SINGAPORE (ANN/STRAITS TIMES) – Approximately 1.5 million eligible adult Singaporeans will receive cash payouts of SGD450 or SGD850 in August to aid with daily living expenses, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) announced on July 4.
Residents in homes with annual values up to SGD21,000 will receive SGD850, while those in homes valued between SGD21,000 and SGD25,000 will get SGD450. This represents an increase of SGD150 or SGD100 from last year.
The payouts will go to Singaporeans aged 21 and above with an assessable income of up to SGD34,000 for the 2023 assessment year. Those owning more than one property are not eligible.
Additionally, around 650,000 Singaporeans aged 65 and above will have up to SGD450 credited to their Central Provident Fund MediSave accounts in August.
These payments are part of the GST Voucher (GSTV) scheme, aimed at helping lower- to middle-income Singaporeans offset GST expenses, which have increased from 7 per cent to 8 per cent in January 2023 and will rise to 9 per cent in January 2024.
The 2024 GSTV disbursements, announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in February 2023, will total SGD1.4 billion, SGD200 million more than in 2023.
Eligible citizens can sign up for the GSTV Scheme at the govbenefits website by July 9 to receive payments by August. Those linking their NRIC to PayNow by July 22 will receive their handouts early August. Payments via Giro will commence on August 12.
Those without PayNow-NRIC linked accounts can update their bank information on the govbenefits website by July 26. Citizens not linked to PayNow or without a valid bank account will receive payments via GovCash, withdrawable at OCBC ATMs using a payment reference number and facial verification starting August 22.
To prevent scams, an SMS notification from gov.sg will inform citizens of their benefits without requiring replies or additional information.
