Announcement:
The Small Business Recovery Grant (SBRG) has ended and there will be no further disbursement of SBRG.
IRAS will also cease our SBRG helpline and email operations from 16 Jan 2023.
The Small Business Recovery Grant (SBRG) provides one-off cash support to small businesses in sectors that were most affected by COVID-19 Safe Management Measures last year.
Eligibility
To be eligible:
- Firm must be a ‘live’ business entity that is physically present in Singapore and registered1 no later than 31 December 2021;
- Firm must have an annual operating revenue that is less than S$100 million filed with IRAS in the Year of Assessment 2021 by 31 December 2021 or employ fewer than 200 employees as of 31 December 2021; and
- Firm must be in one of the sectors listed in Table 1.
Details of Payout
Eligible firms will receive S$1,000 for each local employee2 with mandatory CPF contributions in the period from 1 November 2021 to 31 December 20213, up to a cap of S$10,000 per firm.
Sole proprietorships and partnerships that are run by at least one local business owner4 but do not hire any local employees will receive a flat payout of S$1,000, if the local business owner is earning a net trade income of no more than S$100,000 filed with IRAS.
Businesses with outstanding repayments from other Government Schemes, such as the Rental Support Scheme (RSS) and Jobs Support Scheme (JSS), might have these offset against the SBRG or other Government Scheme payouts, if applicable.
SBRG payouts will be made to eligible businesses in June and November 2022.
1 Only Sole Proprietorships, Partnerships, Limited Liability Partnerships, and Companies that have a ‘live’ business status with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) as at the point of payout are eligible. Operators and stallholders in markets, hawker centres, coffeeshops, food courts, and canteens are eligible if they have valid Singapore Food Agency (SFA) licences as of 31 December 2021 and also continue to hold an active licence at the point of payout. Societies registered under Section 4 or 4A of the Societies Act in the following sectors are also eligible: Performing Arts and Arts Education; Museums, Art Galleries and Historical Sites; and Sports.
2 Employees who are Singapore Citizens or Permanent Residents. This includes employees in a company who are also shareholders and directors of the company (shareholder-directors) who are receiving CPF contributions in respect of
salaries paid under a contract of service with annual assessable income less than or equal to S$100,000. Other types of business owners (i.e. sole proprietors and partners in a partnership) are not considered employees.
3 Mandatory CPF contributions must be made by the stipulated contribution deadline.
4 Registered business owner who is a Singapore Citizen or Permanent Resident.
Table 1: Sectors eligible for Small Business Recovery Grant
For registered entities, sectors that qualify for the Small Business Recovery Grant are the same sectors that were eligible for Jobs Support Scheme payouts in November 2021 – December 2021. SSIC definitions listed are based on the classification structure of SSIC 2020.
| Sector
| Qualifying Criteria |
| Food and Beverage | Entities must have valid Singapore Food Agency (SFA) licenses and be classified under SSICs 56 or 68104. |
| Hawker Centres, Markets, Coffeeshops, Food Courts, and Canteens | For SFA licensed operators and stallholders in markets, hawker centres, coffeeshops, food courts, and canteens that are registered as individuals.
|
| Retail | A qualifying retail firm must:
|
| Performing Arts and Arts Education | Entities must:
|
| Sports | Gyms, fitness studios, and other sports facilities must:
|
| Cinema Operators | Entities must:
|
| Museums, Art Galleries, and Historical Sites | Entities must:
|
| Indoor Playgrounds and other Family Entertainment Centres | Entities must:
|
| Tourism, Hospitality, Conventions, and Exhibitions | Qualifying licensed hotels must be a licensed hotel classified under SSIC 551. Qualifying licensed travel agents must have more than two-thirds of their revenue from their travel agency business, based on the Annual Business Profile Returns submitted to the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) in 2018.
Qualifying gated tourist attractions must:
Cruise line or cruise terminal operators are eligible. Meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions venue operators (MICE) must be purpose-built MICE venue operators. MICE and tourism event organisers must:
Regional ferry operators must:
|
Appeal Submission
The last date to submit an appeal was 31 Aug 2022.
Abuse of SBRG
The Government takes a serious view on any attempt to abuse the scheme. Offenders may have their SBRG payout denied and can be charged under Section 420 of the Penal Code, where they may face up to 10 years of imprisonment and a fine. To detect possible abuses, the Government has instituted a robust anti-gaming framework leveraging data from multiple sources to identify risks. When ascertaining whether an arrangement is abusive, the Government will consider all relevant facts and circumstances and conduct in-depth verifications where necessary.
IRAS will only release SBRG payout after we are satisfied with the outcome of the review.
FAQs for Small Business Recovery Grant
1. How is the payout for the Small Business Recovery Grant computed?
Eligible firms will receive S$1,000 for each local employee5 with mandatory CPF contributions in the period of 1 November 2021 – 31 December 20216, up to a cap of S$10,000 per firm.
Sole proprietorships and partnerships that are run by at least one local business owner7 but do not hire any local employees will receive a flat payout of S$1,000, if the local business owner is earning a net trade income of no more than S$100,000 filed with IRAS in the Year of Assessment 2021 by 31 December 2021.
2. Why was November-December 2021 chosen as the basis period for CPF contributions?
As the objective of the Small Business Recovery Grant is to support small businesses in sectors that were most affected by COVID-19 Safe Management Measures, the eligibility period is aligned to the last tranche of payouts for the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) for November 2021 – December 2021.
3. Why do sole proprietorships and partnerships that are run by at least one local business owner but do not hire any local employees receive a flat payout of S$1,000?
The Government recognises that there are some sole proprietorships and partnerships run only by the business owners. We are therefore providing a flat payout of S$1,000 for sole proprietorships and partnerships that are run by at least one local business owner but do not hire any local employees, as long as the local business owner is earning a net trade income of no more than S$100,000 filed with IRAS.
Partnerships with multiple local business owners would only qualify for the flat payout of S$1,000. This is because sole proprietors and partners in a partnership are not considered employees.
4. Do I get taxed on the Small Business Recovery Grant?
The Small Business Recovery Grant will be exempt from income tax in the hands of employers.
5. I appealed successfully for JSS for the period 1 Nov – 31 Dec 2021. Do I need to appeal for SBRG too?
Companies that have received notification from IRAS before Jul 2022 that their JSS appeal is successful in respect of wage support for Nov – Dec 2021 are automatically eligible for evaluation for the Nov 2022 SBRG payout. There is no need to submit an appeal for SBRG. Please wait for IRAS to notify you of your eligibility.
You may submit an enquiry on to IRAS if you did not receive a notification from IRAS by 30 Jun 2022.
6. When will I receive the results of my appeal application and disbursement?
Appellants are expected to receive their provisional appeal results within 10 business days, based on information submitted. Final disbursement will be subject to further screening and audit checks. Appellants are expected to receive their final confirmation and disbursement in November 2022.
7. If my appeal was not successful, can I submit another appeal?
Appellants may submit appeals only if they are able to provide new information to positively support their appeal. Re-submission of similar information will not result in any change in SBRG status.
8. Does my successful appeal under SBRG mean that I am eligible for the JSS?
The SBRG and JSS are different schemes that differ in terms of criteria, intent, and target recipients. Appellants who successfully appealed for SBRG may not have qualified for JSS.
As such, a successful appeal under SBRG would not automatically result in the appellant being reconsidered for JSS. Additionally, the JSS scheme has since closed its appeal window since 30 Apr 2022.
9. How will I receive my SBRG payout?
Payouts will be credited via the following means (in order of priority):
- The SBRG payout will be credited to your GIRO bank account used for Income Tax/GST.
- For those without GIRO accounts, the SBRG payout will be credited to their bank account registered with PayNow (for sole-proprietors/ individuals) / PayNow Corporate*.
5 Employees who are Singapore Citizens or Permanent Residents. This includes employees in a company who are also shareholders and directors of the company (shareholder-directors) who are receiving CPF contributions in respect of salaries paid under a contract of service with annual assessable income less than or equal to S$100,000. Other types of business owners (i.e. sole proprietors and partners in a partnership) are not considered employees.
6 Mandatory CPF contributions must be made by the stipulated contribution deadline.
7 Registered business owner who is a Singapore Citizen or Permanent Resident.