How do I estimate my own exposure?
Multiply your lettable area by your monthly rent per square foot, convert to a daily figure, and apply the multiplier in your lease (two under the statute). Add any rent you are paying for new premises you cannot yet use, staff and IT costs, and possible deposit deductions. The overstay cost calculator on this site does the arithmetic using sourced rent benchmarks.
From the RRD Field Guide, checked against the sources cited in The True Cost of a Late Handback: Holding Over, Double Rent and Mesne Profits in Singapore. General information, not advice for your project.
The fuller picture
If a tenant stays in possession after its Singapore lease ends, section 28(4) of the Civil Law Act 1909 lets the landlord charge double rent or double value for the holding-over period, and many leases add their own terms. With CBD Grade A rents around S$12 to S$13 psf a month in Q3 2026, a 5,000 sq ft office can cost over S$4,000 a day in double rent alone.
More questions on this topic
- Is double rent automatic if I hand back my Singapore office late?
- Does the tenant have to be deliberately overstaying for double rent to apply?
- Is double rent calculated on the old rent or the current market rent?
- What are mesne profits?
- If I have moved out but reinstatement is unfinished, am I holding over?
- Can the landlord keep my security deposit if I hand back late?
- Is it better to negotiate an extension than to overstay?