What is a make-good clause in a Singapore commercial lease?

A make-good (or reinstatement) clause requires the tenant to restore the office to its original handover condition — usually bare shell or the developer's standard condition — at the end of the lease. It typically covers removing partitions, carpets, ceilings, cabling and the tenant's M&E additions, then repainting and making good before returning the keys.

What happens if you don't reinstate the office before the lease ends?

If the tenant fails to make good by the lease expiry, the landlord can carry out the reinstatement and charge it to the tenant — often at a higher rate than a competitive quote — and may deduct it from the security deposit or reinstatement bond. Holdover rent may also apply until the unit is handed back in the required condition.

Who pays for office reinstatement in Singapore?

The tenant pays for office reinstatement when the lease contains a make-good clause, which is standard for commercial space in Singapore. The tenant restores the premises to the condition recorded at handover; the landlord remains responsible only for fair wear and tear and base-building elements they provided.

Commercial Guide

Office Reinstatement in Singapore: Cost, Make-Good Clauses & Process (2026)

By REINSTATE.by MCSG · Updated 24 June 2026 · 7 min read

Office reinstatement in Singapore typically costs S$3–30+ per square foot, depending on how much was built during the tenant's fit-out. A light open-plan office runs about S$3–8 per sq ft; a partitioned office with glass walls is roughly S$8–18 per sq ft; and a heavy fit-out with extensive M&E, raised flooring or a server room can reach S$18–35+ per sq ft.

If your company's office lease is ending, the make-good clause is the line item that catches finance teams off guard. Unlike a home, a commercial unit usually has to be stripped back to bare shell — and the cost scales with everything your fit-out contractor built on the way in. Here's what office reinstatement actually costs in Singapore in 2026, what the make-good clause requires, and how to avoid the landlord's penalty rate.

What is office reinstatement?

Office reinstatement — often called "make good" — is restoring a leased commercial unit to the condition it was handed over in, usually bare shell or the developer's standard. It means removing the tenant's partitions, carpets, ceilings, cabling and M&E additions, then patching and repainting before the keys go back to the landlord.

It is the commercial cousin of residential rental reinstatement — but the scope, cost and risk are larger, because office fit-outs build far more than a typical home tenancy ever does.

What the make-good clause requires

Almost every commercial lease in Singapore — CBD towers, business parks, industrial and retail — contains a make-good clause. The exact wording varies, but it normally requires the tenant to:

Remove all fit-out additions — partitions, glass fronts, built-in joinery, pantries and feature walls.
Strip flooring and ceilings back to the handover state (e.g. remove carpet/raised floor, reinstate the false ceiling or expose the slab, as the lease specifies).
Reset the M&E services — lighting, power, data cabling, air-conditioning, fire sprinklers and smoke detectors back to base-building layout.
Patch, make good and repaint walls, columns and floors to a clean, lettable condition.
Remove signage and dispose of all debris, leaving the unit clean for the landlord's inspection.

Always read the specific clause: some leases require "bare shell", others "original handover condition", and a few allow the next tenant to take over certain fit-out — which can remove cost if negotiated early.

Office reinstatement cost in Singapore (2026)

Commercial reinstatement is quoted per square foot, and the rate is driven almost entirely by how heavy the original fit-out was:

Fit-out type	Typical 2026 rate
Light / open-plan (minimal partitions)	S$3–8 / sq ft
Medium (glass partitions, meeting rooms, pantry)	S$8–18 / sq ft
Heavy (extensive M&E, raised floor, server room)	S$18–35+ / sq ft
Landlord-engaged works (if you miss the deadline)	Often 1.5–2× the above

As a rough guide, a 3,000 sq ft medium fit-out office often lands around S$24,000–54,000. Get a fixed quote against your actual fit-out drawings and the lease's make-good wording before you commit.

What drives office reinstatement cost up or down?

M&E complexity. Relocating sprinklers, smoke detectors and aircon back to base-building is the most specialised — and expensive — part of any make-good.
Raised flooring & cabling. Server rooms and trading-floor power/data runs take time to strip and certify.
After-hours access. Many CBD buildings only allow hacking and removal outside office hours, which adds labour cost.
Debris disposal. Building management often dictates lift usage, disposal routes and protection — all billable.
Condition of the lease wording. "Bare shell" costs more than "original handover condition" when the handover already included ceilings and flooring.

Who pays — tenant or landlord?

The tenant pays when the lease has a make-good clause, which is standard for Singapore commercial space. The tenant restores the unit to its handover condition; the landlord covers only fair wear and tear and the base-building elements they originally provided.

Many landlords also hold a reinstatement bond or fold the cost into the security deposit, so getting make-good done properly — and on time — is the difference between a clean deposit return and a deducted one.

The office reinstatement timeline

Make-good has to be finished by the lease expiry, not started then. A safe sequence:

6–8 weeks out: re-read the make-good clause and pull the original handover condition / fit-out drawings.
4–6 weeks out: get fixed quotes against that exact scope; confirm building management's after-hours and disposal rules.
2–4 weeks out: carry out the works — typically 1–3 weeks for most offices.
Final week: joint inspection with the landlord, snag, and hand back keys.

How to keep office reinstatement cost down

Check the clause early. "Original condition" can be far cheaper than "bare shell" — know which you're held to before quoting.
Negotiate fit-out handover. If the incoming tenant wants your partitions or pantry, the landlord may waive removing them.
Quote against drawings, not assumptions. Price exactly what was built — not a blanket strip-out.
Never miss the deadline. Landlord-engaged reinstatement plus holdover rent is the single most expensive way to make good.

Office lease ending soon?

Send us your unit size, lease-end date and make-good clause — we'll give you a fixed reinstatement quote against the actual condition required, and manage the whole strip-out to a clean landlord handover.

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Cost ranges reflect 2026 Singapore market rates for commercial/office reinstatement, expressed per square foot and triangulated across published contractor pricing. Make-good obligations vary by lease — always confirm scope against your specific clause and a written quote.