A standard niche at a government columbarium in Singapore costs $500 and holds about two urns. A family niche costs $900 and holds about four urns. Both are one-time fees set by the National Environment Agency (NEA). If you want to choose where the niche is, rather than take the one NEA allocates, you pay $250 more. The fee covers storing the ashes only, not the urn or the plaque.
NEA sells niches at two columbaria, Choa Chu Kang and Mandai. All figures below come from NEA’s own pages.
Standard or family niche: the decision table
| Standard niche | Family niche | |
|---|---|---|
| NEA fee | $500, one-time | $900, one-time |
| Holds about | 2 urns | 4 urns |
| Choosing the location | $250 extra | $250 extra |
| Covers | Storage of the ashes only | Storage of the ashes only |
| Not covered | Urn, plaque, installation | Urn, plaque, installation |
| Where | Choa Chu Kang or Mandai Columbarium | Choa Chu Kang or Mandai Columbarium |
| Best for | One person, or a couple whose urns are small | Parents and grandparents together, or larger urns |
Source for the fees and capacity: NEA’s burial, cremation and ash management page (updated September 2026). Source for which columbaria sell niches: NEA’s NEA-managed columbaria page (updated August 2026).
What "about two urns" really means
NEA gives the capacity as an approximate number of urns, not as inside measurements. It does not publish the height, width and depth of each niche on the pages above. NEA’s niche rules also say there is no fixed limit on the number of urns in a niche, as long as there is space.
So the real capacity depends on the urns you use. Two slim urns may fit in a standard niche with room to spare. Two tall or wide urns may not. Before you buy an urn, ask the columbarium office for the inside size of the niche, and measure the urn with its lid. Our guide on choosing an urn that fits a niche sets out what to measure.
What the fee does not include
NEA’s niche terms say the fee is for storing the ashes in the niche. It does not include the urn, the plaque, or any installation work. You arrange and pay for those separately, often through a funeral director or a plaque maker.
There is also no refund. If you later move the urn out of an NEA niche, NEA’s terms say no refund is given for the niche fee. Keep this in mind if the family may want a private niche one day.
Who can buy an NEA niche
NEA’s niche application lists who is eligible: Singapore citizens, permanent residents, and foreigners whose immediate next-of-kin are citizens or permanent residents. Immediate next-of-kin means parents, a spouse or children. NEA’s page on deaths overseas adds that foreigners cremated in Singapore are not, as a rule, entitled to buy a niche in a government columbarium.
How a niche is booked
- No advance booking. NEA says "no advance booking of niches is allowed". You can book a niche only after a death, not for yourself ahead of time.
- Allocated in order. NEA assigns the next free niche. Pay the $250 fee if the family wants to choose the spot.
- Online, for recent deaths. NEA’s online niche application is for people who have recently died. For remains from an exhumation, or ashes coming from another columbarium, go to the Choa Chu Kang or Mandai complex in person.
- Booking hours. NEA’s counters take niche bookings on weekdays from 8.30am to 4.30pm, and on Saturdays until 12.30pm. There is no booking on Sundays.
NEA sets out these booking rules on its page for burial, cremation and ash storage (updated September 2026).
If the family is not sure it wants a niche at all
Some families weigh a niche against scattering. NEA runs two gardens for scattering ashes on land: the Garden of Peace at Choa Chu Kang and the Garden of Serenity at Mandai, which opened on 15 August 2025. NEA’s fee for inland scattering is $320. Only fine ashes may be scattered there, and the gardens are open from 9am to 5.30pm daily, except on maintenance days.
| NEA niche | NEA inland scattering | |
|---|---|---|
| NEA fee | $500 standard, $900 family | $320 |
| A place to visit the urn | Yes | No, the ashes join the garden soil |
| Can be moved later | Yes, with NEA approval | No |
Scattering cannot be undone. A niche keeps every option open, including a move to a private columbarium later. Some faiths also rule scattering out. The Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore, for example, asks that ashes be kept whole in a columbarium or another sacred place.
Sources: NEA’s burial, cremation and ash management page (updated September 2026) and NEA’s news release on the Garden of Serenity (published July 2025).
A free niche after an exhumation
If the ashes come from a grave that NEA exhumes under its exhumation programme, the family does not pay for the niche. NEA says it offers a free allocated standard niche at either government columbarium for each claimed grave. In its current Phase 9 notice, NEA says it also covers a standard urn and a plaque with the name and date of death.
Source: NEA’s NEA-managed columbaria page (updated August 2026) and the Phase 9 exhumation notice.
When a private niche is the better fit
The government niche is the lowest-cost choice. It also comes with limits: you cannot book ahead, the location is allocated unless you pay extra, and only NEA’s standard layout is on offer. Families who want to plan ahead for themselves, keep a larger family together, or choose a columbarium with regular prayers often look at private niches instead.
Prices and sizes at private columbaria are set by each operator, and no authority publishes them. Ask each one for the inside size, what the price includes, and whether a second urn can be added later. You can see a private layout on the columbarium niches page.
If the ashes are already in an NEA niche and the family wants to move them, NEA must approve the removal first. Our guide on moving an urn from a government columbarium to a private one explains the steps. For help with cremation, niches and memorial rites, see funeral and memorial services in Singapore.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is a niche at an NEA columbarium?
A standard niche is $500 and a family niche is $900, both one-time fees. Choosing a specific location costs $250 more.
Can I book an NEA niche in advance for myself?
No. NEA says no advance booking of niches is allowed. A niche can be booked only after a death.
Can a foreigner get an NEA niche?
Only a foreigner whose immediate next-of-kin, meaning parents, a spouse or children, is a citizen or permanent resident. Other foreigners cremated in Singapore usually use a private columbarium.
