Employers to receive S$2.2 billion from Jun 30 under Jobs Support Scheme

SINGAPORE: More than 140,000 employers in Singapore will receive S$2.2 billion under the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) from Jun 30.

The payouts will be given to support the wages of more than 2 million local employees, said the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) on Tuesday (Jun 22). 

"With this payout, more than S$26.7 billion of JSS support would have been disbursed since the introduction of the scheme at the Unity Budget in February 2020," said the joint media release. 

The JSS subsidies the wages of Singaporeans and permanent residents to help companies affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Employers who made mandatory Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions for their local employees for January to March this year by the stipulated deadlines will receive the payout. 

READ: Work-from-home to remain as default; Jobs Support Scheme extended to July

For the upcoming payout in June, employers in the aviation, aerospace, and tourism sectors will receive 50 per cent subsidy for the first S$4,600 of gross monthly wages paid from January to March.

Employers in the food services, retail, arts and entertainment, land transport, built environment, and marine and offshore industries will receive 30 per cent subsidy. 

Other sectors will receive a subsidy of 10 per cent. Sectors that will not receive the subsidy are biomedical sciences, precision engineering, electronics, financial services, information and communications technology, media, postal and courier, online retail, and supermarkets and convenience stores.

Eligible employers will be notified by post of their payout amount this month. They can also log in to myTax Portal to view the electronic copy of their letter.

Employers who have registered for PayNow Corporate as of Jun 25 or have existing GIRO arrangements with IRAS can expect to receive the payouts from Jun 30. Others can expect to receive their cheques from Jul 5. 

READ: Jobs Support Scheme extended to retailers, gyms and arts sector

The Government previously announced that the JSS will be extended to sectors significantly affected by the COVID-19 measures from May 16 to Jul 11. 

Employers in these sectors will receive 50 per cent subsidy during the period, while those in other sectors will receive 30 per cent. From Jul 12 to 25, all affected sectors will continue to receive 10 per cent subsidy. 

These payouts will be disbursed in September. 

READ: COVID-19 grant to provide one-off payout to workers suffering income loss, on no-pay leave during Heightened Alert period

MOF and IRAS reminded employers to pay the right amount of CPF for their employees, based on actual wages paid. 

"Employers’ CPF contributions are used to determine the amount of JSS payout. The penalties for any attempt to abuse the JSS are severe," they said. 

Other than having their JSS payouts denied, offenders can be charged and may face up to 10 years' jail and a fine.

Businesses or individuals who wish to report any malpractices or potential abuses of the scheme may do so via email to jssreport [at] iras.gov.sg or online. 

"As part of the checks for JSS eligibility, a small number of employers will receive letters from IRAS asking them to conduct a self-review of their CPF contributions and to provide declarations or documents to substantiate their eligibility for JSS payouts," said the release. 

Their June payouts will be withheld pending the self-review and verifications by IRAS, and will be disbursed after. 

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