Useful Information for Employers

1. How much SEC and ASEC can employers receive?

   ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​From 2017 onwards, employers hiring Singaporean workers aged 55 and above, and earning up to $4,000 will continue to receive wage-o​ffsets, tiered by age (see table below).
   

   ​Age (years)	​Wage-offset
   ​55 - 59	Up to 3% of monthly wage​
   60 - 64​	Up to 5% of monthly wage​
   65 & above​	Up to 8% of monthly wage​

   ​
   In 1 January 2015, an additional wage offset of up to 3% of an employee's monthly wages was introduced to encourage employers to voluntarily re-employ Singaporeans aged 65 and above. At Budget 2017, it was announced that this add​itional wage support would be extended from 1 July 2017 to 31 December 2019 to encourage the voluntary re-employment of older Singaporeans who would not be covered by the new re-employment age of 67, i.e. individuals born before 1 July 1952 and those above age 67 on 1 July 2017. ​​
   

   Taken together, this means that employers who hire workers not covered by the re-employment age of 67 will receive an SEC of up to 11% of an employee’s monthly wages​.​ ​
   

   ​The SEC/ASEC payout formula for work done from 1 January to 31 December 2019, and the extended period of 1 January to 31 December 2020 is as follows :​​​​​
   

   ​​​​​  Income of employee in a given month ($)
   	​ ​​​​ SEC/ASEC for the month ($) for employers who hire Singaporeans ​
   	Aged between 55 and 59 (i.e. >=55yrs 0mths and <=59yrs 11mths)	Aged​ between 60 and 64 (i.e. >=60yrs 0mths and <=64yrs 11mths)	Aged between 65 and 67 (i.e. >=65yrs 0mths and <67yrs 0mths)		Aged 67 and above (i.e. >=67yrs 0mths)​
   			​Born on or after 1 July 1952	Born befor​e 1 July 1952​
   Up to 3,000	3% of wage	5% of wage​	8% of wage	11% of wage​	11% of wage​
   > 3,000 to 4,000	360 – (0.09*wage)	​600 – (0.15*wage)	​960 – (0.24*wage)	1,320​ – (0.33*wage)	1,320 – (0.33*wage)​

   ​

    ​

   The amount of SEC/ASEC payouts employers will receive per month for 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2020 is in the table below.​​

   ​

   ​​​​​​​  Income of employee in a given month ($)
   	​​ ​​​​ SEC/ASEC for the month ($) for employers who hire Singaporeans ​
   	Aged between 55 and 59​​​ [Up to 3% SEC]​	Aged between 60 and 64​ [Up to 5% SEC]	Aged between 6​5 and 67		aged 67 and above​ [Up to 11% SEC]
   			​Born on or after 1 July 1952 [Up to 8% SEC]	Born before 1 July 1952​ [Up to 11% SEC]
   500	15.00	25.00​	40.00	55.00​	55.00​
   1,000	30.00	50.00​	​80.00	​110.00	110.00​
   1,500	45.00	​75.00	120.00	165.00​	165.00​
   2,000	60.00	​100.00	160.00	220.00​	​220.00
   2,500	75.00	​125.00	200.00	275.00​	​275.00
   3,000	90.00	​150.00	240.00	330.00​	​330.00
   3,250	67.50	​112.50	180.00	247.50​	​247.50
   3,500	45.00	​75.00	120.00	​165.00	​165.00
   3,750	22.50	​37.50	60.00	​82.50	​82.50
   ​ ≥​4,000	0	​0	0	​0	​0

   
   

   ​
   

   The SEC payout reduces linearly for monthly wages between $3,000 to $4,000.​​
   

2. How much SEC and ASEC can employers of persons with disabilities (PWDs) receive?

   ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Employers of PWDs will continue to receive a SEC of up to 16% of the PWD's monthly income, regardless of age.  
   In addition, employers of older PWDs aged 65 and above who would not be covered by the new re-employment age of 67, i.e. individuals born before 1 July 1952 and those above age 67 on 1 July 2017, will receive a further SEC enhancement of up to 6%. This increases the SEC quantum to up to 22% of the monthly wage for these PWDs.
   

   The SEC/ASEC payout formula for PWDs from 1 January to 31 December 2019 and extended period of 1 January to 31 December 2020 is as follows :
   

   Income of employee in a given month ($)
   	SEC/ASEC for the month ($) for employers who hire Singaporean PWDs
   	Aged 13 and above but below 65 (i.e. >=13yrs 0mths and <=64yrs 11mths)	Aged between 65 and 67 (i.e. >=65yrs 0mths and <67yrs 0mths)​		​Aged 67 and above (i.e. >=67yrs 0mths)
   		​Born on or after 1 July 1952	Born before 1 July 1952​
   Up to 1,500	16% of wage	16% of wage​	22% of wage​	22% of wage​
   ​ > 1,500 to 3,000	240	240​​	​330	​330
   > 3,000 to 4,000	960 - (0.24*wage)	960 - (0.24*wage)​	​1,320 - (0.33*wage)	​1,320 - (0.33*wage)

   ​​​

   The amount of monthly SEC employers will receive from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2020 is in the table below.

   Income of employee in a given month ($)
   	SEC/ASEC for the month ($) for employers who hire Singaporean PWDs
   	Aged 13 and above but below 65 ​[Up to 16% SE​C]	Aged between 65 and 67​		​Aged 67 and above [Up to 22% SEC]
   		Born on or after 1 July 1952 [Up to 16% SEC]​	Born before 1 July 1952 [Up to 22% SEC]​
   500	80.00	​80.00	110.00​	110.00​
   ​ 1,000	160.00	​160.00	​220.00	​220.00
   1,500	240.00	​240.00	​330.00	​330.00
   2,000	240.00	​240.00	330.00​	​330.00
   2,500	240.00	240.00​	​330.00	330​.00
   3,000	240.00	​240.00	​330.00	​330.00
   3,250	180.00	180.00​	247.5​0​	​247.50
   3,500	120.00	​120.00	165​.00	165.00​
   3,750	60.00	​60.00	​82.50	​82.50
   ​ ≥​4,000	0	​0	​0	0​

   
   

   ​

   ​The SEC payout reduces linearly for monthly wages between $3,000 to $4,000. ​​
   

3. What is considered as wages in assessing SEC eligibility? Will overtime pay and bonuses be included?

   ​​​​SEC eligibility is based on the total wages paid to the employee, as computed from the CPF contributions that are made. The total wage of the employee is the sum of his Ordinary Wages for the month and the Additional Wages paid to him in that month. This may include but is not limited to food allowances, overtime, annual bonus, leave pay etc. Please refer to CPF Board website for a more detailed description of total wages.
   

4. How is the age of an employee determined in assessing his eligibility for the SEC?

   ​The SEC is provided to employers that hire employees aged 55 and above, and the wage offsets are tiered by age. The employee will be considered to be 55 (or the next age group) in the month of his birthday.​​​
   

5. As an employer, what do I need to do to receive my SEC?

   MOM will automatically assess your eligibility for the SEC, based on your regular monthly CPF contributions for your employees. You will receive a letter from MOM informing you of the payment if you are eligible and have made the necessary CPF contributions on time.

6. When is the cut-off date for employers to make their CPF contributions to qualify for SEC?

   ​​Employers are given 14 days to make payment of CPF contributions after the end of the month for which CPF contributions are due, to qualify for SEC. If the last day of the grace period falls on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday, CPF contributions must be paid by the next working day.

7. How will the SEC payment be made?

   ​​​​​​Employers will receive their SEC in the bank accounts that are registered with CPF Board for the GIRO payment of CPF contribution. Employers without a GIRO arrangement with CPF Board may submit the Instruction for GIRO Payment of Special Employment Credit online in order to start receiving SEC automatically in the entity’s bank account. Employers without GIRO arrangements will​ receive their SEC by cheque.​​
   

   Note: The online form must be subm​itted by the owner of the entity (i.e. sole-proprietor or one of the partners/directors). Forms submitted by other parties would be rejected.
   

8. When will I receive payment for the SEC?

   ​​​​​​​​​SEC will be paid in September of the same year for work done from January to June, and March of the following year for work done from July to December.

   ​​​Please refer to the table below for the payment months.​
   

   Employees on the Payroll​	Deadline for employers to make CPF contributions to receive SEC	Payment Month ​​for SEC
   January to June	14th of the subsequent month E.g. 14 February for employees on the January payroll	September of the same year
   ​ July to ​December	14th of the subsequent month E.g. 14 January of the following year for employees on the December ​payroll	March of the following year

   ​ ​
   
9. My cheque has expired. Can I request reissuance of my SEC cheque?

   ​​​​​​​Employers are encouraged to bank in the cheque(s) within 6 months from the cheque issuance date. If the cheque has expired, employers may submit the Instruction for GIRO Payment of Special Employment Credit​  online in order to receive the payment through GIRO to the entity's bank account.
   

   If your entity does not have a corporate bank account, the entity may authorise the sole proprietor, director or partner to receive SEC via GIRO on behalf of the entity. Employers have to submit the Authorisation by Entity to Pay Special Employment Credit​ to a Third Party​ online, by the dates below.

   ​​Assessment Period​	Date that completed form must reach us
   January – June	10th April of the following year
   ​​July – December	10th October of the following year

   
   

   Note: The online form must be submitted by the owner of the entity (i.e. sole-proprietor or one of the partners/directors). Forms submitted by other parties would be rejected.
   

   ​​​However, if you have reason(s) for not being able to receive SEC payment via GIRO, please inform us by the same dates above and we will re-issue the cheque(s) accordingly.​
   

10. I received the SEC cheque but do not have a corporate bank account. What should I do?

    ​​You are encouraged to open a corporate bank account and register it with us so that you can receive future SEC payments via GIRO.
    

    If your entity does not have a corporate bank account, the entity may authorise the sole proprietor, director or partner to receive SEC via GIRO on behalf of the entity. Employers have to  submit the Authorisation by Entity to Pay Special Employment Credit to a Third Party online, by the dates below.

    Assess​ment Period	Date that completed form must reach us
    January – June	10th April of the following year
    ​July – December	10th October of the following year​

    ​
    

    ​​​​Note: The online form must be submitted by the owner of the entity (i.e. sole-proprietor or one of the partners/directors). Forms submitted by other parties would be rejected.
    

11. My business ceased operations after assessment/halfway through the assessment period. I have made CPF contributions for my Singaporean employees. Will I still receive SEC?

    ​​​​​​​​​​You will be assessed for the SEC and notified of your payment for the period that CPF contributions for eligible employees were made. If your business bank account has been terminated following the cease of business operations, please write in to the SEC team (sec@mom.go​v.sg). We will review your case and advise you on the actions you need to take in order to receive the SEC payment.​​​
    

12. Can I receive SEC without making CPF contributions for my employees?

    The SEC is intended to provide employers with continued support in hiring older Singaporeans. Employers must make the mandatory CPF contributions for their employees in order to qualify for SEC payouts.​

13. As an employer, do I need to pay tax on the SEC payments?

    ​​Yes, SEC payments are taxable as they are considered revenue receipts.

14. I have received an SEC cheque. How do I change my mode of payment for SEC to GIRO for future SEC payouts, if I am eligible?

    ​​​​​Employers have to submit the​ Instruction for GIRO Payment of Special Employment Credit​ online in order to receive SEC via GIRO. Please ensure that the instruction reaches us by the dates below.​
    

    Assess​ment Period	Date that completed form must reach us
    January – June	10th April of the same year
    ​July – December	10​th October of the same year

    ​ ​
    

    Note: The online form must be submitted by the owner of the entity (i.e. sole-proprietor or one of the partners/directors). Forms submitted by other parties would be rejected.
    

15. How do I authorise a new third party payee to receive SEC for my entity?

    ​​​​​​​To authorise a new third party payee, employers have to submit the Authorisation by Entity to Pay Special Employment Credit to a Third Party online. Please ensure that the form reaches us by the dates below. 
    

    Assessment Period	Date that completed form must reach us
    January – June	10th April of the same year
    ​July – December	10th October of the same ​year

    ​ ​
    

    Note: The onli​ne form must be submitted by the owner of the entity (i.e. sole-proprietor or one of the partners/directors). Forms submitted by other parties would be rejected.