To help companies meet rising wages, the Singaporean government will be handing out about SGD 660 million to employers under the Wage Credit Scheme (WCS). About 70 per cent of the amount will be given to the small and medium sized enterprises.
The government will dole out the money to about 85,000 employers. In this connection, Inland Revenue Authority (IRA) will inform the eligible employers about the total payout through individual letters. Those employers who want to check their eligibility can do so at the IRAS website.
The money will be credited directly into the employers’ GIRO bank account used for income tax and goods and services tax (GST) purposes, or issued through cheques, said the Ministry of Finance.
The main purpose of the scheme is to help businesses cope with rising wage costs so that they can free up resources to invest and share their productivity gains with employees. WCS is part of the Transition Support Package (TSP) which also includes Corporate Income Tax Rebate, and the Productivity and Innovation Credit Bonus.
Under the Wage Credit Scheme, the government has co-funded 20 per cent of the wage increases given to Singaporean workers earning a gross monthly wage of SGD 4,000 and below, from 2015 to this year.
