1. S$1.Three billion Enterprise Assist Package deal to assist businesses handle prices
Throughout his Budget 2024 speech at present (February 16), Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong introduced an S$1.Three billion Enterprise Assist Package deal to assist businesses in Singapore handle rising prices.
The Enterprise Assist Package deal contains a company revenue tax rebate, enhancements to the Enterprise Financing Scheme (EFS), and an extension of the SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit score. Right here’s a breakdown on the bundle:
(a) Company revenue tax rebate
Corporations will obtain a company revenue tax rebate of 50 per cent, capped at S$40,000, for 2024.
Businesses that aren’t worthwhile, who’ve employed no less than one native worker in 2023, will obtain minimal money payouts of S$2,000.
(b) Enhancements to the EFS
The EFS will obtain three enhancements, together with a everlasting elevate of the utmost working capital mortgage quantum from S$300,000 to S$500,000 to assist small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) meet their elevated working capital and operational cashflow wants.
Other than this, the improved most commerce mortgage quantum of S$10 million might be prolonged till Mar 31, 2025, to help businesses’ internationalisation efforts amid world help chain disruptions.
The help for home building tasks beneath the EFS’ challenge loans may even be prolonged till Mar 31, 2025, with a most mortgage quantum of S$15 million.
Moreover, the federal government has additionally prolonged help for inexperienced loans sunder the EFS to help native SMEs to undertake inexperienced options, in addition to enhancing the Power Effectivity Grant. The Power Environment friendly grant was first launched in 2022 for the Meals Companies, Meals Manufacturing and Retail Sectors, and might be prolonged to incorporate extra industries such because the Manufacturing, Building, Maritime and Information Centres.
Corporations registered and working in Singapore with no less than 30 per cent native shareholding, no less than one native worker and a bunch annual gross sales turnover of no more than $500 million might be eligible for help beneath the scheme.
(c) SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit score extension
The federal government may even be extending the SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit score by a 12 months to Jun 30, 2025.
Employers who’ve already acquired the credit score will have the ability to apply it to supportable schemes past Jun 30, 2024, with claims to be submitted by Jun 30, 2025.
2. New SkillsFuture programme for mid-career employees
The federal government might be introducing a brand new SkillsFuture Degree-Up Programme might be launched for Singaporeans aged 40 and above to raised help these mid-career employees to retrain and achieve new abilities.
This features a S$4,000 top-up in SkillsFuture Credit score for chosen programs, subsidies for a second full-time diploma at chosen tutorial establishments, and a month-to-month coaching allowance – which might be equal to 50 per cent of the employee’s common revenue within the final 12 months, capped at S$3,000 – for chosen full-time programs.
3. PACT scheme might be enhanced to help SME and MNC collaboration
The Partnerships for Functionality Transformation (PACT) scheme may even be enhanced in additional areas, specializing in functionality coaching, internationalisation and company venturing.
The scheme was first launched in 2010 and helps collaboration between bigger firms and SMEs in co-innovation and internationalisation tasks. By way of the improved scheme, the federal government goals to assist extra Singaporean corporations plug world provide chains, compete in markets overseas and develop to turn out to be trade leaders.
4. Decrease wage employees to get bigger payouts
As a part of the federal government’s enhancements to the Workfare Earnings Scheme, salaries for lower-wage employees might be adjusted.
Decrease-wage senior employees will qualify for a most annual payout of S$4,900, up from S$4,200 at present. The increment will depend upon their age and wage, and older employees and individuals with disabilities will obtain the very best funds.
The federal government may even elevate the qualifying revenue cap from S$2,500 to S$3,000 for the Workfare Earnings Scheme to make sure that lower-wage employees will proceed to obtain advantages as their wages develop, which is able to profit round half 1,000,000 Singaporeans ranging from Jan 1, 2025.
5. Native Qualifying Wage for full-time employees might be raised to S$1,600
The Native Qualifying Wage (LQS) for full-time employees might be raised from S$1,400 to S$1,600 from July 1 this 12 months, and the minimal hourly charge may even be elevated from S$9 to S$10.50 per hour.
The LQS is the minimal wage that corporations hiring overseas employees are required to pay their native employees, and the variety of native employees paid the LQS is then used to compute the agency’s overseas employee quota entitlement.
6. Co-funding ranges for the Progressive Wage Credit score Scheme might be elevated
Employers who elevate the wages of lower-wage employees may even get extra help from the federal government by means of the Progressive Wage Credit score Scheme, the place the federal government co-funds the wage will increase of lower-wage employees with employers.
The federal government might be growing the co-funding ranges might be raised for 2024 to a most of 50 per cent, up from a most of 30 per cent.
7. CPF contributions to boost by 1.5 share factors from 2025
The Enhanced Retirement Sum might be raised and the CPF contribution charges for these aged 55-65 will enhance by 1.5 share factors from 2025 onwards.
Moreover, the Particular Accounts in CPF might be closed for these aged 55 and above ranging from 2025 and past. The entire funds gathered might be transferred to the Retirement Sum and account holders can nonetheless benefit from the long-term rates of interest.
The CPF Transition Offset may even be supplied to employers for one other 12 months, to cowl half of the rise in employer contributions for 2025 and cushion the influence on enterprise prices.
8. Momentary monetary help scheme for retrenched employees
Amid a spate of layoffs up to now few years, the federal government is at the moment figuring out the parameters of a short lived monetary help scheme to assist retrenched employees whereas they endure coaching or look for one other job.
The scheme might be a part of a revamp and growth of the nation’s SkillsFuture programme, and extra particulars might be revealed later this 12 months.
9. S$2 billion to be invested into monetary sector, S$Three billion into R&D, and S$1 billion into AI developments
The federal government will put a further S$2 billion into the Nationwide Productiveness Fund and Monetary Sector Improvement Fund.
With the extra funds, Singapore will introduce a brand new refundable tax credit score scheme that goals to help high-value and substantive financial actions to stay aggressive and appeal to investments.
Investments eligible for the Refundable Funding Credit score (RIC) scheme embrace these associated to the inexperienced transition, innovation and R&D.
The RIC might be awarded by the Singapore Financial Improvement Board and Enterprise Singapore, and is predicated on the qualifying expenditures incurred by a agency.
Corporations can stand up to 50 per cent of help on every qualifying expenditure class, together with manpower prices, skilled charges, supplies and consumables, freight and logistics prices, and capital expenditure.
Moreover, Singapore may even make investments S$Three billion in the direction of analysis and improvement (R&D) and one other S$1 billion over 5 years to additional enhance the city-state’s synthetic intelligence (AI) capabilities.
10. Two elements beneath Pillar 2 of BEPS might be launched
Beneath the Base Erosion and Revenue Shifting (BEPS) 2.zero initiative, which was launched final 12 months, Singapore will introduce the Earnings Inclusion Rule (IIR), the place multinational enterprises (MNEs) parented in Singapore are subjected to a minimal efficient tax charge of 15 per cent on the income made by their abroad subsidiaries.
On prime of this, the federal government may even implement the Home High-up Tax (DTT), which applies to the Singapore income of MNEs.
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