Over $600 million in Wage Credits for more than 90,000 employers by 31 March 2020
17 Mar 2020
Over 90,000 employers in Singapore will receive over
$600 million in payouts by 31 March 2020 under the Wage Credit Scheme
(WCS). SMEs will receive the bulk of the payouts, at around 70% of the total sum disbursed.
2. Through the WCS payouts in
March 2020, the Government will co-fund 15% of qualifying wage increases given
in 2019, 2018, and 2017 to more than 700,000 Singaporean employees earning a
gross monthly wage of up to $4,000.
3. In Budget 2020, it was
announced that the gross monthly wage ceiling will be raised from $4,000 to
$5,000 for 2019 and 2020 qualifying wage increases. The Government co- funding levels
for 2019 and 2020 qualifying wage increases will also be raised from the current 15% and 10%, to 20% and 15%
respectively. Employers eligible for the Budget 2020 enhancements for 2019 wage
increases will receive a supplementary payout in the second half of 2020.
4. Employers do not need to apply
to receive the WCS payouts. Eligible employers will receive letters from the
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) by 31 March 2020 informing them of
their WCS March payout amount. In line with Singapore’s Smart Nation efforts, IRAS will fully adopt digital
payment modes for WCS payouts,
and will no longer issue cheques. As such, the payouts will be credited
directly to employers’ registered bank accounts through PayNow Corporate1 or GIRO2.
5. Appeals regarding WCS payouts
must be submitted to IRAS by 30 June 2020, and will
be considered on a case-by-case basis.
6. Please refer to the Annex for
details on the WCS. For more information, you may visit the IRAS website (www.iras.gov.sg/irasHome/wcs.aspx),
or contact IRAS directly at 1800- 352-4727 or email wcs@iras.gov.sg.
Ministry of Finance
Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore
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1 Companies can sign up for PayNow Corporate by linking their company’s
UEN (without suffix) to their bank account via internet banking. For
assistance, please approach the banks.
2 Once
registered for GIRO for Income Tax/GST, this will be the default payment mode
for IRAS’ related transactions such as tax payments.