While the majority of taxpayers pay their taxes on time responsibly, each year a minority fails to do so. Those who fail to comply with their filing and payment obligations will be penalised.
On this page:
What are the Payment Requirements and Penalties?
Taxpayers are given one month from the date of the Notice of Assessment (NOA) to pay the tax. When no payment is received, a 5% penalty and subsequently a 1% additional penalty may be imposed on the outstanding tax.
A taxpayer whose GIRO instalment plan is cancelled will also have a 5% penalty imposed immediately on the outstanding tax. This is because the payment was due earlier, specifically, within one month from the date of NOA. The instalment plan may be cancelled due to insufficient funds in the bank account, or deduction amount is higher than the bank limit set by taxpayer, etc. In such instances, IRAS will send a letter to inform the taxpayer that the GIRO plan has been cancelled. The taxpayer will also receive a Demand Note meaning, he/she has to pay all outstanding taxes and penalties immediately.
Why are there penalties?
Penalties are imposed to discourage late payment.
What should I do if I have difficulty paying the tax or penalty?
Please call (65) 6356 7012 before the payment due date for us to review your financial situation and discuss the best option for you to pay your tax. You may need to substantiate your claims with documentation such as bank statements and payslips.
Why am I penalised for not paying when I have objected to the tax earlier?
Even if you object to the tax assessed, you still have to pay the tax as shown on the Notice of Assessment (NOA) by the payment due date.
In such instances, we would encourage you to pay by monthly GIRO instalments. If your objection is approved, the GIRO instalment amount would automatically be adjusted downwards. A new GIRO instalment plan would then be sent to you.
Please call (65) 6356 7012 to inform us if you have signed up to pay your tax via GIRO only after receiving a Demand Note, so that we can withhold further enforcement actions.
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If you have failed to pay or paid late
If you do not pay your taxes on time, you may face the following enforcement actions:
Demand Notes
When the 5% penalty has been imposed, a Demand Note will be issued, showing the unpaid tax and penalty. Payment has to be made within one month.
Example:
Date of the Notice of Assessment is 27 Jun 2012 and the tax payable is $3,000.
The 5% penalty of $150 (i.e. 5% x $3,000) was imposed as the tax was not paid by 27 Jul 2012.
| Date of Notice of Assessment |
Notice of Assessment Due Date |
Tax Payable |
5% Penalty |
27 Jun 2012
|
27 Jul 2012
|
$3,000
|
$150
|
What should I do when I receive a Demand Note?
You should pay the tax and 5% penalty within one month from the date of the Demand Note. Otherwise, further enforcement actions may be taken.
Other Enforcement Actions
We may, without prior notice, recover the outstanding tax by:
- Appointing your bank, employer, tenant or lawyer as agent to pay the money to us;
- Stopping you from leaving Singapore; and
- Taking legal action.
1% additional penalty
The 1% additional penalty may be imposed 90 days from the date of the Demand Note if the tax is still not paid. The 1% penalty is imposed for each month that the tax remains unpaid. The total additional penalty will not exceed 12%.
Example:
Taxpayer has an outstanding tax of $3,000. As this was not settled, a Demand Note was issued on 31 May 2012. The 1% additional penalty of $30 (i.e. 1% x $3,000) was imposed on 30 Aug 2012 as the tax was still outstanding.
| Date of Demand Note |
Tax Payable |
5% Penalty |
1% Penalty |
Date Payment Received |
Total Amount Paid |
31 May 2012
|
$3,000
|
$150
|
$30
|
3 Sep 2012
|
$3,180
|
This penalty may be imposed up to a maximum of 12 months that the tax remains unpaid. Therefore, the maximum additional penalty that may be imposed will be $360 (i.e. $30 x 12 months).
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What should I do if I received a Directive stating that I have been stopped from leaving Singapore?
This travel restriction will be cancelled once we receive the full payment of your unpaid tax. Please note that we are unable to cancel the Directive on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays. You may pay at the nearest SingPost Office or by Internet banking to IRAS bank account. Kindly produce the following document to the Immigration & Checkpoint Authority (ICA) officer to allow you to travel:
- Receipt or
- A copy of the acknowledgement confirming your payment by Internet banking.
You may wish to know that ICA officer may contact IRAS to verify details of your case while you are at the checkpoint.
What you should do when faced with Enforcement Actions
What you should do if:
My GIRO instalment plan was cancelled and penalty has been imposed. What should I do?
You have to pay the tax and penalty in full by the due date of the Demand Note or further enforcement actions may be taken.
If you wish to continue paying by GIRO instalments, you would have to call (65) 6356 7012 to request.
We will consider the following in reviewing your request:
Can I appeal to have my penalty waived?
Generally, penalties will not be waived.
However, IRAS may be prepared to consider a partial or full waiver in the following situations:
Please note that the following reasons are not acceptable:
Too busy with work or business, so forgot about paying tax;
Frequently travelling overseas, thus unable to check notices sent by IRAS; or
Notices and bills are always missing and not received.
We wish to reiterate that it is the responsibility of every taxpayer to comply with their tax obligations, and to pay their taxes on time.
If you wish to appeal, please call (65) 6356 7012.
Subsequently, to confirm that the penalty has been waived, you may log in to myTaxPortal under “View Accounts Summary” to check.
What can I do to get my bank appointment released?
Your bank can be released as agent only after the outstanding tax and penalty are paid. Therefore, this can be either:
After the bank pays the full amount to IRAS. The appointment of agent would be automatically released; or
After you have arranged to pay the full amount to IRAS. If you do so, please call (65) 6356 7012 to inform us so that the appointment can be released as soon as possible.
Please note that banks do not process requests for release on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays. Any request for release that comes in after 2pm on weekdays (Mon-Fri) can only be processed the next working day.
How can I check my tax balance?
You may log in to myTaxPortal under “View Accounts Summary” to check your current balance.
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