Eligibility

You must fulfil a set of eligibility conditions before you can sell your flat. To check your eligibility to sell your flat, register an Intent to Sell through the HDB Resale Portal.

Eligibility conditions

Minimum occupation period (MOP)

The MOP is the time period that you are required to physically occupy your flat before you can sell it on the open market.

The MOP is calculated from the date you collect the keys to your flat and excludes any period where you do not occupy the flat, e.g. when the whole flat is rented out or when there has been an infringement of the flat lease.

You can login to My HDBPage with your Singpass and check if you have met the MOP to sell your flat, under My Flat > Purchased Flat > Flat Details and Minimum Occupation Period (MOP).

The MOP duration depends on the purchase mode, flat type, and date of flat application:

Mode of Purchase MOP
Flat bought from HDB

5 years

Note: MOP for Prime Location Public Housing (PLH) flats is 10 years.
Flat bought under the Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) flats from property developer 5 years
Flat bought under the Selective En bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS)

For SERS sites announced before 7 Apr 2022 

At designated replacement site(s):

  • Either of the following, whichever is earlier:
    • 7 years from the date of selection of the replacement flat
    • 5 years from the date of collecting the keys

With portable rehousing benefits:

  • 5 years from the date of collecting the keys

For SERS sites announced on or after 7 Apr 2022

  • 5 years from the date of collecting the keys 
Resale flat bought from the open market
  • With CPF housing grant(s)
  • Without CPF housing grant(s)

5 years

Note: MOP for PLH flats is 10 years.
Flat bought under the Fresh Start Housing Scheme 20 years

Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) and Singapore Permanent Resident (SPR) quota

You must ensure that the sale of your flat is within the EIP quota for the block and neighbourhood, and if applicable, the SPR quota as well.

How the EIP and SPR quota work

The EIP quota applies for the sale of an HDB flat. In addition, SPR households who are not Malaysians must also meet the SPR quota.

You may be eligible to sell a flat if:

  • After the sale of your flat, the number of households of your ethnic group remains within the block and neighbourhood limits. In addition, for non-Malaysian SPR households, the number of SPR households remains within the SPR quota
  • You and the flat buyer are of the same ethnic group and household citizenship

Flat owners who face genuine difficulties selling their flats at a reasonable price when the EIP quotas have been reached may approach us for assistance via e-Feedback form. We will review each case carefully and offer assistance where possible, taking into account the individual circumstances. Read more about buyback assistance.

Check your eligibility

Upon registering an Intent to Sell in the HDB Resale Portal, you will be informed of the prevailing EIP/ SPR quota of your flat. You may monitor the monthly updates via your Intent to Sell on the HDB Resale Portal or the EIP/ SPR quota e-Service.

The EIP/ SPR quota is updated on the 1st of each month, and will apply to completed resale applications * submitted to us in the same month.

* A resale application is completed only when HDB receives both the buyers’ and sellers’ portions of the resale application and the necessary supporting documents.

About the EIP

The EIP is put in place to preserve Singapore’s multi-cultural identity and promote racial integration and harmony. It ensures that there is a balanced mix of the various ethnic communities in HDB towns. The EIP limits are set at block and neighbourhood levels based on the ethnic make-up of Singapore.

For the purchase of an HDB flat, a household with members of different ethnic groups may choose to classify their household ethnicity under the ethnicity of any buyer(s) or spouse, according to the race shown on their NRIC.

Once an ethnicity is chosen for the household, it will remain the same when the flat owners subsequently sell their flat on the open market.

About the SPR quota

The SPR quota ensures that SPR families can better integrate into the local community. Malaysians are excluded from this quota because of their close cultural and historical similarities with Singaporeans. Non-Malaysian SPR households applying to buy an HDB resale flat need to be within the SPR quota for the block (8%) and neighbourhood (5%).

Additional Requirements

In cases of bankruptcy or divorce, additional requirements may have to be met before the flat can be sold off.

Bankruptcy

Under the Housing and Development Act, as long as one of the HDB flat owners is a Singapore Citizen, the consent of the Official Assignee is not required in the event that the flat owners wish to sell the flat.

In cases where none of the flat owners are Singapore Citizen, they have to obtain the consent of the Official Assignee before they sell their flat.

Divorce

If you go through a divorce after meeting the MOP, you can sell the flat if all eligibility conditions are met.

You need to produce an Order of Court (if any), as well as one of the following documents:

  • Writ for Judicial Separation (previously known as Deed of Separation); 
  • Interim Judgment (previously known as Decree Nisi) and Certificate of Making Interim Judgment Final (previously known as Decree Nisi Absolute); or
  • Divorce Certificate (for Muslims); and

An official English translation of these documents by an interpreter of the Supreme Court or Family Justice Courts is required if the documents are not in any of the 4 official languages.

If the MOP has not been met, please write to us via our e-Feedback form with your divorce documents. We will assess your situation and contact you.