You are eligible for personal reliefs and rebates if you are a Singapore Tax Resident and if you fulfilled the qualifying conditions of the reliefs and rebates.

Answer a few simple questions to find out what personal reliefs you are eligible for.

Note: Only a tax resident (including non-Singapore Citizens who are in Singapore for more than 183 days in a year) can claim for tax relief.

Please check if you have met the qualifying conditions of the reliefs before making a claim for them. To find out more, click on the different reliefs below. A personal income tax relief cap of $80,000 applies to the total amount of all tax reliefs claimed for each Year of Assessment.

Citizenship

Gender

Maritial Status

Employment Status

Children

You may be able to claim for the following reliefs:

Other reliefs which an individual may claim if eligible:

Personal Income Tax Relief Cap

If the total amount of reliefs claimed exceeds the relief cap, the tax reliefs will be capped at $80,000.

Example 1: Total amount of tax reliefs claimed is less than $80,000

Mr and Mrs Ang have 2 children who are 6 and 8 years old in 2021. Mrs Ang has an earned income of $160,000 for that year.

Mr Ang claims the full amount of Qualifying Child Relief (QCR) of $8,000 (i.e. $4,000 x 2) on their two children, while Mrs Ang claims Working Mother's Child Relief (WMCR) and Foreign Domestic Worker Levy (FDWL) Relief.

Mrs Ang is a Singapore tax resident for the Year of Assessment (YA) 2022 and her chargeable income computation for YA 2022 is as follows:

Employment Income of Mrs Ang$160,000
Less: Personal Reliefs 
- Earned Income Relief$1,000
- CPF Relief$20,400
- NSman Wife Relief$750
- WMCR on 1st child$24,000 (15% x $160,000)
- WMCR on 2nd child$32,000 (20% x $160,000)
- FDWL Relief$1,440
Total Personal Reliefs$79,590
Chargeable Income of Mrs Ang$80,410 ($160,000 - $79,590)

The relief cap of $80,000 does not apply to Mrs Ang as the total reliefs claimed by her are less than $80,000.

Example 2: Total amount of tax reliefs claimed is more than $80,000

Mr and Mrs Chua have 3 children who were 8, 10 and 12 years old in 2016. Mr Chua claims the full amount of QCR of $12,000 (i.e. $4,000 x 3) on their three children.

Mrs Chua had an earned income of $125,000 for 2016. She claims WMCR and FDWL Relief. For 2017, she had the same income and claimed the same reliefs.

Mrs Chua is a Singapore tax resident. The comparison of her tax computations for YA 2017 and YA 2018 is as follows:

 YA 2017YA 2018

Employment Income of Mrs Chua

$125,000

$125,000

Less: Personal Reliefs

  

- Earned Income Relief

$1,000

$1,000

- CPF Relief

$20,400

$20,400

- NSman Wife Relief

$750

$750

- WMCR on 1st child

$18,750 (15% x $125,00)

$18,750 (15% x $125,000)

- WMCR on 2nd child

$25,000 (20% x $125,000)

$25,000 (20% x $125,000)

- WMCR on 3rd child

$31,250 (25% x 125,000)

$31,250 (25% x 125,000)

- FDWL Relief

$1,440

$1,440

Total Personal Reliefs

$98,590

$98,590

Total Personal Reliefs after capping (for YA 2018)

Not applicable

$80,000

Chargeable Income

$26,410 ($125,000 - $98,590)

$45,000 ($125,000 - $80,000)

Tax on First $20,000

$0

-

Tax on Next $6,410 @ 2%

$128.20

-

Tax on First $40,000

-

$550

Tax on Next $5,000 @ 7%

-

$350

Gross Tax Payable by Mrs Chua

$128.20

$900 ($550 + $350)

Less: Personal Income Tax Rebate (20% of tax payable, up to a cap of $500)

$25.64

N/A

Net Tax Payable

$102.56 ($128.20 - $25.64)

$900

Notes:

  1. The overall personal income tax relief cap of $80,000 takes effect from YA 2018. Hence, the total amount of reliefs claimed by Mrs Chua is not capped for YA 2017.
  2. As the total amount of personal reliefs claimed by Mrs Chua exceeds the overall relief cap of $80,000, the total personal reliefs allowed to her is capped at $80,000 for YA 2018.
  3. There is an increase in tax payable of $797.44 ($900 - $102.56) for Mrs Chua from YA 2017 to YA 2018, due to the relief cap.

FAQs

Why is the $80,000 personal income tax relief cap introduced?

There are currently 15 personal income tax reliefs and each relief serves a worthy objective. However, taken together, the tax reliefs can unduly reduce the total taxable income for a small proportion of individuals.

We need to moderate the effects of large amounts of reliefs claimed, in order to preserve equity in our tax structure. Hence, the personal income tax relief cap was introduced in Budget 2016. By limiting the reliefs an individual can claim to reduce the taxable income, the personal income tax system will be more progressive. The vast majority of taxpayers are unaffected by the relief cap.

What does the cap on personal income tax relief apply to?

The cap on personal income tax relief applies to the total amount of all tax reliefs claimed, which is effective from YA 2018.

How do I know if I am affected by the relief cap?

You will be affected by the relief cap if the total amount of personal reliefs claimed by you exceeds $80,000. The tax reliefs to be allowed to you will be capped at $80,000, which will be reflected in your Notice of Assessment.

To check if you will be affected by the relief cap, you can use the income tax calculator for YA 2022.

With the relief cap, do I still claim all reliefs?

Personal reliefs are granted based on claims made. You may continue to claim the personal reliefs, as long as you have satisfied the qualifying conditions of the respective reliefs.

Based on the claims made by you, if the total amount of personal reliefs exceeds the overall relief cap of $80,000, the personal reliefs allowed to you will be limited to $80,000.

The total WMCR which I can claim on my children are more than $80,000. Can I transfer the balance of my WMCR to my spouse?

No. If the total amount of personal reliefs claimed by you exceeds the relief cap of $80,000, the personal reliefs allowed to you will be limited to $80,000. The balance of the reliefs which you have claimed will be disregarded and cannot be transferred.

When claiming reliefs, if you are aware that you have exceeded the relief cap, you may consider giving up certain reliefs (e.g. Qualifying Child Relief, Parent Relief and Grandparent Caregiver Relief) and let others (e.g. your spouse, your siblings) claim the reliefs, provided that they satisfy the conditions for claiming those reliefs.

My siblings and I had previously agreed to share the Parent Relief on our parents equally. However, for YA 2022, the total amount of personal reliefs which I can claim is more than $80,000 even without the Parent Relief claim. Can I give my share of the Parent Relief to my siblings?

Personal reliefs are granted based on claims made. If you decide not to claim Parent Relief for YA 2022, you can inform your siblings so that they can claim your share of Parent Relief.

If you have claimed for your share of Parent Relief and realised that you have exceeded the relief cap after receiving the Notice of Assessment, you may file an amendment online to withdraw your claim for Parent Relief. Your siblings will also need to file amendments online to claim any additional share of Parent Relief based on their revised agreement on how to share the Parent Relief.