Budget 2026: JTC to develop Woodlands Gateway district as ‘northern gateway’ for Johor-Singapore SEZ
The first phase of the development to be completed around 2030
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[SINGAPORE] State industrial developer JTC Corp will develop a 35-hectare (ha) mixed-use district in Woodlands to serve as a “northern gateway” for the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (SEZ).
The Woodlands Gateway district, announced by Minister of State for Trade and Industry Gan Siow Huang during her ministry’s Committee of Supply debate on Monday (Mar 2), will include a transport hub connected to the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link station and Woodlands North MRT station.
“Given its proximity to the RTS Link, Woodlands Gateway will cater to firms siting manufacturing in Johor with regional headquarter functions in Singapore,” she said.
In a statement, JTC said that the district will offer flexible industrial and office spaces targeted for such companies. Commercial and lifestyle amenities will also be included to serve employees and residents in surrounding industrial and residential areas.
The first phase of the development is expected to be completed around 2030, with subsequent phases rolled out progressively based on business demand.
Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Victor Lye asked whether Singapore would consider establishing a similar industrial district in Johor. Gan replied that the government would be happy to facilitate such a development if there were commercial parties willing to invest.
Asked whether the government was looking at arrangements for Singaporeans to live in the SEZ and work seamlessly in both countries, Gan said that Singapore and Malaysia are exploring a digital nomad pass to enable such cross-border flows.
She noted that Malaysia already has an existing digital nomad pass allowing foreigners to reside there without being locally employed. “So there is something that we can leverage, and we are looking at enhancing it further.”
Industrial leases
Separately, Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling announced that the industrial lease assignment process, which covers the transfer of industrial land sites in the secondary market, will be streamlined for small sites. This is part of a broader push to simplify internal processes across agencies.
Currently, all lease assignment applications must undergo JTC's comprehensive assessment of the buyer's business plan and economic contributions, regardless of the land area or remaining tenure of the site.
Under the changes, the assessment process will be streamlined for small sites up to 1.5 ha with a remaining lease tenure of no more than 15 years. The proposed use must support manufacturing activities, and sufficient infrastructure capacity must also be available at the site, said Low.
JTC will exempt eligible cases from the full assessment, carrying out only the requisite checks to ensure assignees comply with prevailing policy and land use guidelines.
The revised workflow could reduce processing time for eligible applications to within one month from the date of full application, Low said.
Based on historical data from JTC, around 25 per cent of lease assignment applicants are expected to benefit from the initiative each year.
The streamlined process will not apply to sites involving dormitory or self-storage uses, or those requiring substantial redevelopment.
JTC will release more details in the first half of 2026.
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