engagement can EDG cover?

Up to 50 percent of qualifying costs under the standard EDG pathway for an SME, subject to Enterprise Singapore approval. The 70 percent sustainability-linked rate that ran from 1 April 2023 expired on 31 March 2026 and was not extended; it only ever applied to sustainability-themed projects. The percentage applies to qualifying costs, not the whole fee.

What is PMC accreditation and why does it matter for EDG?

PMC stands for Practising Management Consultant, the accreditation administered by the Singapore Business Advisors and Consultants Council (SBACC) against the SS 680 standard. For EDG-funded management consultancy the consultant must hold it. It is the most common reason an engagement fails the eligibility check: the consultant is competent but not accredited.

Can a foreign consultant qualify through a Singapore-registered entity?

PMC accreditation belongs to the person, not the entity. A consultant without it cannot deliver EDG-funded management consultancy, whatever the company structure. The entity test (Singapore-registered, 30 percent local equity) applies to the firm claiming the grant, not to the consultant it engages.

How long does approval take, and what if it lands after 29 September?

Plan for 8 to 12 weeks from submission to approval, and a further 4 to 6 weeks at the end to process the claim. The window has been broadly stable through 2024 to 2026. Enterprise Singapore's published position is that applications submitted before 30 September are assessed under EDG rules and run to completion under them. Confirm that on your own case with Enterprise Singapore; do not take a consultant's word for it, including mine.

What disqualifies an application most often?

Five recurring patterns. Less than 30 percent local equity. A consultant without PMC accreditation for management consultancy scope. Scope that is execution rather than strategy (campaign delivery is out; the strategy that frames it is in). A missing or vague worker-outcome plan. Tax or CPF non-compliance, or unresolved insolvency. The first two are eligibility rules; the other three are evaluation factors.

Is it worth applying if the engagement is small?

Below SGD 30,000 of qualifying scope, the application overhead (typically 15 to 30 hours of internal work plus the proposal) often exceeds the rebate. Above SGD 30,000 the arithmetic almost always favours applying, conditional on approval.

Does EDG cover the Review and the Rebuild?

The Review, and the design half of the Rebuild, are diagnosis, design and frameworks: the category EDG calls "formulate growth strategies and processes". The implementation support in the Rebuild is partly in scope: the operating manual, the documented process and the capability handover qualify; running campaigns and managing media spend do not. Final approval rests with Enterprise Singapore.

What will EDGE pay for consultancy?

Not published. The headline terms are: support of up to 70 percent for SMEs and 50 percent for non-SMEs, with support levels differing by activity; a cap of SGD 100,000 a year; reimbursement on completion. The activity list and the vendor rules publish on 30 September 2026. Until they are read, nobody can tell you what EDGE will fund, and anyone who does is guessing.

Sources

This article is general guidance for Singapore firms, not grant advice for a specific case. Approval is at Enterprise Singapore’s discretion. The figures are time-sensitive: EDG closes to new applications on 29 September 2026 (the 70 percent sustainability rate ran from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2026 and was not extended), and EDGE’s activity list publishes on 30 September 2026. Verify current values on the Enterprise Singapore pages before submitting.

About the author

Gary McRae is a management consultant in Singapore. MCR.AE is management consultancy for how a professional services partnership wins work: business development, marketing, and who runs both, for firms of 6 to 60 fee earners. He ran digital and marketing technology inside a global law firm, as Associate Director of Marketing: the website, the CRM, the systems the firm paid for, under partner governance, with fee earners as internal clients. 12+ years in Singapore. PMC accredited (SBACC), CAIG certified (NTU).

Find him on LinkedIn.

Ask about grant scope. Decide about the function either way.

If the firm wants an application in before 29 September, the Review is the scope that fits the known rules, and I hold the accreditation those rules require. If not, the Review costs what it costs and the grant question waits for October. Enterprise Singapore decides what qualifies, not me.

Ask about grant scope See the Review