Beyond MRA: Funding Global IP Protection Under Singapore’s New EDGE Grant

Intellectual property (IP) protection is often a significant cost when expanding into overseas markets. Although Singapore's Market Readiness Assistance (MRA) grant has closed, grant funding remains available under the new Enterprise Growth and Expansion (EDGE) grant, which extends support to a wider range of Singapore-registered businesses and continues to cover overseas patent, trade mark and design filings.

Businesses should be aware of important changes to the funding structure, including a single annual funding cap across all EDGE-supported activities. We explain what has changed and what it means for your overseas IP strategy below.

What IP Activities Are Funded Under EDGE?

Two EDGE business areas are particularly relevant to IP owners: Internationalisation and Business Strategy.

Internationalisation: Overseas IP Registration

Under the Market Entry Setup activity, applicants may obtain funding support for the overseas registration of IP relating to their products and services.

Support levels are:

• SMEs: up to 70% of eligible costs
• Non-SMEs: up to 50% of eligible costs

Eligible expenses may include:

• International and foreign patent applications
• Overseas trade mark and design applications
• Prior art and clearance searches
• Examination fees
• Responses to office actions and objections
• Other costs directly related to overseas IP registration

Where Singapore filing costs are incurred as part of an international filing strategy (for example, as a prerequisite to a foreign or international application), those costs may also be eligible.

Applicants may be required to demonstrate ownership of the relevant IP rights or, where applicable, exclusive licensing arrangements with a Technology Transfer Office or Institution of Higher Learning.

Businesses planning protection across multiple countries should note that separate applications may be required for different jurisdictions under a single expansion strategy.

Business Strategy: Developing and Managing IP Assets

EDGE also provides support for broader IP strategy initiatives under the Business Strategic Planning activity.

Support levels are:

• SMEs: up to 50% of eligible costs
• Non-SMEs: up to 30% of eligible costs

Funded activities may include:

• IP portfolio audits
• IP landscape and freedom-to-operate assessments
• Identification of portfolio gaps and opportunities
• Development and implementation of IP strategies aligned with business growth objectives

This aspect of EDGE may be particularly valuable for companies seeking to strengthen the commercial value of their IP portfolio before entering new markets or attracting investment.

Key Differences Between MRA and EDGE

While EDGE retains support for overseas IP registration, several important changes may affect funding strategy.

One of the most significant changes is the replacement of MRA's per-market funding cap with a single company-level cap of S$100,000 per year across all EDGE-supported activities.

The Practical Impact of the Shared Funding Cap

Under MRA, businesses could potentially maximise support across multiple grants, each with its own funding cap. EDGE consolidates these schemes into a single framework, meaning all approved activities now draw from the same annual funding cap. As a result, businesses pursuing multi-jurisdiction filing programmes or other grant-supported projects will need to plan their funding more strategically.

For example, a company that receives S$60,000 in support for overseas IP registration activities would have only S$40,000 of its annual EDGE allocation remaining for other eligible initiatives during the same year. This may require businesses to prioritise filings, stagger projects across funding periods, or carefully coordinate grant applications with broader expansion plans.

Existing MRA Applications

Applications submitted before 29 September 2026 will continue to be assessed under the MRA framework, and approved projects may still proceed and be claimed under existing MRA terms.

Businesses that have previously received funding under MRA, EDG or PSG remain eligible to apply for EDGE, subject to the applicable eligibility criteria and funding conditions.

What Businesses Should Do Now

Businesses considering international IP protection should:

1. Identify the EDGE activity most closely aligned with the proposed IP project.
2. Confirm that the intended service provider satisfies the relevant EDGE requirements.
3. Submit the grant application before commencing work or making any payment or deposit.
4. Prepare the supporting documentation required for the selected activity.
5. Factor the annual S$100,000 funding cap into broader commercial and IP planning.

How We Can Help

If you are considering overseas patent, trade mark or design filings, we can help assess your filing strategy, prioritise jurisdictions based on your commercial objectives, and advise on how EDGE funding may be used to support your international expansion plans.

For further information, please contact our team at mail@marks-clerk.com.sg.

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Two EDGE business areas are particularly relevant to IP owners: Internationalisation and Business Strategy.