What Does It Mean to Be Stateless in Singapore?

Many individuals who were born during the war also did not have their births registered. In Singapore, the common situations under which a person can become stateless can be classified into five broad categories as explained below. Well, sort of…the biggest difference is that SG&A and COGS are Typically listed as separate categories on an Income Statement. Where this get’s a little bit tricky is that SG&A expenses exclude your COGS (Cost of Goods Sold) expenses.

SG&A Examples

However, the goal is to capture all the costs incurred in the company’s daily operations, excluding the direct costs of producing goods or services. General and administrative expenses include most daily expenses that a business incurs in operations, whether it produces goods and generates revenue or not. These expenses can also be referred to as overhead and include rent, utilities, insurance, salaries such as accounting and human resources, technology, and supplies other than those used in manufacturing.

The difference between SG&A and COGS

In one such case, a child born in a Singapore hospital was not registered as a Singaporean at birth even though the father was a Singapore citizen. This was because the child’s parents, whose marriage had soured, did not produce their marriage certificate to register her birth. When the child had to register for her identity card at 12, she could not produce a photocopy of her Malaysian mother’s identity card because she had never met her mother. Her Singaporean father ran away that year, and she was later raised by his ex-girlfriend. As a result, she was unable to obtain Singapore citizenship at birth and was rendered stateless. During this period, there was no distinct Singapore citizen status, which essentially meant that Singapore itself was stateless.

Variable Costs: A Simple Guide

While most of these expenses are fixed costs, distribution costs are variable. It’s important to keep an eye on this cost month-to-month to assess the profitability and trends. For instance, a company may sometimes report selling expenses separate from G&A expenses if one is significantly higher than the other. It’s common to see the terms SG&A and operating expenses used to mean the same thing, but this is inaccurate since SG&A is only one type of operating expense. The SG&A to sales ratio (also sometimes called the percent-of-sales method) is what you get when you divide your total SG&A costs by your total sales revenue.

The different types of operating expenses

There income statement are no restrictions on stateless individuals who are PRs and can seek employment without a work pass, similar to other PRs. When Singapore became independent in 1965, some of them continued to remain stateless when they failed to register themselves as citizens or residents when the time came for them to do so. As with any ordinary and necessary business expense, SG&A expenses are deductible in the year that they were incurred. The examples below from Walmart (WMT -2.63%) and Visa (V -0.03%) demonstrate two different reporting strategies for SG&A expenses. However, the SG&A expense must be standardized to be compared side-by-side to industry comparables, and the average benchmark varies significantly based on the specific industry. Generally speaking, the lower a company’s SG&A expense, the better – since that implies the company is more profitable, all else being equal.

• SG&A includes almost every business expense that isn’t included in the cost of goods sold (COGS).
• By keeping track of these expenditures, you will be able to identify areas in which costs can be reduced or eliminated, ultimately leading to an increase in profitability.
• A company must incur many types of costs to run a business and many of these expenses aren’t directly tied to making specific products.
• Think of an importer that has only a warehouse and almost no other fixed expenses.

Costs that aren’t included in the production of goods must be included in the SG&A calculation. A company might choose to aggregate or segregate marketing and advertising costs, often depending on the size of the company and the level or frequency of these expenses. From films like Greta Gerwig’s coming-of-age comedy Lady Bird to Céline Sciamma’s modern queer classic Portrait of a Lady on Fire, the gamut of female-led films has only grown in recent years.

• Ask questions and participate in discussions as our trainers teach you how to read and understand your financial statements and financial position.
• Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) → This is a category of expenses incurred in the direct production and delivery of a company’s products or services.
• On occasion, it may also include depreciation expense, depending on what it’s related to.
• This card is available for all residents in Singapore (including stateless persons) with a monthly per capita family income of S$800 or less.
• Stateless children and young persons under the state’s care can also benefit from healthcare subsidies through the Medical Fee Exemption Card.

SG&A vs other expenses

For example, sales commissions directly relate to product sales, and yet may be considered part of SG&A. When an SG&A cost is considered Airbnb Accounting and Bookkeeping a direct cost, it is acceptable to shift the cost into the cost of goods sold classification on the income statement. Whether indirect or direct selling costs, general expenses like rent and utilities, or administrative costs like salaries and legal fees, SG&A costs are essential. G&A expenses are the overhead costs of a business, many of which are fixed or semi-fixed. These costs don’t relate directly to selling products or services but rather to the general ongoing operation of the business. In accounting, record SG&A expenses as debits to the appropriate expense accounts, such as selling, general, and administrative expenses.