Income Tax in Singapore: Income Tax Reliefs (2020)

This entry is one of three Income Tax Guides for Singaporeans on Wiki.sg. Part One explains how you should calculate your income tax. Part Two complies the Income Tax Reliefs that can potentially reduce how much tax you pay. Part Three explains how to calculate your CPF Reliefs.

The IRAS is the governing body for income tax matters in Singapore. Pictured: The facade of the IRAS building. IRAS / The Straits Times.

With tax reliefs, individuals can lower the amount of income tax payable. Individuals can claim up to $80,000 of tax reliefs per financial year. This entry summarises all there is to know about the current income tax relief schemes in Singapore (as of 2020).

Overview

Tax reliefs are given by the government as recognition for good social behaviour like family formation, filial piety, National Service and upgrading of skills.

General Eligibility

Tax reliefs are generally applicable to Singapore Citizens, Permanent Residents and some foreign tax residents. In Singapore, you are considered a tax resident if you fulfil the following criteria:

(i) Singapore Citizen or Permanent resident

(ii) Foreigners who have stayed and worked in Singapore for more than 183 days (approximately six months)

Cash Donations

Individuals can receive income tax deductions from donating to charities. These charities have to be approved Institutions of a Public Character (IPC). A list of IPC charities can be accessed here.

Amount Claimable

For every $1 donated, individuals can claim a relief of $2.50.

For example, if you donate $250 to an IPC charity in a year, you qualify for a $625 income tax relief.

Course Fee Relief - Up to S$5,500

Tax residents who have upgraded their skills outside of work can qualify for the Course Fees Relief. The following section highlights the Terms & Conditions of this relief.

Course Fees Claimable

The Course Fee Relief rewards workers who have upgraded their relevant skillsets. ST File / Business Times.

The Course Fee Relief covers the following fees: (i) Aptitude Test Fees (ii) Examination Fees (iii) Registration Fees (iv) Tuition Fees.

	Can Claim	Cannot Claim
Type of Courses	Courses that have not been subsidised or reimbursed*	Fully or partially subsidised courses
	Courses relevant to your vocation, profession or employment**	Courses that fall under these categories: (i) Social Media Skills (ii) Photography (iii) Internet Surfing
Amount Claimable	Up to $5,500	> $5,500
No. of Courses	Unlimited	-

*By the employer or any other organisation.

**Polytechnic and university courses are not eligible for claim if the individual has never been employed in the relevant field.

Example

Hafiz was an engineer. In 2017, he quit his job and took up a baking course which he completed in October that year. He could not claim course relief back then as the course was unrelated to his previous profession. In January 2019, Hafiz opened a bakery and earned S$32,000 that year. With his timely* career switch, he can now claim course relief. Below shows the claim relief he is entitled to.

Year	Year of Assessment (YA)	Annual Income	Course Fee	Course Fee Relief
2017	2018	$75, 000	S$3,000	Not Applicable
2018	2019	-	-	-
2019	2020	$32,000		$3,000

*He claimed the course fees within two years of taking the course.

CPF Reliefs

The claimable amount for CPF reliefs differs from person to person based on:

(i) Annual salary

(ii) Additional wages - like bonuses and miscellaneous payments 

(iii) Whether they are an employee or self-employed

For a guide on how to calculate CPF reliefs, refer to this entry.

CPF Cash Top-up Relief - Up to S$14,000

This relief is different from the CPF Relief. You are only eligible for this relief if you:

(i) Hold a Singapore NRIC

(ii) Have made cash top-ups into your Special Account or Retirement Account

(iii) Have made case top-ups into your family member's Special Account or Retirement Account

The amount claimable is capped at $7,000 for self top-up and $7,000 for family top-up. More information can be found on the IRAS website.

Foreign Maid Levy (FML) Relief - From S$600*

*As of April 2020, the foreign maid levy had been increased from $265 to $300 a month. As such, the relief amount has increased correspondingly.

This relief is for female tax residents only. Under this relief, married, divorced or widowed mothers with school-going children can claim the foreign domestic worker levy paid in the previous year - subject to the following Terms & Conditions.

Terms & Conditions

This relief is an incentive for mothers to stay in the workforce. ST File/ Business Times.

Terms & Conditions
Applicant Status	Employed female with children
	Marital Status		Married and lives with husband
			Married but husband is not a tax resident
			Legally separated but children live with you
Child Status	Eligible for the Qualifying Child Relief (QCR)		Below 16 years old
			Full-time student at any educational institute
			No annual income of more than $4,000
Amount Claimable*	$300 per month	First Foreign Maid	The total foreign domestic worker levy paid in the previous year can be claimed twice
	$450 per month	Second Foreign Maid

*Per domestic worker.

Example 1

A family hired a domestic worker for only three months after April 2019. As such, the family paid a Foreign Maid Levy amounting to:

$900 = $300 (monthly levy amount) x 3 (no. of months paid)

Under this relief, the family can claim double the above amount ($900) to receive a $1,800 claim.

Example 2

A family hired a total of three separate domestic workers in 2019. The working female can only claim the relief for one of the maids - whichever has the higher value (the Second Foreign Maid). The table below shows the relief amount entitled to the family in YA2020.

	First Foreign Maid		Second Foreign Maid		Third Foreign Maid
Levy Rate (per month)	$265	Jan to Mar 2019	$265	Jan to Mar 2019	-
	$300	Apr to Dec 2019	$450	Apr to Dec 2019	$450	Apr to Dec 2019
No. of Months	12 months		12 months		9 months
Total Levy Paid	$3,495 = ($265 x 3 months) + ($300 x 9 months)		$4,845 = ($265 x 3 months) + ($450 x 9 months)		$4,050 = $450 x 9 months

Under this relief, the family can claim double the above amount ($4,845) to receive a $9,690 claim.

For Married Couples

The following reliefs are for married tax residents who are financially supporting their spouse. Legally separated individuals may be eligible for the relief if they fulfil the following Terms & Conditions.

Spouse Relief (SSR) - Up to $2,000

Terms & Conditions	Spouse	Legally Separated Spouse
Spouse Status	Must be living in the same household in the preceding year	Not divorced but legally separated
	Does not have any annual source income of more than $4,000	Made maintenance payments under a Court Order or Deed of Separation
	Has not been claimed for the Parent Relief OR the Sibling Relief
Amount Claimable	$2,000	The lower value of the following: $2,000 Maintenance Payments made the previous year

Handicapped Spouse Relief (HSR) - Up to $5,500

Terms & Conditions	Spouse	Legally Separated Spouse
Spouse Status	Must be living in the same household in the preceding year	Not divorced but legally separated
	Does not have any annual source income of more than $4,000	Made maintenance payments under a Court Order or Deed of Separation
	Has not been claimed for the Parent Relief and the Sibling Relief
Amount Claimable	$5,500	The lower value of the following: $5,500 Maintenance Payments made the previous year

For Working Parents - Up to S$50,000

The following tax relief schemes are incentives for those in the workforce to build families.

Qualifying Child Relief (QCR) / Handicapped Child Relief (HCR)

Employed tax residents with children are eligible for these reliefs. The table below highlights the Terms & Conditions.

Terms & Conditions	Qualifying Child Relief (QCR)	Handicapped Child Relief (HCR)
Child Status	Must be a natural offspring or legally adopted
	Below 16 years old	-
	Full-time student at any educational institute	-
	-	Mentally or physically handicapped
Amount Claimable	$4,000 per child	$7,500 per child
	Amount is capped at $50,000 per child* (QCR/HCR + WMCR)

*Mothers who qualify for the Working Mothers Child Relief (WMCR) can apply for the QCR and HCR. However, the QCR and HCR will take precedence and the WMCR amount will be limited to what is left of the $50,000 limit.

Working Mothers Child Relief (WMCR)

Employed, female tax residents with children are eligible for the Working Mother’s Child Relief (WMCR) regardless of the whether they are married, divorced or widowed. The table below highlights the Terms & Conditions.

Terms & Conditions
Applicant Status	Employed female with children
	Earning a taxable income
Child Status	Below 16 years old		Eligible for the Qualifying Child Relief* (QCR)
	Full-time student at any educational institute
	No annual income of more than $4,000
Amount Claimable**	15%	First Child	Amount is capped at $50,000 per child (WMCR + QCR/HCR)
	20%	Second Child
	25%	Third Child or more

*The Working Mothers Child Relief can be used in conjunction with the Qualifying Child Relief.

**The amount claimable is a percentage of the mother's annual income.

Example

Mr and Mrs Chin have one 10 year old son. Mrs Chin earned an annual income of $320,000 in 2019. The couple decided that Mr Chin would claim the QCR ($4,000) while Mrs Chin claims the WMCR at 15% of her earned income ($48,000). However, since there is a $50,000 cap on the total relief amount per child, Mrs Chin can only claim a WMCR valued at $46,000.

Grandparent Caregiver Relief (GCR) - Up to S$3,000

This relief is for female tax residents only. The GCR is given to working mothers who engage the help of their parents/ in-laws or grandparents/ in-laws to care for their children.

Terms & Conditions

The Grandparent Caregiver Relief is an incentive for mothers to stay in the workforce. Photo from Channel News Asia.

Terms & Conditions
Applicant Status	Employed female with children
	The first and only applicant applying for the GCR*
Caregiver** Status	Living in Singapore in the previous year
	Foreigners must have lived a minimum of eight months in Singapore
Child Status	12 years old and below OR unmarried, handicapped children who are unemployed
	Singapore citizen
	No annual income of more than $4,000
Amount Claimable	Maximum of $3,000

*For example, if your sibling has applied for the GCR, you are no longer entitled to the relief.

**Parent, grandparent, parent-in-law or grandparent-in-law of the applicant.

Handicapped Sibling Relief - Up to S$5,500

The following reliefs are for tax residents who are the caregivers of their handicapped siblings. Individuals must fulfil the following Terms and Conditions to qualify.

Terms & Conditions

Terms & Conditions
Applicant Status	Must have incurred at least $2,000 in support cost
Housing Status	Must be presently living in the same household with handicapped sibling
	Handicapped siblings must have lived there permanently in the previous year
	Handicapped siblings who are foreigners must have lived a minimum of eight months in Singapore
Dependant Status	Has not been claimed for the Spouse Relief OR the Parent Relief
Amount Claimable	Up to $5,500

NSman Tax Relief

Most male taxpayers in Singapore are eligible for this relief. Photo from Facebook.

All operationally ready National Servicemen (NSmen), their parents and wives are eligible for this relief if they meet the following Terms & Conditions. For this relief, no action is required from the taxpayer.

For NS men - Up to S$5,000

All eligible NS men are automatically given the NSman Tax Relief. If you are both an NSman and the father of an NSman, you are eligible for either the NSmen Self Relief OR the NSmen Parent Relief - whichever has the higher value.

Terms & Conditions
Individual Status	Completed your full-time National Service under the Enlistment Act	Those who have committed any disciplinary or criminal offences in the preceding work year are not entitled to this relief
	Deemed to have completed said service by the proper authority
Amount Claimable		Performed activities	Did not perform activities
	General Population	$3,000	$1,500
	Key Command & Staff Appointment Holders	$5,000	$3,500

For Wives - S$750

All eligible wives of NS men are automatically given the NSman Tax Relief. Widows of deceased NSmen may also be eligible for relief if she has not remarried.

Terms & Conditions
Individual Status	Singapore Citizen
	Married to an NSman who is eligible for the relief
Amount Claimable	$750

For Parents - S$750

All eligible parents of NS men are automatically given the NSman Tax Relief.

Terms & Conditions
Individual Status	Singapore Citizen
	Has a child who is eligible for the relief
	The child is a natural offspring or legally adopted
Amount Claimable	$750 for each parent

Parent Relief Schemes

The following reliefs are for tax residents who are financially supporting their parents. Individuals must fulfil the following Terms and Conditions to qualify.

Parent Relief - Up to S$9,000

This relief is an incentive to promote filial piety. ST File/ Business Times. The Straits Times / Singapore General Hospital.

Terms & Conditions	Living in Same Household	Living Seperately
Applicant Status	-	Must have incurred at least $2,000 in support costs
Dependant Status	Above 55 years old
	Does not have any annual source income of more than $4,000
	Has not been claimed for the Spouse Relief OR the Sibling Relief
Amount Claimable	$9,000	$5,500

Handicapped Parent Relief - Up to S$14,000

Terms & Conditions	Living in Same Household	Living Seperately
Applicant Status	-	Must have incurred at least $2,000 in support costs
Dependant Status	Above 55 years old
	Does not have any annual source income of more than $4,000
	Has not been claimed for the Spouse Relief OR the Sibling Relief
Amount Claimable	$14,000	$10,000

Methods for Claiming Income Tax Reliefs

This section highlight the different ways you can claim the following income tax reliefs.

Above-mentioned Reliefs

Income Tax Relief	Method
Course Fee Relief	Fill in the relevant forms on the IRAS myTAX portal when filing your taxes.
Foreign Maid Levy Relief*
Grandparent Caregiver Relief (GCR)*
Handicapped Sibling Relief*
Handicapped Spouse Relief (HSR)*
Parent Relief / Handicapped Parent Relief
Qualifying Child Relief (QCR) / Handicapped Child Relief (HCR)*
Working Mothers Child Relief (WMCR)

*Only first time claimants have to fill in the relevant forms on the IRAS myTAX portal. No action is needed for those who have claimed the relief before. The relief will be automatically accredited according to the amount claimed in the previous year.

Course Fee Relief

(i) For courses that are longer than a year, claims can be divided equally and claimed over the next few years. For example:

Clara paid for a non-subsidised 3-year course in 2019 costing $9,000. She earns more than S$22,000 a year. Under the Course Fee Relief Scheme, she can claim an annual relief of $3,000 in YA2020, YA2021 and YA 2022.

(ii) Course fee claims can be deferred if your annual income (after donation deduction) is less than S$22,000. For example:

In 2015, Xavier took up a part-time vocational course in tourism costing S$6,000. His course ended in 2017. However, he could not claim tax relief as he had been earning less than S$22,000 a year. In 2019, his annual income was S$23,000. He can then only claim $5,500 of his course fee.