By the end of this month, more than 85,000 employers here will receive about S$660 million in Wage Credit Scheme (WCS) payouts, with small and medium-sized enterprises getting 70 per cent of the sum disbursed.

Eligible employers will be informed of the total payout they will receive through letters from the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Those who wish to check on their eligibility can do so at the IRAS website.

The payout will be credited directly into the employers’ GIRO bank account used for income tax and GST (goods and services tax) purposes, or issued as cheques to employers, said the Ministry of Finance on Friday (March 17).

Appeals will have to be submitted to IRAS by June 30 and they will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Introduced in 2013 as part of the Transition Support Package (TSP), the WCS payouts are meant to help businesses cope with rising wage costs so that they can free up resources to invest in productivity and share their productivity gains with employees. Other schemes under the TSP include the Corporate Income Tax Rebate, and the Productivity and Innovation Credit Bonus.

Under the extended WCS, the Government co-funds 20 per cent of the wage increases given to Singaporean workers earning a gross monthly wage of S$4,000 and below, for the period of 2015 to this year.

Source:
courtesy of TODAY

by FARIS MOKHTAR

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