Late Payment Penalty
Payer must e-file and pay the withholding
tax to IRAS by the 15th of the
second month from the date of payment to the non-resident.
If the withholding tax payment is not received by the due date, a 5% penalty will be imposed.
Additional penalties of 1%
per month may be imposed if the tax remains unpaid 30 days after the imposition
of the 5% penalty. The 1% additional penalty will be imposed for each completed
month that the tax remains unpaid, up to a maximum of 15% of the unpaid tax.
Late Payment Penalty Notice
Payer will be informed of
the 5% penalty via a late payment penalty notice. Payment must be made before the due date
stated on the late payment penalty notice to avoid further enforcement actions.
GIRO Cancellation or Termination
If the deduction through GIRO is unsuccessful due to reasons such as
insufficient funds in the bank account, or the deduction amount is higher than
the limit set, etc., IRAS will cancel the GIRO plan.
A GIRO cancellation notice will be issued to inform
Payer that the GIRO plan has been cancelled. A late payment penalty will be imposed if the overdue tax is not paid immediately.
Further Enforcement Actions
If the tax continues to remain unpaid, other
actions to recover the taxes may include:
- Appointing agents like your bank, employer, tenant or lawyer to pay the moneys to IRAS; and/or
- Issuing a travel restriction order (TRO) to stop you (applicable to sole-proprietors and/or partners) from leaving Singapore; and /or
- Taking legal action
Payers will experience inconveniences in using their bank account should their bank be appointed as an agent to recover tax. In some instances, they may not be able to access their bank accounts until the full payment for tax has been received.
In addition to the recovery actions, IRAS may concurrently impose an additional 1% penalty on the overdue tax for each completed month that the tax remains unpaid, up to maximum of 15% of the tax overdue.
Releasing Appointed Agents
Agents will only be released from the appointment after the tax and
penalties have been paid, or when payment has been arranged with IRAS.
Note:
For banks appointed as agents, requests for release cannot be processed
on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays. Any request for release of bank
after 12pm on weekdays can only be processed on the next working day.
Travel Restrictions
If a Travel Restriction Order (TRO) is issued
(applicable to sole proprietors and/or partners), you
will not be allowed to travel out of Singapore until you pay the tax in full.
The Notification for Release of TRO will be available at https://mytax.iras.gov.sg two working days
after your payment has been received and can be retrieved to facilitate your
travel at the immigration checkpoints when you leave Singapore. We will also
mail the certificate to you within ten days.
For non-NRIC holders,
please note that it is your responsibility to ensure that you have a valid pass
to remain in Singapore. Please approach the Immigration & Checkpoints
Authority (ICA) to extend your stay in Singapore if you require more time to
resolve your tax matters with IRAS. It is an offence to overstay in Singapore
without a valid pass.
Making Payment
Please refer to Withholding Tax
for the various modes of payment available.
Appeal for Late Payment Penalty Waiver
Generally, penalties will not be waived unless there are exceptional circumstances.
IRAS may consider your appeal for a waiver of the late payment penalty if :
- This is your first
appeal or you have filed and paid on time in the last two years; and
- You have paid the
overdue tax in full; and
- You undertake to
pay your tax by the due date in future. This includes taking measures to ensure
that late payment will not happen again, such as signing up for GIRO.
All applications for waiver of late payment penalty are to be submitted online via Request for S45 Withholding Tax Penalty Waiver.
We will process your
request within 15 working days.